Powder Mountain

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Trail map of Powder Mountain Winter Resort

Located East of Eden, Utah and stretching between Weber and Cache counties, Powder Mountain is relatively less accessible than other resorts in the area and is primarily visited by locals.

[edit] History

Powder Mountain has been continuously owned and operated by the same family since opening in 1972. Dr. Alvin Cobabe, his daughter Aleta Cobabe, and granddaughter Jamie Lythgoe serve on the management team. At 87, Dr. Cobabe is still active in the resort’s operations.

The resort had its beginnings as the winter range for Frederick James Cobabe’s sheep herd. Frederick, who was orphaned at age 15, moved around from family to family until he went to work for Charley Scmaltz. He tended camp for Charley’s herders taking his pay in sheep until he built a herd of his own.

His summer range was in the Grand Targhee area. When Grand Targhee was designated a national forest, grazing was prohibited and Fred sought a new range. Between 1902 and 1948, Fred continually accumulated land around Eden, Utah. Old timers say that his property was severely overgrazed by previous owners and hardly a blade of grass could be found. The watershed was so poor that Wolf Creek dried up each fall. Fred’s soil conservation practices greatly improved the vegetation and Powder Mountain now is known as one of the best watersheds in the Wasatch Mountains.

Fred’s son, Alvin F. Cobabe bought the livestock company with its 8,000 acres (32 km²) in 1948. Just a few months later, Fred was killed in an automobile accident.

When the ranch needed a reservoir, Alvin bought heavy earth moving equipment. He delved into the earth moving business to help pay for the machinery. A career in ranching, livestock and construction, however, did not satisfy Alvin. In 1956 at 42, he sold the livestock and construction companies to enroll in pre-med classes at Weber College. At age 45, he graduated from the University of Utah Medical School and returned to northern Utah to establish a medical practice. At that time, Dr. Alvin Cobabe was the oldest person to graduate from the school.

While horseback riding with friends along Lightning Ridge in the 1950’s, someone casually mentioned that the terrain would make a great ski resort. The idea rang true with Dr. Cobabe and he began to amass adjacent property adding to the thousands acquired from his father. When the resort opened on February 19, 1972, he owned 14,000 acres (57 km²).

Only the Sundown lift was open during Powder Mountain’s first season. The area was lit for night skiing and the instructors taught skiing. Food was prepared on an outdoor barbecue. The Main Lodge, the Sundown Lodge and the Timberline lift were added to operations in the 1972/73 season.

[edit] Timeline

1971/72 Season

Powder Mountain opened with Sundown Lift.
Ski School began.

1972/73 Season

Main Lodge opened.
Sundown Lodge opened.
Timberline lift opened.

1975/76 Season

Hidden Lake Lift added.

1981/82 Season

Shuttle service for employees and for Powder Country started.

1984/85 Season

Powder was the first Utah resort to allow snowboarding.

1986/87 Season

Hidden Lake Day Lodge opened.

1994/95 Season

Sunrise Lift opened.

1999/2000 Season

Paradise Lift, a quad, opened up an additional 1300 acres (5.3 km²) of lift accessed terrain.
Cat skiing moved to Lightning Ridge accessing an additional 700 acres (2.8 km²).
Powder Mountain became the resort with the most skiable terrain in America.

2006/07 Season