Top 5 Ski Mountains

[jsglow]

Okay.  You guys wet my whistle.

1 Alta. SLC, Utah. Little Cottonwood Canyon. God created perfection.  World's best snow,  most beautiful terrain and man was smart enough not to ruin His creation with boutiques. The mountain speaks softly if you know how to listen.

2 Sun Valley, Ketchum ID. Endless hours of fun in bowl skiing that a Midwestern intermediate can enjoy.  Also, the simply spectacular way the mountain comes into view up the nondescript double chair on the quiet backside. (I wonder if that's still there?  Been 15 years.)

3 A-Basin, Dillon Co., CO. The most Utah-like of any Colorado resort I've been to. Picnic in the parking lot.  Awesome.

4 Heavenly, Lake Tahoe.  Ski by day; gamble by night.  'Nuff said.

5 Solitude, SLC, UT. Big Cottonwood Canyon. Alta's local little brother.

6 (honorable mention) Ski Brule, Iron River,  MI. Where we've been many times as a family and where I instilled the love of the sport in my kids beginning on Bunny at the age of 5 and 3.

[StillAWarrior]

Okay.  You guys wet my whistle.

1 Alta. SLC, Utah. Little Cottonwood Canyon. God created perfection.  World's best snow,  most beautiful terrain and man was smart enough not to ruin His creation with boutiques. The mountain speaks softly if you know how to listen.

2 Sun Valley, Ketchum ID. Endless hours of fun in bowl skiing that a Midwestern intermediate can enjoy.  Also, the simply spectacular way the mountain comes into view up the nondescript double chair on the quiet backside. (I wonder if that's still there?  Been 15 years.)

3 A-Basin, Dillon Co., CO. The most Utah-like of any Colorado resort I've been to. Picnic in the parking lot.  Awesome.

4 Heavenly, Lake Tahoe.  Ski by day; gamble by night.  'Nuff said.

5 Solitude, SLC, UT. Big Cottonwood Canyon. Alta's local little brother.

6 (honorable mention) Ski Brule, Iron River,  MI. Where we've been many times as a family and where I instilled the love of the sport in my kids beginning on Bunny at the age of 5 and 3.

I'm partial to Purgatory, in Durango, Colorado.  But only because that's home to me.

[MUeng]

I'm partial to Purgatory, in Durango, Colorado.  But only because that's home to me.

nothing beats wolf creek. Pagosa springs, co

[ChicosBailBonds]

I'm partial to Purgatory, in Durango, Colorado.  But only because that's home to me.

Durango is awesome, really neat town.


I'm partial to Heavenly or Blackcomb (Whistler)

[jsglow]

Durango is a great town. Never skied there but I've taken the train twice in my life.

[mu_hilltopper]

6 (honorable mention) Ski Brule, Iron River,  MI. Where we've been many times as a family and where I instilled the love of the sport in my kids beginning on Bunny at the age of 5 and 3.

Tell me more about Brule and the surrounding area.  Thinking of taking the family there next season.  Took the kids for their first skiing lesson in February .. need to get them on the hills for a longer period.

[keefe]

I'm partial to Purgatory, in Durango, Colorado.  But only because that's home to me.

Did you know Tim Halle? One of the more gifted writers I have known personally. His loss was tragic.

[keefe]

Okay.  You guys wet my whistle.

1 Alta. SLC, Utah. Little Cottonwood Canyon. God created perfection.  World's best snow,  most beautiful terrain and man was smart enough not to ruin His creation with boutiques. The mountain speaks softly if you know how to listen.

2 Sun Valley, Ketchum ID. Endless hours of fun in bowl skiing that a Midwestern intermediate can enjoy.  Also, the simply spectacular way the mountain comes into view up the nondescript double chair on the quiet backside. (I wonder if that's still there?  Been 15 years.)

