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40-593: Alta is one of the oldest ski areas in the U.S. and is one of just three ski areas in the U.S. that prohibit snowboarders. Located at the head of Little Cottonwood Canyon in Albion Basin and Collins Gulch, barely 30 miles (48 km) from the Great Salt Lake , Alta resides in a unique micro climate characterized by over 547 inches (1,390 cm) of high volume, low moisture snowfall annually. Alta Ski Area features long, straight, fall-line pitches. Among

80-560: A subalpine climate ( Köppen Dfc ), bordering on an Alpine climate ( Köppen ET ). There is no weather station at the summit, but this climate table contains interpolated data for an area around the summit. The ski area is owned by multiple individuals, with the largest shares being held by the Laughlin family (51%), the Quinney family (25%), and the Bass family (11%). The hotels at

120-724: A lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Utah against Alta Ski Area and the United States Forest Service, seeking to permanently disallow Alta from enforcing its anti-snowboarder policy and snowboarding ban. Alta Ski Area prevailed in the ruling and continues to exclusively serve skiers. Sugarloaf Mountain (Utah) , 11,051 ft (3,368 m), is a high peak within the Alta Ski Area. Sugarloaf Mountain has

160-1274: A small portion of the Earth's surface, alpine climates are widely distributed. They are present in the Himalayas , the Tibetan Plateau , Gansu , Qinghai and Mount Lebanon in Asia ; the Alps , the Urals , the Pyrenees , the Cantabrian Mountains and the Sierra Nevada in Europe ; the Andes in South America ; the Sierra Nevada , the Cascade Range , the Rocky Mountains , the northern Appalachian Mountains ( Adirondacks and White Mountains ), and

200-459: Is a poor conductor of heat, so a parcel of air will rise and fall without exchanging heat. This is known as an adiabatic process , which has a characteristic pressure-temperature curve. As the pressure gets lower, the temperature decreases. The rate of decrease of temperature with elevation is known as the adiabatic lapse rate , which is approximately 9.8 °C per kilometer (or 5.4 °F per 1000 feet) of altitude. The presence of water in

240-553: Is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate . There are multiple definitions of alpine climate. In the Köppen climate classification , the alpine and mountain climates are part of group E , along with the polar climate , where no month has a mean temperature higher than 10 °C (50 °F). According to the Holdridge life zone system, there are two mountain climates which prevent tree growth : a)

280-547: Is also the footwall of the East Traverse Mountain Mega-Landslide , and its presence is probably a second-order control on the cause of the landslide, in addition to the elevation gradient caused by the nearby Wasatch Fault . The Little Cottonwood Canyon watershed provides drinking water to much of Salt Lake County. The National Forest Service considers Little Cottonwood Canyon a protected watershed area. In order to prevent contamination of

320-594: Is intruded in its northeast corner by another unit called the White Pine intrusion, and other smaller igneous units, collectively about 27-26 million years old, which are the source of the inactive White Pine molybdenum ore deposit in White Pine fork. The intrusion and its associated ore deposit have several interesting features, including quartz-bearing porphyry , pebble dikes , and other features related to hydrothermal ore deposit processes, and possibly volcanism , that occurred during intrusion. The intrusion

360-441: Is only approximate, however, since local factors, such as proximity to oceans , can drastically modify the climate. As the altitude increases, the main form of precipitation becomes snow and the winds increase. The temperature continues to drop until the tropopause , at 11,000 metres (36,000 ft), where it does not decrease further. This is higher than the highest summit . Although this climate classification only covers

400-1011: The Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt in North America ; the Southern Alps in New Zealand ; the Snowy Mountains in Australia ; high elevations in the Atlas Mountains , Ethiopian Highlands , and Eastern Highlands of Africa ; the central parts of Borneo and New Guinea ; and the summits of Mount Pico in the Atlantic and Mauna Loa in the Pacific . The lowest altitude of alpine climate varies dramatically by latitude. If alpine climate

