Photo Credit: John Buie via Flickr (On the ancestral lands of the Pueblos, Ute, and other Nations)

What comes to mind when you envision outdoor recreation in southern Utah?

Exploring winding canyons, biking over slickrock, splitter cracks, and…skiing? Yes. Skiing. If this doesn’t come as a surprise to you, then you’re exactly the person we’re looking for.

Covering more than 1.2 million acres of public land in the central and southeastern parts of Utah and the far western part of Colorado, the Manti-La Sal National Forest ranges from the Abajo and La Sal mountains in southeastern Utah to the Wasatch Plateau and Sanpitch mountains hundreds of miles away in central Utah. With peaks stretching to 12,721 feet, the Manti-La Sal National Forest includes Utah’s second-highest mountains (the La Sals) and there are amazing opportunities for backcountry skiing, splitboarding, and other snowsports all across the forest.

The Manti-La Sal is currently in the midst of forest planning. The Manti-La Sal National Forest signed its current forest plan in 1986. Plan revision addresses the ecological, social, and economic changes over the past 35 years by adapting to new scientific information, rules and laws. Ultimately, a revision better supports the needs of the forest and its surrounding communities today and into the future.

Be Part of the Forest Plan Revision Process – Take Our Survey!

Winter Wildlands Alliance and Outdoor Alliance are teaming up to measure the economic impact of backcountry skiing on the Manti-La Sal National Forest.

Quantifying the economic impact of human-powered snowsports on the Manti-La Sal National Forest will help us to advocate for snowsports enthusiasts and make a case for protecting and encouraging winter recreation opportunities in the current forest plan revision process.

If you’ve skied, snowshoed, or otherwise played in the snow in southern Utah, please help us out by taking this survey.