Location: 12 miles east of Parowan, which is 15 miles north of Cedar City.
Lifts: five triple, one double.
Base elevation: 9,600 feet.
Skiable acres: 500 acres with 53-plus runs—30 percent beginner, 40 percent intermediate, 30 percent advanced.
Lift passes:
All-day $38 (add $2 during holiday periods)
Half-day $33(p.m.) and $28(a.m.)
What it's known for: This is a good family resort located in the Dixie National Forest. Skiing is available on two mountaintops—Brian Head Peak and Navajo Peak. Currently there is no link between the two, only a shuttle service, but an interconnect bridge and additional lift are planned for the future. Brian Head is best known as an intermediate ski area, which makes it ideal for family skiing, but it does have some expert terrain. It is also an area that is known for its great snowboarding, which includes several terrain parks.
If you go: If you're looking for something different, Peak Express snowcat tours are available when snow conditions are right. This is strictly double-black diamond skiing on fringe areas of the resort. The cat leaves hourly, and the cost is a day-pass ticket and $5 per ride. The cat goes into areas where skiers get some of the best turns on the mountain and some of the best views available of places like Zion and Cedar Breaks national sites.
Two of the best runs are called "Sunspot" and "Devos." Fact is, locals like to start the day on chair No. 7, on Sunspot, and move with the sun around to chairs No. 2 and No. 5, and end the day on Devos. Chair No. 7 is a favorite of locals because it attracts the fewest people but offers some great skiing and spectacular views.
Brian Head also has one of the first tubing hills, accessed by a cable lift, in the state. And, because of the red-rock canyons and cliffs, this is a great place to put on the cross-country skis and go touring. The ski area grooms 5 kilometers of track, with another 25 kilometers groomed within Cedar Breaks National Monument.
Best kept secret: It's hard to pick between two. One is the grooming, and the other is the employees. The resort prides itself on its grooming program, which can sometimes be split between grooming one half of a run glass-top smooth while leaving the other half natural for the aggressive snowboarders and bump skiers.
But then the staff prides itself on a willingness to show skiers around. What often comes with the question of where to ski is the response, "I'm headed out for my lunch break, so why don't you follow me and I'll show you."
For more information check out Brian Head's Web site at www.brianhead.com.
