Any and all opinions wanted...

[Rushski]

Will definitely head out West this season. Have a chance at Vail area and can always pull off a trip to Tahoe relatively easily/cheaply.

Opinions from friends/coworkers/family differ on certain places.

Things I've heard:

Vail - Expensive, questionable snow
Tahoe - Either great or Sierra Cement
BC - Watch for rain
Utah - Dryer and more snow
Park City - Bad in many ways...

I'm sure these "personal" experiences of others are simply that. Good or bad reputation depending on when and how conditions were at that particular time.

Anyone have any feelings on some of these remarks or other Western areas???

*Remember these are not my comments, but relaying others' thoughts.

 

[nelsapbm]

I really, really liked Vail when I was there. it is HUGE with lots of great terrain - the back bowls are great. We hit it on a powder day. Yes, it was very expensive, but I thought it was worth it.
I also really liked Copper Mountain and disliked Keystone & Breckenridge where the conditions were not as good and I didnt really like the terrain.
In Utah, I didnt like PCMR. The conditions were not great when we were there, and I didnt like the trail layout. If you're going to go to Utah, you've got to do yourself a favor and go to Alta. My favorite, hands down.

 

[SkiDog]

ALTA......

Anything in little cottonwood or big cottonwood.....but im slightly biased. ;-)

Been to most of the others..Vail would be my second choice if I could stay for free...

Let me know if you hit up UT......i live 20 from BCC and 15 from Alta.

M

 

[playoutside]

Obviously weather is a factor wherever you go. Been west a bunch of times and even when the weather is not cooperating it is still pretty good. I think the expectations are higher for the west and the complaining may be a bit louder when it's less than stellar. Bad out west is no where as bad as first half of last year in the east.

Been to Tahoe twice inc last year with limited snow -- still had fun and we got snow most nights. The first trip we arrived on heels of a 4 ft storm. The sunshine is spectacular some days and the scenery is hard to beat. Must ski areas: Alpine Meadows, Squaw and Sugarbowl. Heavenly has great views of the lake (and advertising to draw you in), but the least interesting skiing! Northstar is good for family, but not all that challenging. North shore of Tahoe is best, much less built up and better access to ski areas.

Colorado: like Copper, Keystone & Winter Park. Love Steamboat, but it's isolated. Vail is fun skiing, but I can't take the attitudes. If you want to ski several areas during one trip, Dillon/Frisco is good central location with easy options within 30 minutes inc Vail.

Utah: Great option all around, easy travel and normally plenty of snow -- fun for a week, but also makes a great long weekend. In Park City, I prefer Canyons -- some people think its too spread out like Sunday River, I really like it because you can get the heck away from the crowds. You gotta go to Alta and Snowbird too.

 

[pepperdawg]

Will definitely head out West this season. Have a chance at Vail area and can always pull off a trip to Tahoe relatively easily/cheaply.

Opinions from friends/coworkers/family differ on certain places.

Things I've heard:

Vail - Expensive, questionable snow
Tahoe - Either great or Sierra Cement
BC - Watch for rain
Utah - Dryer and more snow
Park City - Bad in many ways...

I'm sure these "personal" experiences of others are simply that. Good or bad reputation depending on when and how conditions were at that particular time.

Anyone have any feelings on some of these remarks or other Western areas???

*Remember these are not my comments, but relaying others' thoughts.

You cant go wrong with any of these - serious - especially if you've never been outwest....I've been to all listed above .....all have their pros and cons.....can't really offer advice wihout more info -

What time of year?? - What terrian do you like ot ski/ride (e.g trees, bumps, cuisers), nightlife?? (care/dont care??)...etc.....how of long a trip? Do you care about non-skiing stuff...????

 

[ctenidae]

Go West, young man. It matters not where, so long as you do.

 

[skiadikt]

'questionable snow' in vail??? even their worst days are better than eastern snow. back bowls are awesome. we've come to love the combo of steeps, trees & bumps in blue sky basin. ppl (prima, pronto & log chute) and highline are some of the best bump runs you'll find anywhere. if you're at vail you owe it to yourself to hit beaver creek. between the birds of prey & grouse areas, it may just have the best bump runs you'll find. given that the clientel there doesn't ski the tuff stuff, there isn't much compettiton for the goods.

utah can certainly have the best snow you'll find anywhere w/ alta, bird & brighton being your best choices. deer valley is actually very underated with great trees. i've yet to hit snowbasin or powder.

like you said tahoe can be great or cement.

probably a minority opinion, but while colorado doesn't necessarily have the best snow, i've found the snow conditions to be most 'consistent'.

 

[Rushski]

WOW, plenty of comments already. Thanks all.

I have been to Tahoe and skied Mt. Rose, Heavenly and Sugarbowl.

Now will just have to watch this thread, tabulate results and make plans.

 

[drjeff]

Utah, no brainer!

Basically within an hour of Salt Lake City you have 10 great choices all with their own pluses (and an occasional minus) areas (Snowbird, Alta, Solitude, Brighton, The Canyons, Park City Mtn Resort, Deer Valley, Powder Mtn, Snowbasin and I'll even throw Sundance into the mix).

With these choices, you'll basically find anything you want from wide-open above tree line bowls/chutes to perfectly buffed cruisers. Crowds are very reasonable and the snow is second to none. Throw in easy access and an airport location that rarely is affected in the winter. Easy choice. Granted I'm *slightly* biased since I own a timeshare out at The Canyons

 

[snowman]

Pick the brunette over the blonde........

 

[ctenidae]

Pick the brunette over the blonde........

