What are logistics like for a solo skier visiting Salt Lake City/Park City? [closed]

I've decided I'd like to go to Utah this year to do some skiing and hopefully score some good powder days. I will be traveling by myself. My primary interest is to ski Alta, but were the logistics to work out such that it were easy, I might be interested to try other mountains in the area (Park City, etc.)

I would be flying into Salt Lake City. I've read up on the various transit options on the web (like UTA, private shuttle companies, etc) but I have no idea what it's actually like for skiers in the SLC and Park City areas to use these. In other words, is it feasible/pleasant to bring your equipment on public transit? I can see online that it is allowed, but that doesn't mean it's a good idea/pleasant experience. (Much like in my home town you can bring your bike on city buses, but by and large you'll wish you hadn't.) If at all possible, I would prefer to avoid renting a car (huge expense, not much use), but if doing so is going to make life/logistics substantially easier, I'm open to it. How do the savvy out-of-towners get around?

I've discovered from internet research and anecdotal reports that accommodations at Alta are scarce and "rustic." I'm not opposed to rustic, but I do like my privacy, and from the Alta website, it appears that many of the more affordable options are shared rooms. One resource I found suggested staying in SLC and commuting to the mountain. This seems horribly inconvenient on it's face (an hour each way on a bus with all my gear just sounds like a nightmare), but I'm open to the possibility that things work differently out there. Any secrets to know with respect to lodging?

In general, does anyone have any wisdom or suggestions to share on the logistics of a solo out-of-towner coming to the SLC/Park City area for the skiing?