The Greatest Snow on Earth

Received the 2010-2011 promot catalog from the folk at Ski Utah over the weekend. Seems everyone has their favorite Out West destination for skiing -- mine's Utah. In addition the already-explained "greatest snow on earth", the resorts surrounding Salt Lake City have so much more going for them.Over the years, I've skied most of the major areas, with the exception of Snowbird and Sundance. I'm sure I'll get to those eventually.

I will offer one caveat to all this. I'm not a big fan of the areas around Park City. While I started out there, I quickly found Utah has so much more to offer. PC has plenty to do, but it's pricey, crowded and gets less snow (typically). But, remember, I'm not that big on resort ammenities. I'm there to ski and see. Plus, I'm cheap...

On a couple of trips, I've stayed in Salt Lake City, and used the Ski Utah web site to figure out who got snow and head there. Salt Lake has cheaper accomodations, lots of great restaurants, and is a under an hour from a dozen ski areas.

My favorite? It's a tough call that's very dependent on conditions, but all-around I think I enjoy Solitude most. A local turned me on to it a few years back and I've tried to return on every trip. No crowds, varied terrain, and the stunning scenery of Big Cottonwood Canyon. The drive up is beautiful. It's also the site of my wildest day skiing -- an all-day powder dump with a full-blown thunder and lightning show! Weird, but it was a great day on the slopes.

If you're up to get more off the beaten path, Powder Mountain is some off-the-hook skiing -- especially after a dump. I've only been here once, but  I enjoyed almost two feet of fresh for my journey! Lift tickets are downright cheap, and the locals are super-friendly. You won't find the luxe cafeteria and marble bathrooms of Deer Valley, what you will find is some truly excellent skiing. Afterward, Rooster's Brewery in Ogden has some tasty brews and even better food.

Finally, there's Snowbasin. Again off the beaten path (both Snowbasin and PowMow are outside Ogden), Snowbasin was completely redone to host the SLC Winter Olympics. The terrain is exceptional and diverse. The snow's good, and the drive up from the valley floor is totally cool. As a bonus -- the food at the Needles Lodge is full-on gourmet and still very reasonably priced. One caveat, however, Snowbasin tends to get socked in with fog/inversions easily. It's happened to me twice and to friends I sent there last year. When that happens your visibility extends roughly to your ski tips. A bit spooky. But it burns off after a couple of hours.

As you can guess, already thinking about a trip this Winter...

-Sean-