440-399: The environmental lapse rate , is not constant (it can fluctuate throughout the day or seasonally and also regionally), but a normal lapse rate is 5.5 °C per 1,000 m (3.57 °F per 1,000 ft). Therefore, moving up 100 metres (330 ft) on a mountain is roughly equivalent to moving 80 kilometres (50 miles or 0.75° of latitude ) towards the pole. This relationship

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480-579: The 1930s, when Harold Goodro put up some routes before shifting to predominantly climbing on the quartzite of Big Cottonwood Canyon and elsewhere. Many of the major routes in Little Cottonwood were established in the early 1960s by the Alpenbock Club , some in conjunction with well-known visitors including Fred Beckey , Layton Kor , and Royal Robbins . The Lowes – George Lowe , Greg Lowe , and Jeff Lowe – came to prominence through

520-513: The 2008–09 season, Alta added a conveyor system at the start point of the Supreme lift that assists skiers in loading. Alta added safety bars to Sunnyside in 2010 and to Collins, Sugarloaf, and Supreme in the summer of 2011. For the 2017–18 season, Leitner-Poma built a high speed quad that replaced the former Supreme and Cecret lifts, extending from the Sugarloaf base area to the top terminal of

560-522: The Germania double chair. The resort began adding a developed snowmaking infrastructure in 1996, and the ski area continues to develop and refine the process. The late 1990s and early 2000s were marked by further modernization. In 1999 the Sunnyside lift was replaced with a detachable triple chair, the resort's first detachable chairlift . Two years later the Supreme chair was upgraded to a triple, and

600-552: The Sugarloaf chair was replaced with a detachable quad. In the summer of 2004, the Collins double lift and Germania triple lifts were replaced with a single two-stage detachable quad going from the base of the former Collins lift to the top terminal of the former Germania lift. During the 2007–08 season, Alta introduced a new Axess RFID electronic lift ticket system, similar to that of the Solitude Ski Resort . During

640-555: The alpine climate, which occurs when the mean biotemperature of a location is between 1.5 and 3 °C (34.7 and 37.4 °F). The alpine climate in Holdridge system is roughly equivalent to the warmest tundra climates (ET) in the Köppen system. b) the alvar climate, the coldest mountain climate since the biotemperature is between 0 °C and 1.5 °C (biotemperature can never be below 0 °C). It corresponds more or less to

680-466: The atmosphere complicates the process of convection. Water vapor contains latent heat of vaporization . As air rises and cools, it eventually becomes saturated and cannot hold its quantity of water vapor. The water vapor condenses (forming clouds ), and releases heat, which changes the lapse rate from the dry adiabatic lapse rate to the moist adiabatic lapse rate (5.5 °C per kilometre or 3 °F per 1000 feet). The actual lapse rate, called

720-547: The base are all independently owned and not a part of Alta. Beginning in the winter of 2002, Alta and its neighbor, Snowbird , began offering a joint day pass and a joint season ticket, allowing skiers to fully access all of the terrain of both resorts. The offer coincided with the opening of a new lift in Mineral Basin, a large bowl owned by Snowbird on the back of Snowbird's Hidden Peak and Alta's Sugarloaf mountains, that allowed access to Alta. Other access points between

760-608: The buttress and near the road is the Gate Boulder, a popular gathering spot shaded by large trees. The Pfeifferhorn is one of the highest peaks to climb in the Wasatch. The peak is usually climbed from the Red Pine Lake area, a ten-mile roundtrip climb that gains 3,700 feet. The peak was named after Chuck Pfeiffer, a Wasatch Club leader from long ago. With 529 climbs currently established, Little Cottonwood Canyon has

