FAIRVIEW CANYON, Utah — With winter approaching, crews are racing to prepare Snowland for another ski season, including construction of a new surface lift intended to expand access to the historic Central Utah ski area.
WATCH | Special use permit given to Snowland, construction starts on new surface lift
The Snowland Foundation recently received a 40-year special use permit from the Manti-La Sal National Forest, allowing the nonprofit to move forward with improvements it has been planning for the resort.
“Last Friday we got our special use permit from the Manti-La Sal National Forest, and what that means is now we can start the improvements that we’ve been anticipating up at Snowland,” said Brent Lange, chairman of the Snowland Foundation. “We’ve been just kind of stuck with, ‘Okay, let’s spruce up what we’ve got,’ and now we can really go to town.”
Work is already underway to prepare the parking lot, build a pad for a generator and ready the ski run for the new lift.
The new 2,450-foot surface lift, called the Ridgeline Express, is being supplied by European manufacturer Doppelmayr. The lift, which uses a T-bar or J-bar system, will operate alongside Snowland’s existing rope tows and expand access across approximately 107 acres.
Its relatively simple design is also intended to allow the resort to operate with a smaller staff.
Lange said the foundation hopes to have both lifts operating when the resort opens for the season on Dec. 18, weather permitting.
The new lift will require 10 towers along the mountain. Crews are working to pour the tower bases, which must cure before installation can move forward.
The timeline is tight, with construction dependent on getting the necessary work completed before winter conditions set in. Lange mentioned crews have been navigating muddy situations on the mountain these last several days, which made it hard for heavy equipment to get into the area to work. They also are off the grid and that has provided additional challenges.
Snowland has operated in Fairview Canyon since 1967. According to Kevin Christensen, director of Sanpete County Travel and Tourism, the ski area spent more than four decades under private control before a group formed the Snowland Foundation last year with the goal of bringing it back to the public.
The foundation’s plans are focused on maintaining a smaller, family-oriented ski experience rather than building a large destination resort.
“Snowland is not intended to be a big mega resort,” Christensen said. “It’s just a family-oriented resort, a place for kids to come learn to ski.”
The resort plans to accommodate an estimated 200 to 250 skiers and snowboarders a day.
Lift tickets are listed at $20 per day, with free skiing for children 12 and younger, according to information posted on Snowland’s website.
The new lift is also intended to address a safety concern in the canyon. In the past, some local skiers have taken turns driving up the canyon road to drop riders off near the ski area.
“We’re solving a safety issue in that canyon, and we’re hoping the community embraces it,” Lange said.
Beyond the lift, Snowland hopes to continue improving parking and eventually add amenities such as yurts, with the goal of attracting more visitors from across Utah.
Christensen said he believes the affordable skiing experience could appeal to families from the Wasatch Front, including the Provo and Spanish Fork areas.
Snowland is now officially listed with Ski Utah, adding to its visibility as it prepares to welcome skiers for the upcoming season.
“We’re running with the big boys, but we’re small time, small town, little resort - the little engine that could — and we’re just having fun doing it,” Lange said.
For more information about Snowland, lift tickets and plans for the upcoming season, visit the resort’s website by clicking here.