Salt Lake City
Oh Utah, how I have missed you. It felt so good to be back after a couple of years. Recently, I’ve been longing for the mountains and eager to ski. The past 3 seasons I have been blessed enough to ski out west and my first season outside of college was not about to break that trend. I knew Salt Lake City, Utah would have the best access to world-class skiing at a reasonable price. I invited my best friend Nicole, who also loves Utah, along for the adventure. An adventure to say the least…
Several months ago I began planning this trip. We first booked the cheapest flight out of Louisville, Kentucky with United Airlines. We chose to fly out of there because it was cheaper than Lexington. Then I reserved our Air BnB in Salt Lake where we would spend 4 nights. After securing our flights and Air BnB, we purchased a single-day lift ticket and ski rentals for Brighton Resort. I chose this resort over the others in Big and Little Cottonwood Canyon because my friend from Salt Lake recommended it.
About 2 weeks before the trip, we purchased a rental car with Avis. If you reserve your car beforehand, you save a significant amount of money. We also chose the cheapest option, a Chevy Malibu. If you are below the age of 25, you can still rent; however, you have to pay an additional fee. The grand total was roughly $500 split between the two of us, plus gas. Unfortunately, renting a car is the most expensive part of the trips I go on, which is aggrivating, but it is what it is.
On Thursday, February 2nd, I spent the entire day packing and studying. Around 5:00 pm I drove to Midway University for class from 5:30 till 9:30 pm. After class, I grabbed food, got gas and drove to Louisville to stay the night at Nicole’s apartment.
Early the following morning, her brother dropped us off at the airport. We flew to Denver then to Salt Lake and arrived around 1:00 pm, mountain time. We grabbed our luggage and checked in with Avis. From there we walked to our small but mighty Chevy Malibu. It was cute but I was certainly not used to driving such a small car. I put the Air BnB address into my phone and drove towards the city.
Our Air BnB was located in the Sugar House district of Salt Lake. The home was a beautiful white craftsman. I had already been in contact with the host, who said they were leaving town for the weekend. When we pulled up, they were packing their things into their car. Nicole and I got out and introduced ourselves. After a quick chat we headed down the path towards the backyard gate to where we would be staying.
Our Air BnB was a furnished apartment in the basement of the host’s home. It looked exactly like the pictures. It was very spacious and cozy. It had a modern bathroom and kitchen and even a washer and dryer in the bedroom. I was in awe at how perfect it was. This was the second Air BnB I had booked and I was pretty proud of myself.
After settling in, we decided to get some lunch and head to Provo, Utah. We made great timing and landed sooner than expected. With that being said, we had plenty of time to hit one of our stops that afternoon rather than cram it all the next day.
We ate lunch at Zupa’s which is this casual sandwich restaurant. I had been craving this place and was so excited to eat there. After lunch we got onto the highway and drove south to The Shops at Riverwoods to shop at Lonely Ghost.
The Shops at Riverwoods was an outdoor shopping center near the base of the mountains. Surprisingly there was no line and barely anyone inside Lonely Ghost. The concept of the store was a grocery store. It was exactly what you would expect by that statement. It was surreal being there, as I have seen this place on social media many times and the fact we just landed in Utah a few hours ago. After trying on a couple of sweatshirts, browsing the aisles and taking pictures, we checked out and continued shopping.
Later that evening we headed back to Salt Lake. We were both exhausted from traveling so we decided to stay in for the night to rest up for the next day. We stopped by Smith’s (the Utah version of Kroger’s) and bought junk food and water. After that we stopped at a state liquor store for wine. The vibes inside the liquor store were weird. The cashiers made you feel like you were sinning by buying alcohol. Must be those Mormon state laws. Once home, we showered and watched the Pamela Anderson documentary on Netflix before falling asleep.
The following morning we got ready for our first adventure. Our host had breakfast suggestions listed inside an information folder in the apartment. I thought that was a nice touch. I googled a place listed that was about 5 minutes away and we decided to eat there. It was called “The Original Pancake House.” I ordered pancakes, eggs, hash browns and toast with coffee. It was delicious. One of my favorite things to do on vacation is eat at popular restaurants. Part of vacation is indulging in food!
After breakfast we began the journey to the Bonneville Salt Flats. I have been there before in the summer of 2020 and that day was easily one of the best days of my life. I was super excited to get back, relive those memories and experience it once again.
The Salt Flats are literally a straight shot west from Salt Lake. We got my Indie playlist going and chatted away the whole drive. Casual moments like that are precious and really make me appreciate my friendship with Nicole. Nothing like a roadtrip with your best friend.
When you are driving on the highway, you will stumble upon a rest stop on the right hand side close to Bonneville. In the summer when I first visited, we got off the exit and drove straight onto the flats. This time, because it was the dead of winter, everything was under water. It was disappointing because in my mind I was expecting something different.
We got back into the car and continued following the directions on my phone which took us off the next exit, a few turns and finally arrived to the official Bonneville State Park.
The scenery is breathtaking. It felt otherworldly. The closest thing I could compare it to would be Mars. It was peaceful and desolate, with only a few tourists observing. The water was so still and clear it mirrored the sky and mountains perfectly. The water was freezing but we had to get the perfect shot for Instagram, of course. You gotta do what you gotta do. After about an hour of enjoyment, we hit the road to get back to Salt Lake before sunset.
Later that evening we got dolled up and met up with my best friend Brooke and her sister Aly for dinner at Bartolo’s in Sugar House. After wine, pasta and catching up, we headed back to the Air BnB to end the night.
The next day we slept in and had a late start to the morning. In the early afternoon we drove to Park City to spend the day. It began to snow and was a winter wonderland the entire drive there. I was a nervous wreck, so much so that I drove in the right lane with my hazards on. By the grace of God we made it to town.