800-411: The canyon. Its route The Dorsal Fin (5.10d) is a classic of the Wasatch; first ascended by George Lowe and Mark McQuarrie in 1965, the bolts of this four-pitch were all drilled on the lead. The canyon also includes Gate Buttress, whose 80+ routes include the aptly named Schoolroom (5.6), a five-pitch route requiring a wide variety of techniques, along with routes ranging up to 5.12a in difficulty. Below

840-479: The canyon. The road is approximately 8.3 miles from the base of the canyon to the top with an average grade of 9.2%, making it a popular road cycling challenge. Little Cottonwood Canyon is home to two ski areas, Snowbird and Alta . Both areas are well known for the amount of snow they receive each year with Alta averaging around 550 inches per year. The canyon is also well known for its backcountry skiing access, with over 300 named backcountry runs including one of

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880-408: The coldest tundra climates and to the ice cap climates (EF) as well. Holdrige reasoned that plants net primary productivity ceases with plants becoming dormant at temperatures below 0 °C (32 °F) and above 30 °C (86 °F). Therefore, he defined biotemperature as the mean of all temperatures but with all temperatures below freezing and above 30 °C adjusted to 0 °C; that is,

920-510: The eastern side of the Salt Lake Valley , roughly 15 miles from Salt Lake City , Utah . The canyon is part of Granite , a CDP and "Community Council" designated by Salt Lake County . The canyon is a glacial trough (U-shaped canyon), carved by an alpine glacier during the last ice age, 15,000 to 25,000 years ago. A number of rare and endemic plant species are found in the canyon's Albion Basin. Introduced Mountain goats inhabit

960-524: The following year construction began on the original Collins chairlift , fashioned from a surplus mining ore tramway system that featured a clamp-cam bullwheel gripping a metal cable strung with single-seat chairs. It was the second such chairlift in the United States, after Sun Valley . Alta opened to skiers for the first time in 1939 on January 15, offering a single ride on the chair for 25 cents. Alta installed its first triple in 1991, by upgrading

1000-503: The former Supreme lift. For the 2022-23 season, Leitner-Poma constructed a high speed six pack to replace the Sunnyside and Albion lifts. The ski area is in the process of planning for the next several years. Proposed developments include a tram to the top of Mt. Baldy , a lift from the Sugar Bowl to Sugarloaf Pass, and improvements to parking. On January 15, 2014, a group called Wasatch Equality and four individual snowboarders filed

1040-516: The gondola have filed lawsuits against UDOT to block the gondola, claiming UDOT exceeded its authority and violated the National Environmental Policy Act . 40°34′16″N 111°42′25″W  /  40.571°N 111.707°W  / 40.571; -111.707 Alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical climate for elevations above the tree line , where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate

1080-403: The ground at roughly 333 K (60 °C; 140 °F), and the temperature would decay exponentially with height. However, when air is hot, it tends to expand, which lowers its density. Thus, hot air tends to rise and transfer heat upward. This is the process of convection . Convection comes to equilibrium when a parcel of air at a given altitude has the same density as its surroundings. Air

1120-412: The length of the canyon, beginning at Cecret Lake at Alta and flowing westward. The Little Cottonwood stock is a granitic intrusion that extends from the mouth of the canyon almost to Snowbird ski resort. It is Oligocene in age, roughly 30.5 to 29 million years old, composed primarily of granodiorite , quartz monzonite , and granite, with some mafic enclaves . The Little Cottonwood stock

1160-402: The most prominent peaks in the canyon, Mount Superior . The lower third of the canyon is strewn with quartz monzonite , granite, and granodiorite outcroppings, mostly consisting of smooth steep faces, some up to several hundred feet high. Local climbers informally refer to the rock as granite , which is a close relative to quartz monzonite. The earliest recorded climbing activity dates from

1200-553: The most well known are Alf's High Rustler, Eddie's High Nowhere, Stone Crusher and the Baldy Chutes. Though widely respected as one of the most challenging in-bounds ski areas in the world, Alta has always viewed itself as a local's and family oriented ski area. The community of Alta was established in 1871 as an offshoot of the silver mining operations in Little Cottonwood Canyon . A fire destroyed most of

