In spite of multiple trips to the Salt Lake City area, I had never ventured into the surrounding mountains.  This time around, I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity, because located an easy drive 30 miles east of Salt Lake is the mountain community of Park City.  After the Mormons settled in Utah, Army soldiers were dispatched to keep an eye on them because the government didn’t quite trust Brigham Young and his disciples.   Many of the soldiers had experience as miners and recognized the potential for rich mineral deposits around Park City. Silver was discovered in 1868.

While successful as a mining town, the city suffered three major fires in the next 30 years.  The last one in 1898 destroyed Main Street causing an estimated $1 million in losses and leaving 500 residents homeless.  But in true form, the community banded together to rebuild.  They created an iconic Main Street, building many of the structures from brick or stone instead of wood, protecting it from a repeat of that destruction.  

Today, Park City is best known for the outstanding skiing offered at Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons, to name a few, as well as the winter Sundance Film Festival established by Robert Redford. But it was summertime when I visited, an opportunity to see what else Park City had to offer.

Skiing really is king at Deer Valley Resort, as it is one of the few winter resorts in the country that does not allow snowboarding; during the summer months hiking and mountain biking take center stage. Our hiking guide, Chris Northcott, planned what was called a ‘moderate’ hike up the ‘hillside.’  It didn’t take long to determine that the two flatlanders he was guiding weren’t quite up for the climb.  (We claimed that we were still acclimating to the change in altitude.)  Stopping the hike short, we hiked back down the “hill” to the quad chair lift at the bottom.  

We waited a few moments watching mountain bikers ride up the lift, their bikes hooked onto a chair behind them and then watching them fly down the mountain.  After riding up two lifts (a lot less strenuous than hiking up) we arrived at the top of Bald Mountain to take in an amazing view of the surrounding mountains and valleys.  Breathtaking would be an understatement.  We couldn’t linger too long, but I made a mental note that the top of the mountain would be a perfect spot to eat a picnic lunch while enjoying the view. 

Lunch was at the Legends Bar and Grill at Park City Mountain Resort.  This casual comfortable restaurant offered an eclectic assortment of menu items from Roasted Pepper Hummus to the Legend’s Burger made from Kobe beef to Fish Tacos. 

After lunch we discovered a virtual amusement park on the property.  A merry go round and miniature train ride for the little ones; zip lines, trampolines , climbing wall and an alpine slide for older visitors.  But what was truly amazing was the alpine coaster.  The only alpine coaster in the United States is more than a mile of loops, curves and hairpin turns that take riders at speeds of up to 30 mph.  I was apprehensive at first, but it was exhilarating. 

Another ski resort of note in Park City is Canyons which has been undergoing what they call a “re-creation.”  Those changes include one of the most technologically advanced chairlifts in the world, a bubble enclosed, quad lift with heated seats.
 
Next up was a 60 minute walking tour of historic Park City.  The tour began with a trolley ride (all Park City public transportation is free) up Main Street.  We then stepped off and as we walked downhill, our guide explained the city’s history and the history of many of the buildings.   Tickets for the tour are $5 and can be purchased at the Park City Museum.   After the tour we grabbed a quick ice cream cone at the Java Cow and Ice Cream.  This place has great ice cream and a very unique décor -- the duct work on the ceiling is painted like the underbelly of a cow.

After ice cream we met Alison Butz, Executive Director of the Historic Main Street Alliance.   Park City is a treasure trove of unique and beautiful art.  Alison spent 90 minutes leading us to a number of wonderful art galleries along Main Street.

Our first stop was at Gallery Mar where we met with owner Maren Bargreen.  This unique gallery featured a variety of interesting pieces of art, including vases that reminded me of the work of Louis Comfort Tiffany. (I put those vases on my “wish list” of things to buy when I win the lottery.)

What I really appreciated at many of the galleries we visited was the willingness of the staff to answer any questions that we had about the artists and/or the artwork.  It was an incredibly enlightening experience.  Before Alison left us, she took us to the Kimball Art Center.  She said the Kimball wasn’t on her original gallery itinerary, but earlier in the day she was at the center for a meeting and was so impressed with the current exhibit, “Threads of Perception” by Devorah Sperber, that she wanted to share it with us.
 
The exhibit - replicas of great masterpieces like the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper using thread spools or pipe cleaners - is mesmerizing.  It's not easy to identify some of the pieces with the naked eye, but when viewed -as intended- through a glass orb or in a strategically placed mirror, the subject matter becomes evident.   It was absolutely incredible. “Threads of Perception” is on exhibit at the Kimball until October 31, 2010.
 
Park City has always been the wild child when compared to conservative Salt Lake.  The Mormon influence wasn’t felt as strongly here as it was elsewhere in the state of Utah, perhaps because of the rough and tumble life that miners lived.  A testament that the “wildness” lives on is the High West Distillery where I had an excellent dinner, tasted a variety of whiskeys and shared in some interesting conversation with Myles Rademan and Joy Barrett, long time Park City residents.  Myles was instrumental in bringing the Olympics to Salt Lake City; Joy owned a store on Main Street, and each brought a unique perspective to the discussion on life in this wonderful community.   They also personified the typical Park City resident – friendly and willing to answer any questions about the town and its history.
 
The High West, the first legal distillery in Utah since the 1870s, creates unique small batch blends of whiskeys, as well as oat based-vodkas.  I had been to microbreweries where you could purchase a flight of beer samples, but this was my first experience with a flight of whiskey samples.  Much to my surprise you could tell the difference in the whiskeys.   Before we left for the night, we went on a very brief tour of the distillery.  What particularly surprised me were the scientific equations on the wallboard.  Seems you need to have some knowledge of chemistry to make a good sipping whiskey.












Park City was a great summertime destination with lots to see and do.    Do you have a favorite winter resort that has transformed itself to take advantage of summer?  Please take a moment and share your thoughts.