3 A-Basin, Dillon Co., CO. The most Utah-like of any Colorado resort I've been to. Picnic in the parking lot.  Awesome.

4 Heavenly, Lake Tahoe.  Ski by day; gamble by night.  'Nuff said.

5 Solitude, SLC, UT. Big Cottonwood Canyon. Alta's local little brother.

6 (honorable mention) Ski Brule, Iron River,  MI. Where we've been many times as a family and where I instilled the love of the sport in my kids beginning on Bunny at the age of 5 and 3.

Excellent list that is difficult to argue with. My list:

1. Taos Ski Valley. Taos, NM. Taos is ribboned with magnificent steeps that have 2,000' vertical drops that empty into long run gullies. Two of the absolute best front range triple diamond runs are Castor and Pollux. The first 100' bring you closer to God than any near death experience. But the real beauty of Taos is in its back-country experience. The Highline and West Basin ridges offer the finest chutes in North America. An extra advantage of Taos is in its latitude. Spring skiing is superb with t-shirts and bikinis under cobalt blue skies. Impeccable mountain for the serious skier.

2. Jackson Hole, WY. JH is a huge mountain which combined with its relative isolation makes for crowd-free skiing. The beauty of JH is that it has been left intact as God created it with no grading or run cuts. The front side has a great mix of runs but for the daring there are few finer chutes than Corbet and the Hobacks. All three have 3,000' vertical drops that challenge every inch of the way. For off-piste enthusiasts, JH offers some of the most exquisite back country experiences anywhere. The finest back country terrains feature cliffs, chutes and steeps in Rock Springs Canyon, Green River Canyon, and Granite Canyon. Simply the best off piste anywhere in the world. Jackson has tremendous apres ski options which made it my wife's favorite.

3. Alta, SLC, Utah. In addition to Glow's comments I would add that Alta's off piste is world class. Baldy Chutes and Wolverine Cirque are exceptional sphincter-tightening ski experiences. Best advice on apres ski is to shack up in Park City (Sodom & Gomorrah.) The Wasatch Brewery is a must stop. Try the Polygamy Porter.


4. Snowbird, SLC, Utah. Adjacent to Alta but with a very different vibe. Snowbird makes my list for one reason: White Pine Canyon. WPC is one of the most compelling back country runs anywhere. Snowbird also has Thunder Bowl, Baby Thunder and Mineral Basin which will all put some hair on your chest.

5. Fernie, BC. You get smaller crowds, fewer imbeciles, better snow, and a much better mountain than Whistler - Blackcomb. And Fernie features the best back country skiing in the PNW. Snake Ridge and Fish Bowl have 2,000' drops that can stain your Patagonias.


Heavenly is a stunning mountain and Gun Barrel is one of the better showtime runs home around. Purgatory offers great weather and is a nice palate cleanser from the other CO hills. 

[ChicosBailBonds]

Never cared much for Taos.  Some people love it, but didn't particularly enjoy it. 

[keefe]

Never cared much for Taos.  Some people love it, but didn't particularly enjoy it. 

The mountain or the town? There is no questioning the mountain so it is usually the remote location and the lack of chi chi Hollywood sushi crowd apres ski that makes it less desirable.

[ChicosBailBonds]

The mountain or the town? There is no questioning the mountain so it is usually the remote location and the lack of chi chi Hollywood sushi crowd apres ski that makes it less desirable.

Mountain was nice, didn't think the town was very kid friendly at all which turned my wife and I off.  We stayed in the square, can't remember the hotel....La Fonda maybe or one of those.  This was a number of years ago, my kids were pretty young.  Got to the hotel, they said no kids allowed.  Not pleased.  Long story short, they let us stay but the Mrs. was not a happy camper to say the least.

I actually like less Hollywood sushi crowd....the less L.A. like the better as far as I'm concerned, that's why I can't wait to get out of this fake area.

[keefe]

Mountain was nice, didn't think the town was very kid friendly at all which turned my wife and I off.  We stayed in the square, can't remember the hotel....La Fonda maybe or one of those.  This was a number of years ago, my kids were pretty young.  Got to the hotel, they said no kids allowed.  Not pleased.  Long story short, they let us stay but the Mrs. was not a happy camper to say the least.