And the redhead over both.
Unless you can get both at once.
Or all three.
Then go with that.

 

[snowman]

And the redhead over both.
Unless you can get both at once.
Or all three.
Then go with that.

Ack, noooooooooooo! Redheads are trouble and pasty year round! :razz:

P.S. Go with Alta over Vail, with the Brunette.

 

[skizoo]

I think it really depends on what you want out of your western skiing experience.. if you want the best chance of fresh and deep, Utah is the better choice, in most years.. the areas in the 2 canyons are by far the best choice.. If you're looking for pow a couple days in Grand Targhee Wyoming might be worth the ride.. terrain is mostly blue advanced blue but they get the snow but not the crowds..

I don't know who said Vail has questionable snow? The past few winters I've spent about 30 days in Colorado and Vail generally gets the most snow of the I-70 resorts.. None of them are a bad choice, it's just different flavors of pretty damn good..

You're probably more likely to get packed conditions in Colorado than in Utah but not always..
There were times last year when conditions were just as hard packed in central CO than they normally are in the NE, if they're getting the snow it is wonderful but things can get slick out there too, but you are not likely to have to deal with rain especially in the Summit/Eagle county areas, so even in a bad snow year, the snow will generally be better than what would be normal for the east though last year the east had had better conditions from Feb through March.. IMO..

when comparing much of the west.. central CO fared pretty well last year but there were areas that didn't do as well.. but as a rule, snow will be better in most years out west..

I like Keystone, There's some nice terrain there. Copper is nice too, Breck, Well, it's a lot of flats in a lot of places.. you can find some good terrain but it's a little harder to get around.. if you don't know the mountain.. and it can be a real windy mountain.. More so than the others in the region, tends to get lots more wind holds than does Keystone which is the closet..

Consider A Basin for a more alpine type experience, very different than the others in the region, Loveland too, nice for a day but not on weekends..

Steamboat, to me the most beautiful mountain in Colorado.. some nice terrain, not overly challenging but generally pretty decent snow, it's not that much farther of a drive than Vail, maybe an hour to hour and a half.. or so.. less chance of traffic jams heading up to steamboat than Vail depending on what day and time you are driving..

I've never skied Tahoe so can't comment, BC is nice.. though I prefer the interior areas to the coastal

I'll second what one of the other replies said about Dillon/Silverthorne/Frisco being a great central location for the I-70 resorts.. you are probably no more than 45 minutes from any of them, if you don't mind driving each day..

 

[drjeff]

And the redhead over both.
Unless you can get both at once.
Or all three.
Then go with that.

What about a blonde at the 1st area, a brunette at the second and a red head at the third?? Why discriminate!

 

[Rushski]

Got and married the brunette.

As for my Western skiing experience this season???

 

[dmc]

BC - Watch for rain

eeeeehhhhhhhhhh.... wrong.... BC a big place... Interior doesn't get the costal rain like Wistler Blackcomb. Some of my best ski trips were at places like Fernie and Kicking Horse... Much less crowded too..

 

[dmc]

Tahoe - Either great or Sierra Cement

Tahoe is huge with tons of choices... that means lots of aspect to ski.. So go but rent a car.. Follow the good snow.. I've had sketchy conditions at Tahoe.. But always a great time...
Kirkwood may change your whole outlook on skiing... Just warning you.. The place rocks..
Alpine is vast and has tons of aspects to choose from - pretty chil vibe...
Squaw is sick! Crazy inbounds shots.. Huge...
Heavenly personally bores me - but lots of people love it.. motts is cool...
Diamond Peak is the Poconos meets Tahoe...
Northstar has great trees and is a great option when the higher places are on wind hold..
Homewood has great views and a nice ridge to ski... not so big...
mt rose is awesome... Nice size... Near Renoe.. You can hit it on your way to Tahoe.. Pleanty to keep you occupied..

I love Tahoe...

Also... check out montana... Good stuff there as well..

 

[snoseek]

powder mt. is my new fave in utah when it snows. alta really is a lot different these days (lift setup changes things) . solitude is pretty cool for powder days. why not book your flight somewhere central (like slc), and book hotel last minute through a site like hotwire. rent a car and go storm chasing. eight or ten hours will get you to a lot of different areas.

 

[SIKSKIER]

As DMC said Kirkwood and Alpine are great! Interior BC is way different than Whistler in the coast range.I've gone catskiing every year for the last 8 in BC and we always get fresh tracks almost every run.The average snowpack is anywhere from 8-13 feet.You must go there at least once.Check out the terrain at MustangPowder.com.Delicious!!

 

[arik]

I agree that Utah is a good choice, I went for a week each of the last two years (conference for my self or my partner). Both times I stayed in Salt Lake city and skied at a different resort every day. There are so many fantastic resorts within a short drive of Salt Lake city, and unlike summit county colorado there's no traffic. It was great 2 years ago in April as well as last year in February. My 2 favorite resorts are Snowbasin and Brighton, I didn't get to try Solitute or Sundance yet. Park city (not park city mountain, but the park city chamber of commerce) has a program called the Park City "Quick Start" where you get a voucher to ski free at any of the three resorts in park city your first day. So I skied free at Deer Valley twice, it rocked. The catch is you have to ski the afternoon of your flight, so take an early nonstop, and drive 28 minutes from the airport to park city. Theres a Mcdonalds right off the off ramp of the exit to get coffee and food before you ski. Last time in Salt lake I stayed in the Little America Hotel and was very pleased, comfortable, nice pool/hot tub/sauna, nice rooms, good prices, easy to get to.