| Deer Valley |
Deer Valley is the region just outside of Park City, Utah. There are two areas in Deer Valley in which you will find facilities and shops: Lower Deer Valley and Upper Deer Valley. Upper Deer Valley is the mid-mountain area that Silver Lake Village and Stein Eriksen Lodge are in.
To see more about Deer Valley, click here for its wikipedia entry.
| Silver Lake Village |
Silver Lake Village is a small collection of hotels, restaurants and shops. It sits within Upper Deer Valley. During the winter, the sporting goods shops are bustling with skiers. During the summer, they switch to serving hikers and those doing mountain biking. However, during the October 10th weekend, the sporting stores will be closed because it is in the gap between summer and winter seasons. There are also gift stores and real estate companies (in case you become inspired to buy a home in the area).
| Park City |
Park City is a very lively town, having been a silver mining community in the early days. The tourist area is along Main Street, where you will find restaurants, boutique hotels, gift shops, art galleries and museums. These occupy the western-look historic buildings of the area (which explains why none have elevators). Just west of Main Street, and a little further from Deer Valley, are the large hotels and stores (such as grocery stores, furniture stores, home supply stores, and of course more real estate companies). You will want to spend your time along Main Street, though. Just be prepared to be walking either slightly uphill or downhill as the street is on an incline.
For a week at the end of every January, Main Street and all of Park City are filled with people attending the Sundance Film Festival. Screenings are done in the theaters in Park City, as well as in other venues. Because the town is largely taken over by festival goers, the skiing population decreases substantially during this week. On Main Street at its major intersection is a low slung white building with a patio in front. This is the restaurant Zoom that is owned by Robert Redford. (It gets its name from the movement of a camera lens.) Their food and space are terrific, if you ever have the chance to visit it.
To see more about Park City, click here for its wikipedia entry and here for the city’s website.
| The Great Outdoors |
October is a transition time for the area, shifting from fall to winter. It is generally cool during the day and cold at night, sometimes dropping below freezing and occasionally snowing. The foilage is colorful and beginning to fall, and it is a great time to take walks. You can walk just around the area, either looking at the variety of homes, or along mountain paths surrounded by tall trees. The paths are well marked and you can establish a route and the difficulty level before setting out.
The lifts operate in both winter and summer seasons, however, the October 10th weekend falls in the gap between the two seasons so they will not be operating. If fact, you may see equipment being moved about in preparation for ski season.
The sporting vendors in Silver Lake will also be closed, so if you wish to rent a mountain bike, that will have to be done in Park City and you will need to then transport it up to Silver Lake. You can, however, just use the bike to ride around the Park City area. The path along the golf course is especially pretty.
To get an idea of what the summer is like, click here. To see about the winter, click here.