I actually like less Hollywood sushi crowd....the less L.A. like the better as far as I'm concerned, that's why I can't wait to get out of this fake area.

The La Fonda is the only hotel on the Plaza in Taos and they allow kids but there may be an age limit. Taos is an artistic and Native community so it isn't purpose built for kids but there are always little ones in evidence, especially in season. In fact, one of the appeals of Taos is that it is so far off the beaten path.

Before they starting developing retail and residential up in the ski valley you had to stay in town and we usually rented a house north on the Paseo. If it was just the wife and I we would always stay at the Taos Inn; I dined at Doc Martin's with my grandparents back in the day so I always want to have at least one meal there when in town.

[rocky_warrior]

1) Any mountain on a good snow day.  This is the biggest thing, I've had had awesome days at nearly every resort in CO, Alta, Snowbasin, Whistler, Heavenly...but again, good conditions make a good resort.

2) Vail. If you're stuck at a resort, and need a 5000+ skiable acres, this is the place to be.  Not for the blue groomer crowd however.  Bonus points if you pack in your own food to grill on the public grills at blue sky basin.

3, 4, 5) See #1.  Which could also be #2.  But note that any place can suck on a bad snow day (year).

[keefe]

1) Any mountain on a good snow day.  This is the biggest thing, I've had had awesome days at nearly every resort in CO, Alta, Snowbasin, Whistler, Heavenly...but again, good conditions make a good resort.

2) Vail. If you're stuck at a resort, and need a 5000+ skiable acres, this is the place to be.  Not for the blue groomer crowd however.  Bonus points if you pack in your own food to grill on the public grills at blue sky basin.

3, 4, 5) See #1.  Which could also be #2.  But note that any place can suck on a bad snow day (year).

Let me first say that with skiing and blow jobs everything is outstanding. It's just that some are more outstanding than others.

[jsglow]

Tell me more about Brule and the surrounding area.  Thinking of taking the family there next season.  Took the kids for their first skiing lesson in February .. need to get them on the hills for a longer period.

Brule is a super friendly family orientated ski area.  Highlights include an excellent youth lessons program, runs up to a mile in length on the Homestead side, a wonderful restored Homestead lodge mid mountain on the back side, a decent base lodge with a friendly tavern overlooking the slopes, decent rental be it condos or single family ski chalet houses, a tubing area, a really neat horse sleigh ride at night back to buffet dinner at the Homestead, etc.

I've skied there for 35 years probably a dozen or more times.  Been there with college buddies back in the day.  Years later, I knew which lifts didn't have the pesky center support bar so I could get my then little kids on the chair for the first time by picking them up because their legs were too short.

Our technique when the kids were little was to put them in lessons/daycare in the morning.  Absolutely the best program in the midwest for that.  Chick and I would ski together as adults during that time.  Then in the afternoon it was what we could all do together as a family.  I still remember the first time I took my nervous young daughter to the top.  Wonderful little Maple Syrup was her perfect introduction to skiing down the entire mountain.  Essentially a glorified cat track through the forest from the top to the bottom.  I still remember my son building a 'jump' on Bunny when he was 3 or 4. Now approaching 20 years later, I have to remind him not to leave the old man behind up at 11,000 feet in the Wasatch.  'Oh, sorry dad.'

If that sounds like a ringing endorsement...

[jsglow]

Excellent list that is difficult to argue with. My list:

1. Taos Ski Valley. Taos, NM. Taos is ribboned with magnificent steeps that have 2,000' vertical drops that empty into long run gullies. Two of the absolute best front range triple diamond runs are Castor and Pollux. The first 100' bring you closer to God than any near death experience. But the real beauty of Taos is in its back-country experience. The Highline and West Basin ridges offer the finest chutes in North America. An extra advantage of Taos is in its latitude. Spring skiing is superb with t-shirts and bikinis under cobalt blue skies. Impeccable mountain for the serious skier.

