Nordic Valley gets permit to expand snowmaking inside current boundaries
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
Skiers and Snowboarders take to the slopes at Nordic Valley ski area in Eden during the snow storm on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018.
EDEN — As it eyes expansion, officials at the Nordic Valley ski resort want to make sure the facility in its current configuration meets the needs of its clientele.
To that end, the Eden-area resort sought and recently received permission to expand snowmaking capabilities along one of its principal runs. The plans call for installation of a 1,500-foot underground water line, extending an existing line upslope from the midpoint of the Falling Star run to the top of the trail, an elevation of 6,312 feet. Hydrants and a portable fan gun would connect to the new line, allowing snowmaking in a new three- or four-acre area, according to Denzel Rowland, the Nordic Valley general manager.
“It’s insurance that you’re going to be able to provide some snow,” Rowland said.
Nordic Valley — separately considering a broader expansion — filed a request on Nov. 5 with the Weber County Planning Division for a conditional use permit allowing the new pipeline. The department approved the permit on Nov. 20, but Rowland said Tuesday that it came too late for action yet this year, the original goal. Snow had already fallen, creating very good conditions along the run, and resort officials hope to install the water line next spring instead.
Nordic Valley, located on the eastern flank of Lewis Peak, already has the water rights needed for snowmaking, according to Rowland.
The new snowmaking capability would serve the existing boundaries of Nordic Valley. The resort is also considering a massive expansion that would extend the facility up the mountain to Lewis Peak and over the other side into Cold Water Canyon, all the way to North Ogden. Plans call for the addition of a 4.3-mile gondola across the mountain, linking the existing Nordic Valley facilities with North Ogden, and numerous new ski runs.
The expansion plans, which have generated mixed sentiments among residents from North Ogden and the Upper Ogden Valley, are currently subject to review by the U.S. Forest Service. Nordic Valley is the smallest of three ski resorts in Weber County. The expansion, if implemented as proposed, would make it the second largest, bigger than Snowbasin Resort but still smaller than Powder Mountain.
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