Snowbasin Ski Resort, Utah, USA

Snowbasin Ski Resort Terrain

The Snowbasin Ski Resort features 2,950 acres of terrain for skiing and snowboarding, with 106 designated runs on 888 meters of vertical. Most of the terrain is biased towards advanced and expert skiers. However, there are still plenty of opportunities for beginners and intermediates.

Finding your way around the resort is easy as the terrain sprawls across one face of the mountain. The ski and snowboarding area is divided into three main vertical sections:

1. Strawberry – This section is accessible via a fast gondola, the Strawberry Express. Its tree skiing features are sparse, creating pleasant riding opportunities.
2. Needles – This ski area has trails that become progressively wide nearer to the base. It has a variety of lifts that include both high-speed and normal-speed types.
3. John Paul/Needles Peak – The John Paul Express quad is the main access lift along with the Mt. Allen Tram. It features incredibly steep runs with tight trees and gnarly terrain that suits experts.

The official trail statistics for the resort are:

• Beginner - 20%
• Intermediate - 50%
• Advanced - 30%

Beginner Riding at Snowbasin Ski Resort

At the Snowbasin Ski Resort, beginners have access to great gentle terrain near the base of the resort. The trails are fenced off meaning that beginners can ski or snowboard undisturbed, and learn at their own pace. Snowsport lessons are provided at affordable rates by experienced personnel. For those who don’t have their own equipment, the resort has equipment sales and rental outlets that cater to them.

Absolute novices ride the Powder Puff magic carpet and when they gain more confidence, they can try out the Little Cat Chair. The trails off the Becker and Wildcat chairs offer great progression opportunities for beginners.

Intermediate Riding at the Snowbasin Ski Resort

Intermediates get plenty of snow playgrounds in the Needle and Strawberry areas. The blue runs are sure to give adventurous intermediates pleasant thigh burns as they are characterized by long groomers that run from the top to the base of the resort (especially those at Elk Ridge). 

The Strawberry Express and Becker chairs provide great blue runs on either side of the groomers, which have great snow that first-time intermediates appreciate. More advanced intermediates can take on the ungroomed black pistes on the upper slopes.

As you schuss downslope, be careful as the resort does not have signposting and it may be hard to find your way, especially during low visibility days.

Advanced and Expert Slopes at the Snowbasin Ski Resort

Advanced and expert revelers are adequately catered for at Snowbasin Ski Resort, from the pistes on top of Mt. Allen Tram to the former Olympic Mens’ Downhill course. The John Paul quad whisks riders to a selection of thrilling runs riddled with ridges as well as advanced pistes on the Wildflower Downhill, Grizzly Downhill, and Hollywood.

For those looking to reach incredible downhill speeds, they’ll delight in the steep runs off the Grizzly and Wildflower downhills. There are also slopes with challenging features beneath the Needles Pork Barrel and Moose Mound.

Expert riders are also well-taken care of as there are vast slopes that are massively challenging and require some level of local knowledge. There are plenty of tree skiing opportunities in the double black pistes around the Ellison, Deane, and, Janis areas. The most challenging slopes especially loved by experts are those off Lone Tree and Arrowhead of De Moisy Peak.

Lifts at Snowbasin Ski Resort

You can cover plenty of vertical by riding Snowbasin’s conveniently placed efficient and fast lifts. Almost two-thirds of the Snowbasin terrain is accessed via two gondolas. This is a good thing as it is possible to avoid riding the icy cold chairlifts by hopping onto a comfy gondola. A large proportion of the slopes are also serviced by high-speed chairlifts, making it a breeze to traverse the terrain. 

You may avoid powder lift lines by considering the slower chairlifts. The upside to riding these lifts is that they offer spectacular views of the terrain and the surrounding landscape as they ascend slowly but steadily.

The history of the resort’s location as an Olympic venue is reflected in the Strawberry gondola where each cabin is dedicated to a country that took part in the 2002 winter games.

The lifts include 1 Aerial Tramway, 2 mono cable circulating ropeway gondolas, and 6 chairlifts. The named lifts are: 

• The Allen Peak Tram – This is a 15-person aerial tramway that has a carrying capacity of 400 riders per hour and covers a length of 355 meters.
• Strawberry Express Gondola – This is an 8-person gondola that covers a length of 2,923 meters and has a carrying capacity of 2,400 riders and their equipment.
• Needles Express Gondola – This is also an 8-person gondola that has an hourly carrying capacity of 2,400 riders and covers a length of 2,896 meters.
• Middle Bowl Express – This is a detachable 6-person high-speed quad that covers a distance of 1,465 meters and has a carrying capacity of 1,800 riders every hour.
• Wildcat Express – This is a detachable 6-person high-speed quad that covers a length of 1,541 meters and can ferry up to 2,400 persons every hour.
• Littlecat Express – This is a detachable high-speed quad with a length of 493 meters and an hourly carrying capacity of 2,526 riders.
• John Paul Express – This is a detachable high-speed quad that covers a length of 2,361 meters and has a carrying capacity of 2,400 riders every hour.
• Becker Triple – This is a fixed-grip triple that covers a length of 1,739 meters and has a carrying capacity of 1,500 persons every hour.
• Porcupine Triple – This fixed-grip triple covers a length of 1,929 meters and has a carrying capacity of 1,500 riders every hour.

How To Get A Ski Pass To Snowbasin Ski Resort

You can enjoy the snow-drenched slopes at Snowbasin Ski Resort by purchasing your passes either physically at the resort or online from the resort’s website. Getting your passes online is not only convenient but you can also take advantage of pre-season sales and discounts as well as early bird offers.

You can buy the following kinds of passes at the resort:

• Season Passes – These offer the best value for money especially if you intend to ski or snowboard for more than 10 days or multiple times during the season.
• Winter Lift Tickets – Enable you to ride the lifts from the time the resort opens to the time it closes
• Corporate Passes & Group Tickets – These favor groups traveling as a unit or corporate entities on a teambuilding mission.

For more information on passes and tickets, please visit the Snowbasin Ski Resort website.

Snowbasin Ski Resort Snowcam  

Curious to know what the snow is like today at Snowbasin Ski Resort?

The following is a live snow cam webcam feed of the slopes at the Snowbasin Ski Resort. We’ve curated the best views to show you the current snow conditions from around the resort.