The first of Deer Valley’s expanded terrain opened to skiers last week. This week, the resort will host the grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting of the Keetley Express, the resort’s first six-pack bubble-covered chairlift.
Deer Valley Communications Director Emily Summers says this new chairlift will take skiers from the base of the East Village off U.S. 40 to what’s now called Keetley Point, the nob that separates the Mayflower and Sultan chairlifts, where skiers can connect with Bald Mountain.
“We have extended our McHenry ski run about two miles from the Silver Lake Village down into the East Village, and that goes to another new lift called Aurora, and that's a fixed grip quad with our first loading carpet,” Summers said. “And then we do expect to open one more in probably the next couple weeks, and it's called the Hoodoo Express, and that's really going to service beginner skiers out of the East Village.”
East Village boasts 500 new parking spaces with another 700 spots coming on next year. Truck-pulled trams, much like those that serve the Snow Park parking lot, are used to transport skiers from the East Village parking lot to the base of the ski slopes at East Village.
Right now, Summers says six of the 20 ski runs are open on the East Village side, a mixture of both beginner and intermediate trails, with more opening next winter. This season’s opening is the first phase in a series of expansion plans that will eventually double the size of the resort.
“We're hoping for about nine new chair lifts and 100 more ski runs next year,” she said.
The grand opening celebration will be at the base of Keetley Express Thursday, Jan. 9 from 8 to 9 a.m. Summers says the first 500 skiers will be treated to Deer Valley cookies, hot chocolate and coffee.
Deer Valley has all but two of its chairlifts open. The resort has not announced when Mayflower and Lady Morgan will start transporting skiers.
If IKON pass holders plan to ski Thursday, they will need to make a reservation. According to the ticket office, reservations are still available.
Editor's note: The article was updated to reflect the current name of Sultan's Nose to Keetley Point.