We walked up and down Main Street, peeking into stores we couldn’t afford a thing in. For lunch we had Davanza’s pizza. If you are looking for an affordable, quick meal, Davanza’s is the place to go.
Sitting inside amongst all the beer cans decorating the wall brought me back to a memory of the first time I ate there in 2020. My friends and I spent the day drinking beer and wake surfing on the Jordanelle Reservoir till sunset and made a pit stop in town for some pizza. Seems like it was just yesterday.
Near sunset we drove back to Salt Lake and retired for the evening to rest up for the next day’s adventure.
At 5 am we woke up to begin our highly anticipated day of skiing at Brighton Resort. There was snow in the forecast and a “traction law” in effect which made me sick with anxiety. We didn’t have 4-wheel drive nor chains on our tiny Chevy Malibu. Through the window it looked deceivingly clear but as soon as we stepped outside we were greeted with at least 3 inches of snow. I made Nicole drive because I knew my anxiety would get the best of me.
We began our slow ascent to Big Cottonwood Canyon. It was pitch black and dumping snow. The roads were covered so much that you couldn’t see the lanes. After slowly driving in the right lane on the highway, we finally made it to the base of the mountain. A trail of cars were in front and behind us, eager to ski the fresh powder awaiting.
About 30 minutes went by and things were going well until our tires started to slide. Luckily, the section of the road was flat. In fear, we pulled off as far away from the lane as we could to let cars pass. I didn’t know what to do and knew if we sat there any longer we would get snowed in but it was too dangerous to continue driving. To make matters worse, cars were honking at us. Panic started to set in.
Soon after a police officer drove up, walked to the window and told us to turn around. He said we could wait for the plow and then left. So helpful. At this point I called my brother’s girlfriend Jenn, who conveniently and ironically is from Salt Lake. I knew she would know my exact whereabouts and could give me advice. She texted me her dad’s number, Tom, who then called me. He offered to help but first wanted us to try to drive down on our own.
When there was a break in traffic, Nicole turned the car and began driving. Everything seemed fine until our tires started to slide, again. This time we slid right into the embankment on the right, hitting the deep snow stacked against the mountainside. That is when I really began to panic. My breathing got heavy and my heart started to race. We sat trying to figure out what to do because we knew we needed to get out of that spot immediately. The road was narrow and we were lodged on the tip of a bend at a decline.
I immediately called Tom and he told me to send my location and that he was on his way. The called ended and I felt a little better until an SUV came screeching past, side-swiping the left side of our car.
I watched the whole thing as if it happened in slow motion. The car pulled off and I jumped out the left backseat door to make sure they were okay. A woman hopped out of the passenger side, ran towards me and asked if anyone was hurt. We scanned the car which surprisingly had no severe damage and quickly exchanged numbers. There was panic in her voice as she told me we needed to move our car as soon as possible because we were in danger.
I hopped back in and Nicole was crying. I remained calm, called Tom and updated him on what happened. I then called 9-1-1 and explained the situation to the operator and asked if he could send an officer to park behind our car to prevent someone from hitting us again.
We waited for what felt like an eternity. Each time a car passed, we held our breath and braced ourselves. About 25 minutes later, the same police officer from earlier pulled up. He casually strolled to the window and made a sarcastic comment about how we didn’t make it down the mountain. His nonchalantness aggravated me, especially Nicole, considering we felt like we were about to die. He said he would hangout behind us until our family friend arrived. Thank God.
Finally, Tom arrived with a buddy who dug us out and drove us down the mountain. In the midst of this entire fiasco, Tom informed us that there was a bus we could take to the resort. I was appalled. Had we known that, we would have never attempted the drive. I felt so stupid. If you were driving up Big Cottonwood Canyon on February 6th and saw two idiots in a Chevy Malibu stuck on the side of the road, that was us!
Once at the bottom, we checked out the car and decided to deal with all of that later as we still had half of a day left to ski. We thanked Tom, gathered ourselves and walked to the bus stop.
Once at the top, we got our lift ticket and ski rentals and geared up in less than 30 minutes. The whole process (after getting off the bus) was very easy. By 12:30 pm, roughly 6 hours later, we finally made it onto the slope.
The conditions were great. The visibility was low but the snowflakes made for a beautiful scene. There weren’t a lot of people, which was great because there were no lift lines and the slopes were empty.
After lunch and a nice Michelob Ultra at the lodge, the sun popped out with beautiful bright blue skies that opened up the valley behind the mountain. After a handful of runs, we headed back to the lodge and began the descent down the mountain.
We were the only ones at the bus stopped which made me anxious, again. After waiting in the cold for 15 minutes, two hippie-looking park rats walked over, asked us about the bus and suggested we hitchhike. I was not thrilled with that suggestion. After almost facing death earlier in the day, I was not about to put myself into another dumb situation. But, what did we do? Hitchhike. We put out our thumbs and multiple cars passed us. It was pretty humbling. Nicole and I hysterically laughed. Finally, a Subaru stopped and a guy hopped out, greeted us, cleared room in the backseat and we got in.
The guy was super chill. We told him about our crazy day and exchanged stories about skiing and music. He dropped us off and we bid farewell. What a crazy way to end the day.
Once home, we showered, packed, and went to sleep. The next day we flew back to good ole Kentucky. By the end of the trip I was ready to return home. 4 full days was the perfect length.
I had so much fun with Nicole. I know this was the first of many trips we will take together. I am thankful for the opportunity to travel to such a beautiful place and for my friendship. Here’s to my Utah 2023 trip and the little Chevy Malibu that couldn’t.
Air BnB Information: