Avid skier found dead at Lily Lake

Photo: Unsplash // Scott Rodgerson.

Michael Kessenich was instrumental in creating both the Lily Lake Ski Area, and Uinta County's Bear River Outdoor Recreation Alliance

WASATCH COUNTY, Utah — A 75-year-old Evanston man was found unresponsive in the Lily Lake area on Friday, Feb. 9.

According to Kacey Bates, Summit County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy, Michael Kessenich, an avid skier, was skiing alone in the Lily Lake Area at the time of his death.

Kessenich was later found unresponsive by a group in the area who attempted to perform lifesaving efforts, which were unsuccessful. His cause of death is unknown at this time.

According to Kessenich’s obituary, he is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Kessenich and his business partner, Joe Wright, applied to the United States Forest Service for a permit to set cross-country ski trails in the Uinta Mountains south of Evanston, and they were granted a square mile of land in 1983. This land would later grow into the Lily Lake Ski Area, and Uinta County’s Bear River Outdoor Recreation Alliance.