Show California Paper Has New Slant on Fun and Frolic in Summit Park City's rapid growth In the recreational field Is attaining national national na na- even international atten atten- tion We are Indebted to g goodfriend good goodfriend od friend Mickey Mecham Mechem whose husband husband hus hus- band Is at In California for the following big story by Hans Engh in the Santa Barbara News The observations observations on Utah and its cles Gies from the state out angle are more than Interesting By Hans Engh Press News-Press Staff Writer SALT LAKE CITY Says ou our r leader See the USA U.S.A. So with an Imaginary bow i ithe in inthe inthe n the general direction of the WhiteHouse White WhiteHouse House we hopped aboard a Western Western West West- ern Jet at Los Angeles for the hour 1 flight to this capital of and a look at the skiing country hereabouts Santa Barbaras Barbara's skiers an and ana their number Is growing rapidly rapidly- are forced to tackle quite a problem problem pro pro- blem when It comes to reaching the snow particularly during a year such as this when the weatherman weatherman erman has refused to operate co-operate and there has been little or no skiing In the Southland A LONG DRIVE DRIVE Some areas such areas such as Mammoth Squaw and Heavenly Valley all allIn allin In the High Sierra Sierra are are within week end driving distance but getting to Sun Valley Ida and Aspen and Vail Vall Colo top spots in Western skiing Is a frustrating proposition Driving or going by train Is la a a. two-day two undertaking and their distance from major population centers doesn't make them appreciably more accessible by air The Utah ski resorts however are an entirely different matter I Landing at Salt Lakes Lake's new Jetport jetport jetport Jet- Jet I port skiers climb into a car bus or limousine and are on the slopes In a matter of 45 minutes This puts some of the country's finest snow and ski f C terrain within the easl easiest l t possible reach from Southern South South- ern California And in case youve you've been thinking that the season is about over be reminded that Alta Atta for example with a pack of more than 10 feet keeps going until Tune June Putting Alta AHa on the map was primarily the work of one manan manan man manan man man- an old Norwegian skier Alf AU Engen Engen En En- gen who came to Utah in search of good skiing and much like Brigham Young his predecessor In a different field decided that This is the place Today Alta Alta Alta- I at feet feet feet- has four lodges all Call run on the American plan located literally at the starting point of chair lifts that take skiers up to feet VARIED SLOPES Getting down the hill is a matter of personal preference There Is a wide open bowl near the top with a variety of trails branching down to the valley floor Much of the terrain Is quite steep and it takes at least an Intermediate skier to do Justice to It There are areas areM for beginners ers directly adjacent to the es Because Alta sometimes has lots lot of deep dry snow it has hM become become become be be- come known as the country's powder capital a favorite among those who prefer to do their schussing knee-deep knee in snow While Alta AHa last Jast week was thin on powder it was the richer in skiers from the west Mid and the hungry enow-hungry snow hungry East New Yorkers told me that it doesn't take them any if longer to o get to 9 Utah than It does driving to Stowe Sugarbush Sugarbush Sugar Sugar- bush and the other well-known well New England ski areas Its It's an educated guess that at least least- 75 per cent of the guests at Altos Alta's lodges were from St. Minneapolis Paul New York or Boston I But for all it Its wonderful ski ski- I Ing voices are being heard raisins raising B questions about Altas Alta's future Th The e I fact ts is that although the sports sport's s popularity Is zooming skyward Alta has changed little in the past pas t I 10 years Some say It is not not getting get ting It its share of the boom Just Jus t exactly where Alta is going Is Is- Isa a much-discussed much topic these days SEWERS LIQUOR Development plans are substantially substantially sub affected by 2 such disparate disparate dis dis- parate commodities as sewers and liquor Also Allio Alta Is located In Wasatch National Forest and therefore has to live within the policies of the US U.S. Forest Ser Ser- vice Alta is in the Salt Lake City watershed This This makes makes the disposal dis- dis of sewage a major Issue Present septic tanks are operating operating oper oper- at or near capacity and the theon theony on only ony y answer is sewer lines and a treatment plant Some apparently are not ready to give the go go- I lit to-lit ahead signal on that Travelers from other and more minded liberal-minded parts of ot the country country country coun coun- try are appalled at Utah's archaic archaic ar ar- liquor laws Mormons Mormons- and that means the Utah SaY gay ure say that patrons may bring their own bottle but UpS set and drink to their hearts' hearts consent content con con- tent sent but that no establishment I shall sell liquor by the drink There Is something crude about j the he customers putting their own bottles on the bar a less than complimentary reflection on the hosts host's hospitality as it were And putting it mildly skiers find itan itan it itan an irritating nuisance having to bring the Ingredients for that essential ski cup of cheer As a result of such restrictions people go to Alta to ski and not much else Those Thoe who enjoy some socializing after a hard days day's work on the slopes and most moot skiers do may do-may may well check their plans twice before departing for Alta But all