The Wasatch

For people living or skiing at Whistler or Vail/Aspen, there is a distinct us versus them rivalry but if you are a real skier, you go to Utah. Last year while living in Aspen, I needed to get away, I needed a ski vacation. My roommate and I skipped off work early one day, piled into my small hatchback with four pairs of skis covering the entire roof and drove to Salt Lake City. The home of Joseph Smith and his Mormon clan also hosts gnarly mountains and as it says on Utah license plates, "The greatest snow on earth." The plates don't lie. One day we got 13 inches and it was no big deal for the residents. In fact the mountain was practically empty because many of the residents were in Church.

The resorts of Snowbird and Alta are six and eight miles respectively away from Salt Lake City. Certainly much different than two hours spent on the Sea to Sky Highway going to Whistler. So after sleeping in and enjoying a relaxing breakfast in the city, we hopped in the car for a 20-minute jaunt up the winding roads of Little Cottonwood Canyon.
One mother from Massachusetts explained that her family members were real skiers. They don't bother going anywhere else for ski vacations. Compared to the rolling hills that are called rockies in Colorado, Little Cottonwood Canyon is endless jagged peaks. Compared to the heavy snow of Whistler, their snow is fluffy enough to blow up in the air and it won't land for hours.
For skiing, Utah is the place to go. What Snowbird and Alta lack is everything else. One big hotel, no bars and really nothing else to do. But with that terrain and snow, everyone who is serious about skiing needs to check out Utah.