Winter isn’t done with Empire Pass

Near-whiteout conditions made for difficult footing as crews worked to clear the disabled tow truck and damaged Jeep from the road. Photo: Brighton Estates property owners association

PARK CITY, Utah — Less than two weeks after UDOT crews swung open the Empire Pass gate to mark the start of the spring season, conditions on the high road above Park City are doing their best impression of mid-January.

A heavy spring storm dumped fresh snow across the upper Wasatch on Sunday, and by Sunday afternoon the Deer Valley snow stake was reading six inches of new accumulation. Elsewhere across the range, the National Weather Service is calling for the heaviest totals through Wednesday, April 29, at Alta and Snowbird, where expected amounts top a foot, with Brighton, Solitude, and Kings Peak not far behind.

The conditions caught at least one driver out. A white Jeep Compass slid off the road on the upper section of the pass on Sunday afternoon and a tow truck was called to recover it. While maneuvering on the snow-packed pavement, the tow truck itself lost traction, slid into the Jeep it was there to recover, and came to rest blocking the road.

The incident is a pointed reminder that “open” does not mean “summer.”