hope is not lost As one observer of at the social scene remarked The church recently recently re reo ruled that Its members now may drink cokes cokes- Maybe some day it'll do the same for liquor GROWING CITY While Alta seems more or less to be resting on Its laurels an atmosphere of enthusiastic optimism optimism pU- pU charged with the contagious contagious conta conta- spirit of grandly-conceived grandly plans prevails at Park City two canyons over It is a perfect example example example ex ex- ample of an area calling on tourism tourIsm tourism tour- tour I Ism to carry the ball where the community's original r raison a 1 Iso s o n detre detra mining mining has has sI slipped to toa a point where relegation n to ghost town status seemed Inevitable It was In 1870 that the silence of the Park City hills was violated for the first time with the report of steel on rock and the lusty laughter of living hard-living miners shanties and provisional provisional onal shacks sprang up They were soon replaced by more permanent boarding houses stables blacksmiths blacksmiths' black black- black 1 j smiths' smiths shops stores and the inevitable in in- evitable saloons and madams quarters Observed the Park Record Roc Roo ord In 1884 Theres too much pro promiscuous HO shooting P 9 the streets at night Park City survived two major majo r fires that virtually wiped It out and the population climbed to more than Lead zinc and silver were found In abundance and before the boom was over minerals worth more than had been taken out of the hills producing in the process pro cess at least 23 millionaire Some clergymen took a dim view of the whole thing One observed that I Salt Lake City was the wickedest I city in the United States and that I Park City was only 40 rods from r hell PROFITS DOWN I Following a period of at ups and I I downs the massive ore production I tion n during World War II and i the Korean conflict would appear ap ap- pear I pear to have exhausted the Park City mines In addition rising I labor and production costs made continued mining an un unprofitable profitable profit It 1 able jable undertaking and the city's I population skidded to under 1500 i While the United Park City Mines Co believes that future level deep exploration w rw would o 0 u I 1 d give promise of renewed mining activity on its acre property I main hopes today are pinned on skiing In particular and tourism I I in general i i It is Interesting to note that a tunnel and shaft from the mining days have b been n reconditioned cleared and repaired for passenger passenger ger traffic making them the first underground ski life In the United States Skiers load their skis onto specially built ski rack cars climb r Into steel passenger cars and are j I towed by an electric locomotive locomotive nearly three miles Into Treasure Mountains I I At the end of the ride skiers get off the train and nd into an elevator or hoist cage in in mining min ping p- p I ing terms and are whisked the 1800 oo vertical feet to the surface I in hi 3 minutes There they may catch a double chair lift to the top of the mountain from which descend more than 23 miles of I carefully manicured slopes and trails I GONDOLA TRAMWAY I But th thYs s underground facility Is not Park City's only outstanding ing feature Another Is the gondola gondola gon gon- dola tramway the country's longest longest long long- est that covers 2 miles It carries passengers an hour bour hourin I in in in- enclosed passenger four-passenger bubbles bubbles bub bles ales on the 22 minute ride up I Ithe the hill from to feet I In addition there are several other ther lifts ranging from novice bars J-bars on the bunny slopes to chair chal lifts the longest of which goes 1 P miles An activities cen cen- I ter at the bottom of the hill fea tea I tures tares a restaurant bar sports shop and not to be forgotten forgotten- a State Liquor Store I In town a ston's throw throwaway away I new hotels are being built as M the dilapidated structures of the mining mining min min- ing era are coming down While the night life in Alta Is very much on the sedentary side Park I City Jives and with considerable considerable consider consider- able abandon in a number of picturesque beer halls For those I of a more cultural best the Silver Silver Silver Sil Sil- ver Wheel Theater puts on a aI melodrama on the order of The I Drunkard Park City Is banking heavily on skiing but Is by no means I I I i i I putting all it Its eggs in one basket The summer trade will be lured With with a golf course hunting and andI I I fishing and the lifts also will be beI operating to give travelers a close close- I I up look at the verdant hills An i I l I airport Is being developed only i iI I a mile away The city is just off I Highway 40 the main road between between be be- I tween Salt Lake City and Cheyenne Cheyenne Cheyenne Chey- Chey enne and Denver The point Is Isto Isto isto to give the motorist enough of ot an anI anto incentive to stop I GRAND IDEAS I I The developers have have- all kinds of ideas Some are sensible and very much within the realm of or reason while others may have little chance of becoming reality As Is often the the case In similar situations the promoters and nd a somewhat less excitable City Council are arc tr trying to come to a meeting of the minds In regard to o the eventual development of the he area We cannot but admire the vision and drive of the for for- mer It is to be he hoped that the conservatism of the latter wont won't kill the dreams Free the liquor and Park City will be another Aspen in less than five Ive years said one resident resident- Its It's t's ts the sort of thinking that breeds reeds success |