This Is The Ultimate Winter Destination for Multi-Sport Adventure
My skis slice through freshly groomed snow, carving toward the valley. It’s my first ski day of the season, and although my quads are starting to burn, the sensation barely registers against the thrill of that first glide.
The scene is a sharp contrast to where I stood less than 24 hours earlier, perched near Delicate Arch, one of Arches National Park’s most iconic viewpoints. There, the wintry conditions at Deer Valley Resort exist only as hints: patches of lingering snow and a delicate frosting of ice encountered occasionally while hiking through the park’s unmistakable red rock landscape.
In Utah, you can hike one day, ski the next. Winter may be the best time to experience Moab and the iconic national parks of Canyonlands and Arches. The long lineups and crowds of summer are gone, and temperatures remain comfortable enough for hiking without needing to bundle up.
Start your day with sunrise at Mesa Arch in the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands. This short-and-sweet hike is an easy one-kilometre roundtrip that leads to a stunning natural arch with sweeping views of the valley and the La Sal Mountains. Alternatively, the Grand View Point Trail is a relatively flat route less than three kilometres long, offering expansive views of towering buttes and mini–Grand Canyon–like formations. Or the five-kilometre Murphy Point Trail feels like a step back in time, providing a glimpse into Canyonlands’ ranching past before it became a national park.
For an unforgettable experience, try the Morning Glory Arch Canyoneering Adventure offered by Moab Adventure Centre. While most visitors see Morning Glory Arch from below on a hike through Grandstaff Canyon—an easy to moderate seven-kilometre round trip journey with several stream crossings—this impressive alcove arch stretches 70 metres across a canyon and is the sixth longest natural rock span in the United States.
The tour includes two rappels of more than 30 metres into separate canyons. The first descent drops you into the Medieval Chamber, a stunning grotto accessible only by canyoneering and offering a rare viewpoint of one of Moab’s most beautiful locations. After the second rappel, you can refill your water bottle at a natural spring flowing into the grotto before completing a 3.5-kilometre hike out.
A visit to Moab wouldn’t be complete without a trip to Arches National Park, and the moderate five-kilometre round-trip hike to Delicate Arch—the park’s largest free-standing arch—is a must. The 12.6-kilometre Devil’s Garden Trail rewards with a spectacular showcase of arches and sweeping red-rock landscapes, framed by the distant mountains. Hikers encounter an impressive eight arches, including the striking Navajo Arch, Double O Arch and the aptly named Private Arch. The loop follows a challenging primitive trail with tricky navigation, so bring a map.
Swap your hiking boots for ski boots and head to Deer Valley, one of only three skier-only resorts in the United States. The debut of its East Village expansion, an ambitious new development that has doubled the size of the resort, is the largest resort expansion in ski industry history. The East Village opening has added 10 new lifts (for a total of 31 lifts) and the resort now features 202 ski runs and over 4,000 acres of skiing.
Stay nearby in the Heber Valley—it’s just a 15-minute drive away—and discover a revitalized stretch of terrain anchored by the ten-person Deer Valley East Village Gondola. Spanning nearly five kilometres, the gondola is the most advanced ropeway in Utah and among the largest in the United States. 40 percent faster than a traditional express lift, the system carries guests up an almost 800 metre vertical rise in just 15 minutes. With individually heated seats, floor-to-ceiling glass and cabins arriving every 12 seconds, the gondola has an uphill capacity of 3,000 guests per hour.
At its summit sits Park Peak, a high-altitude beginner ski area designed to deliver big-mountain views with an unintimidating introduction to the slopes. “It’s a ski resort for everyone,” says Riley Eliott, communications specialist for Deer Valley. “No matter your ability level, you can get back to where you started.”
Inclusivity is on full display with the Green Monster, an expansive Green Run that spans the entire length of the resort and invites skiers to explore without hesitation. Advanced and expert skiers also have plenty to celebrate. The East Village expansion unlocks access to Redemption Ridge—the fall line has almost 800 metres of vertical from top of Revelator Express to base of Vulcan Express—that Eliott describes as “Stein’s Way on steroids.” (Stein’s Way is one of Deer Valley’s most popular Black Diamond runs on the resort’s original terrain.)
Fans of the original terrain of Deer Valley can easily link back to familiar runs with the Pinyon Express, which boasts six-passenger bubble chairs and the warm luxury of heated seats. The Pinyon Express acts as a central artery of the expanded resort, streamlining skier flow and unlocking new access points for every ability level.
Utah in winter doesn’t ask you to choose between seasons or sports, it invites you to embrace them all. One day you’re hiking beneath sandstone arches dusted with snow, the next you’re carving fresh tracks beneath bluebird skies. From world-class skiing to quiet desert trails, the state delivers a rare kind of balance: adrenaline and stillness, luxury and wildness, all within a single trip. Here, winter adventure is as varied as the landscape itself.
This article was sponsored by Visit Utah
Utah has the Wasatch Mountains and Salt Lake City to the north, the salt flats and Great Basin Desert to the west, red rock country and national parks to the south—and mountains, rivers, forests and state parks everywhere in between. Wherever you’re headed, there’s a local community and basecamp town to provide you important amenities and insider knowledge along the way. Without a several-week road trip, it’s hard to experience it all, so pick a region and itinerary to start with, then come back again and again.
