FRIDAY
1 p.m.Catch a shuttle to the Compass Rose Lodge a 15-room, boutique hotel with a unique, hipster-farmhouse vibe, located in convenient proximity to both Nordic Valley and Powder Mountain in Huntsville.
3 p.m.
Make your way to Nordic Valley, a small, family-friendly hill in the lower hills of the valley that runs the lifts until 8 p.m. Nordic is a casual place with inexpensive lift tickets to get your ski legs on.
7 p.m.
Welcome to the oldest bar in Utah, The Shooting Star, with its tattered dollar bills covering the ceiling, old-school juke box and surprisingly tasty burgers. Dining options are a little slim in this part of Utah, so settle in and enjoy the Shooting Star Burger, with a split knockwurst included. Yes. That is a stuffed Saint Bernard on the wall over the third booth. P.S. The Shooting Star only accepts cash.
9 p.m.
Explore the night sky at the Compass Rose’s own private observatory. The powerful HALO telescope reveals celestial bodies like the rings of Saturn or Jupiter’s Galilean Moons.
SATURDAY
9 a.m.Behold Powder Mountain—or “Pow Mow” in the local lingo. The resort limits the number of skiers and riders on the mountain each day to ensure plenty of elbow room. Spend your first day here exploring the piste. We’ll get into the wild (big time) tomorrow.
Noon
Enjoy a big ol’ burrito at Hidden Lake Cantina (and maybe a beer) and enjoy the view of four states from the very top of Powder Mountain.
4 p.m.
Beers at the Powder Keg, where most days you’ll find John Burrows behind the mic with The Wasatch Wild Band in the corner bashing their way through crowd-pleasing covers.
5 p.m.
Take the evening to explore hipster downtown Ogden and tuck into a bowl of steaming ramen from Ramen Haus. Finish off with the surprising honey toast—scoops of vanilla ice cream, piled in a hollowed-out loaf of imported Japanese brioche and drizzled with, of course, honey.
SUNDAY
9 a.m.Today we go off-trail. The real deal at Pow Mow is the cat skiing on Lightning Ridge. A fleet of cats serves ungroomed terrain on the backside of the resort and opens up an in-bound backcountry experience that locals would rather we not tell you about. You can pay per ride or buy a pack of cat tickets. (Hint: You’ll want the pack of tickets.)
Noon
Grab a slice of pizza at Lucky Slice in Timberline Lodge. Lucky Slice’s home oven is down the hill in Ogden and they pride themselves on the best New York-style pizza in Utah. Then get back to the sidecountry before it’s regretfully (hello, reality) time to head to the airport.
Looking for more things to do in Ogden? Check out 48 Hours in Ogden and A Girls Getaway in Ogden.
Originally written for Ski Utah magazine