2. Jackson Hole, WY. JH is a huge mountain which combined with its relative isolation makes for crowd-free skiing. The beauty of JH is that it has been left intact as God created it with no grading or run cuts. The front side has a great mix of runs but for the daring there are few finer chutes than Corbet and the Hobacks. All three have 3,000' vertical drops that challenge every inch of the way. For off-piste enthusiasts, JH offers some of the most exquisite back country experiences anywhere. The finest back country terrains feature cliffs, chutes and steeps in Rock Springs Canyon, Green River Canyon, and Granite Canyon. Simply the best off piste anywhere in the world. Jackson has tremendous apres ski options which made it my wife's favorite.

3. Alta, SLC, Utah. In addition to Glow's comments I would add that Alta's off piste is world class. Baldy Chutes and Wolverine Cirque are exceptional sphincter-tightening ski experiences. Best advice on apres ski is to shack up in Park City (Sodom & Gomorrah.) The Wasatch Brewery is a must stop. Try the Polygamy Porter.


4. Snowbird, SLC, Utah. Adjacent to Alta but with a very different vibe. Snowbird makes my list for one reason: White Pine Canyon. WPC is one of the most compelling back country runs anywhere. Snowbird also has Thunder Bowl, Baby Thunder and Mineral Basin which will all put some hair on your chest.

5. Fernie, BC. You get smaller crowds, fewer imbeciles, better snow, and a much better mountain than Whistler - Blackcomb. And Fernie features the best back country skiing in the PNW. Snake Ridge and Fish Bowl have 2,000' drops that can stain your Patagonias.


Heavenly is a stunning mountain and Gun Barrel is one of the better showtime runs home around. Purgatory offers great weather and is a nice palate cleanser from the other CO hills. 

We should ski together sometime my friend.  Clearly you're a much stronger skier than me.  But two things jumped out on your list.  One, I love Mineral Basin. Two, Polygamy Porter is damn good.

[swoopem]

My favorite places that I've been to are:

1) Steamboat, CO- a friend of mine from MU has a mid-mountain ski out so you can't really beat it.
2) Beaver Creek, CO- as Rocky said it's all about conditions and when I went to Beaver Creek they got hit with a bunch of snow the night before so the powder was super fresh.
3) Keystone, CO- huge mountain that's probably my dad's favorite
4) Big Bear, CA- went boarding there when I was on spring break in 2008 and it was beautiful. Going down to slopes looking at that lake was breathtaking. Slightly beats out Copper Mountain, CO
5) Nubs Knob, MI- I'm totally biased here because I grew up with the owners of the mountain so it was my go to for a long time, but IMO it's better than Boyne and therefor the best skiing/boarding in Michigan (minus the UP).

I also really like Blue Mountain in Ontario but it doesn't compare to out west. Eventually I'm going to make it to Utah, Idaho, and Montana which I'm sure will alter my list

[Benny B]

1. Alta
2. Snowbird (w/Alta upgrade)
3. Alta
4. Tell the kids you know a shortcut to Park City through Little Cottonwood, and when the road ends, say "dang, I must have been thinking about the shortcut through Big Cottonwood, but oh well, there's a place we can ski right here!"
5. Park City -- There's just something about the fly that is Park City in the ointment of Utah.
6. Vail -- If you have to do Colorado, this is the place to start.  Everything of everything.
7. Jackson Hole -- Would have been higher on the list, but Billy's closed down in 2012.  RIP, Billy.
8. Mt. Hood, OR -- No apres-ski, but for the hardcore skier... where else in the US can you ski in August?