1240-503: The north side. Approaches involve parking alongside the road and hiking a short distance up through scrub oak , sometimes scrambling through fields of enormous boulders. Face climbing is the predominant technique, typically using bolts and cracks for protection, but there are many notable crack climbs as well. Most routes are 2-4 pitches in length, with walkoffs involving still more scrub oak. The highest-quality face routes are to be found on The Fin, an almost-featureless expanse high above

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1280-504: The noted skier Alf Engen to hike into the area and determine its potential as a future ski area. Engen's reports expressed great promise for the area, and recommended the purchase of additional surrounding lands to form the ski area. In 1937 a prominent Salt Lake City lawyer, Joe Quinney, along with other local businessmen, formed the Utah Winter Sports Association to oversee the development of skiing at Alta. In

1320-615: The rest of the 1960s and early 1970s. More recent climbers have pushed the standards to the highest levels, establishing several 5.13 routes. Access can be a problem. On the north side, the "Church Buttress" above the Granite Mountain Records Vault , and the Black Peeler Buttress, are on private land and not legally accessible, as are parts of the south side. This still leaves some 20-odd named buttresses and gullies available for climbing, mostly on

1360-601: The second most bouldering routes in Utah. These routes vary in difficulty, from V0 to V16. Some of the most commonly climbed areas throughout the canyon include Secret Garden, 5 Mile, and White Pine. On August 31, 2022, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) announced "Gondola Alternative B", a plan to build a Gondola transit system connecting the base of Little Cottonwood Canyon with Alta and Snowbird ski areas. A coalition of environmental groups opposed to

1400-493: The sum of temperatures not adjusted is divided by the number of all temperatures (including both adjusted and non-adjusted ones). The variability of the alpine climate throughout the year depends on the latitude of the location. For tropical oceanic locations, such as the summit of Mauna Loa , the temperature is roughly constant throughout the year. For mid-latitude locations, such as Mount Washington in New Hampshire ,

1440-555: The surrounding mountains. The Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was built of blocks of quartz monzonite , granite , and granodiorite which Latter Day Saint pioneers quarried from the Little Cottonwood Stock near the mouth of the canyon. State Route 210 is the primary access road to the canyon, running from the canyon mouth up to Alta. Little Cottonwood Creek runs down

1480-423: The temperature varies seasonally, but never gets very warm. The temperature profile of the atmosphere is a result of an interaction between radiation and convection . Sunlight in the visible spectrum hits the ground and heats it. The ground then heats the air at the surface. If radiation were the only way to transfer heat from the ground to space, the greenhouse effect of gases in the atmosphere would keep

1520-401: The town in 1878, then a cataclysmic avalanche in 1885—combined with the decline of mining—heralded a period of dormancy for the town. The area experienced a modest resurgence in mining in the 1900s, but the town declined again shortly thereafter, and was deserted with the exception of a few hardy miners who continued to intermittently prospect the area. In 1935 the U.S. Forest Service retained

1560-568: The two resorts exist as well. (Due to Alta's skiers-only policy, the offer is not open to snowboarders.) Alta currently has eight lifts. Three are located in Albion Basin, two are located in Collins Gulch, one transfers skiers between the two base areas, and the remaining two access hotels. Source: Little Cottonwood Canyon Little Cottonwood Canyon lies within the Wasatch-Cache National Forest along

1600-599: The watershed by fecal runoff, no dogs (except service animals and avalanche search dogs) are permitted in the canyon. Recreational activities in Little Cottonwood Canyon include hiking, camping, fishing, mountain biking, rock climbing, Bouldering, skiing, snowboarding, and backcountry use. There are two resorts in the canyon, Alta and Snowbird , providing both summer and winter recreational opportunities. The Utah Native Plant Society often conducts wildflower walks at Albion Basin and in other locations in

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