Soaring over the treetops with the full moon above you and someone you love beside you is the perfect way to spend a summer evening.
Starting June 15, Sundance Resort will offer the unique opportunity to ride its ski lift during the full moon each month. Sundance has been running “Full Moon Rides” for two nights each summer month since 2006. This year, the rides start June 15 and 16 and will continue into October.
Kim Benne, a graduate of BYU from St. Louis, rides the lift at least once a year.
“I love the view of the mountains silhouetted under the full moon,” she said. “It is a really breathtaking view.”
The ride is roughly 45 minutes and each chair can seat up to four people, making the ride perfect for couples or groups of friends. Riders can grab a snack in the deli or eat at one of the restaurants in the Sundance main building before they ride.
“With the right person it would be amazingly romantic,” Benne said.
Benne adds that while a moonlit ride has high romantic potential, even without a significant other, it is still a worthwhile activity.
“I went on a date there once,” Benne said, “but I have had a lot more fun when I have gone with friends. It is an enjoyable time to talk and get to know people more.”
McKell and McKenzie Haggard, twin sisters from Provo, have been going on Full Moon Rides since they started in 2006. McKenzie said she likes to ride both nights each month, going with friends one night and with a date on the other.
“It’s a tradition,” McKenzie Haggard said. “It’s always nice to get up in the mountains and there is just something special about it being at night and in the summer.”
McKell Haggard said riding the lift can help strengthen a friendship or a budding relationship because there is plenty of time for conversation.
“It is a really great place to get to know someone without too many distractions,” she said.
After riding the lift for so many years, the Haggards look forward to different things about the experience.
“The best part about it is right when you go over the point of the mountain and you can see the big, gorgeous moon in all its glory,” McKenzie Haggard said. “It’s breathtaking and so beautiful.”
Her sister also enjoys being away from the city.
“You feel like you are in another place,” McKell Haggard said. “It is something that is definitely worth the money. Riding the lift all the way up and down gives you plenty of time to enjoy the mountain air.”
Each ride is $11 for adults. The lifts begin running at 8:30 p.m. and continues until 11 p.m. Secure footwear is recommended, as it is not uncommon for flip flops to be lost during the ride. Also, because of cooler nighttime temperatures in the canyon, warm clothes or blankets will make the ride more pleasant.
“The blanket can also help instigate snuggling, if wanted,” Benne said.