[keefe]

1. Alta
2. Snowbird (w/Alta upgrade)
3. Alta
4. Tell the kids you know a shortcut to Park City through Little Cottonwood, and when the road ends, say "dang, I must have been thinking about the shortcut through Big Cottonwood, but oh well, there's a place we can ski right here!"
5. Park City -- There's just something about the fly that is Park City in the ointment of Utah.
6. Vail -- If you have to do Colorado, this is the place to start.  Everything of everything.
7. Jackson Hole -- Would have been higher on the list, but Billy's closed down in 2012.  RIP, Billy.
8. Mt. Hood, OR -- No apres-ski, but for the hardcore skier... where else in the US can you ski in August?

We often skied Bachelor and Hood. Since I'm a pilot we could get to either Bend or Hood River in under an hour; it would actually take longer to drive to the mountain base than it would to fly down from Seattle. As "ski" towns go, both Bend and Hood River are superb if not actually on the mountain. Plenty to do, eat, and drink in both locales since they are four season magnets.

I have a couple buddies who fly for Delta and live in Sodom & Gomorrah of the Deseret Empire. They bristle at the thought of having to spend any time in SLC and avoid places like Ogden and Logan. Utah is just a peculiar land of stunning physical beauty populated by oddly self-righteous people with a grotesque sense of place.

[keefe]

We should ski together sometime my friend.  Clearly you're a much stronger skier than me.  But two things jumped out on your list.  One, I love Mineral Basin. Two, Polygamy Porter is damn good.

Deal. I will admit, however, that my runs through the back country are now more technical than hell raising and I don't catch nearly as much air which is odd for a pilot.

But Glow, other than the radiance of the lovely women who took pity on us and graced us with their presence, there is nothing more beautiful than Mineral Basin at 0900 in March.

[mu03eng]

1) Any mountain on a good snow day.  This is the biggest thing, I've had had awesome days at nearly every resort in CO, Alta, Snowbasin, Whistler, Heavenly...but again, good conditions make a good resort.

2) Vail. If you're stuck at a resort, and need a 5000+ skiable acres, this is the place to be.  Not for the blue groomer crowd however.  Bonus points if you pack in your own food to grill on the public grills at blue sky basin.

3, 4, 5) See #1.  Which could also be #2.  But note that any place can suck on a bad snow day (year).

I have to say, I love the back bowl of Vail.  I haven't had the opportunity to range around a ton of places other than Colorado, Utah, Wisconsin(bleck) and Michigan so it's not that great an opinion but I could spend days in the back bowl.

And I have backpacked lunch in just not the grill type, I noticed them there the last time I was up and that will be my mission next time.

[keefe]

Waist deep powder on Mineral








Dropping into the Cique




White Pine Canyon

[Spotcheck Billy]

we had enough damn winter this year and it's not even July yet, can you please stop reminding us Midwesterners about winter?!!

[ChicosBailBonds]

My favorite places that I've been to are:

1) Steamboat, CO- a friend of mine from MU has a mid-mountain ski out so you can't really beat it.
2) Beaver Creek, CO- as Rocky said it's all about conditions and when I went to Beaver Creek they got hit with a bunch of snow the night before so the powder was super fresh.
3) Keystone, CO- huge mountain that's probably my dad's favorite
4) Big Bear, CA- went boarding there when I was on spring break in 2008 and it was beautiful. Going down to slopes looking at that lake was breathtaking. Slightly beats out Copper Mountain, CO
5) Nubs Knob, MI- I'm totally biased here because I grew up with the owners of the mountain so it was my go to for a long time, but IMO it's better than Boyne and therefor the best skiing/boarding in Michigan (minus the UP).

I also really like Blue Mountain in Ontario but it doesn't compare to out west. Eventually I'm going to make it to Utah, Idaho, and Montana which I'm sure will alter my list

I never thought in my life I would see Big Bear make anyone's list.  Its nice for us locals, but way overcrowded and usually the snow is man made.  Scenery can be nice (not just the lake and trees), but because of the mass of humanity...no thanks.  I took the family to Heavenly this year in April and I'm not joking when I say the longest lift line I had all day was probably 30 seconds and that might be stretching it. 

[ATWizJr]

Crested Butte
Copper Mountain
Sunday River
Vail
Parc du Mont Ste. Anne