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There seems to be a number of ‘Top 10 Resorts in North America’ from various publications doing the rounds, all using their own tried and tested secret formula to come to their conclusion. But none of them include what matters most: Radness factor!
A simple, yet acutely accurate equation has been developed by leading industry professionals to create this complex ski resort ranking system:
Rank = [Average Snowfall + Access to Challenging Terrain] x Radness Factor (RF)
#1 – Jackson Hole, WY
– Average snowfall = 475 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 2,500 acres
– Top elevation = 10,450 feet
– Bottom elevation = 6,311 feet
– Total vertical drop = 4,139 feet
– Trails = 80
– Lifts = 11
– Why Jackson Is Great = The Backcountry Terrain
– Local Quote = “Most would focus on the tram, bringing you up over 4,000 feet in about 9 minutes in winds up to 70 mph. Many could look at the average snowfall, which lays down an impressive 450+” of snow. Some could even point to the fact that our relative isolation keeps crowds far below what they would be at many other resorts around the world. I would say the single factor that makes Jackson Hole stand out from its peers is the terrain- long, steep couloirs, badass open faces, incredible tree skiing…and that’s just what’s immediately around the resort. Add in Teton Pass, Grand Teton National Park, and the surrounding ranges that very few people even visit and you’ve got plenty to keep yourself busy. Finally, Teton fault could always shift and our lines could quickly grow another couple inches…which is, coincidentally, what she said.” – Andrew Whiteford, Jackson Hole Freeride Team member
#2 – Whistler Blackcomb, BC
– Average snowfall = 396 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 8,171 acres
– Top elevation = 7,494 feet
– Bottom elevation = 2,140 feet
– Total vertical drop = 5,280 feet at Blackcomb (5,020 ft at Whistler)
– Trails = 200+
– Lifts = 38
– Why Whistler is Great = The Size
– Local Quote = “The sheer size and range of riding available at Whistler makes any day with any conditions hold potential to be your best day of the season. Plus, if it is raining, the two dozen bars will give you more than enough options to drink it blue.” – Eliel Hindert, Professional skier & Sweet Grass movie star
#3 – Squaw Valley, CA
– Average snowfall = 450 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 3,600 acres
– Top elevation = 9,050 feet
– Bottom elevation = 6,200 feet
– Total vertical drop = 2,850 feet
– Trails = 170+
– Lifts = 30
– Why Squaw Is Great = The Terrain
– Local Quote = ”What makes Squaw Valley the planet’s greatest ski area is that we have the greatest snow on earth, an unmatched dump: sun ratio, unsurpassed verticality, perfectly clean, granite cliffs ten feet higher than some in Whistler, and very few iPhone-toting hippies. On top of all this, the general lack of local arrogance is utterly refreshing, which outsiders might find surprising because Squaw is pretty much the center of the universe.” – Scott Gaffney, editor, director, filmer with Matchstick Productions
#4 – Snowbird, UT
– Average snowfall = 500 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 2,500 acres
– Top elevation = 11,000 feet
– Bottom elevation = 7,760 feet
– Total vertical drop = 3,240 feet
– Trails = 85
– Lifts = 11
– Why Snowbird is Great = The Tram
– Local Quote = “The Tram is the best lift in the world because you get all the goodness of Snowbird all from one lift. You can access almost the entire mountain and ski 3-4 times as much steep terrain in one run as you can at Squaw Valley. Plus it really doesn’t smell as bad as people say”– Daryn Edmunds, long-time Snowbird local
#5 – Revelstoke, BC
– Average Annual Snowfall = 169 inches at Revelstoke Airport, 480 inches at top of Mt. Mckenzie
– Total inbounds terrain = 3,121 acres
– Top elevation = 7,300 feet
– Bottom elevation = 1,680 feet
– Total vertical drop = 5,620 feet
– Trails = 59
– Lifts = 5
– Why Revelstoke Is Great = The Vertical (longest vertical drop in North America at 5,620 ft)
– Quote = ”Man, this place is amazing. I’d love to get back up here. On a powder day, it seems like there’s nobody here, and the terrain’s incredible. I gotta get back.” – Arne Backstrom, 2010 Revelstoke FWT Champion & 2010 Overall FWT Champion
#6 – Taos, NM
– Average snowfall = 305 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 1,294 acres
– Top elevation = 12,481 feet
– Bottom elevation = 9,207 feet
– Total vertical drop = 3,274 feet
– Trails = 113
– Lifts = 14
– Why Taos is Great = The Snow Quality + Terrain
– Local Quote = “There are plenty of great ski areas in the Western US. If you happen to be at any one of them when it snows, that is about the best place you can be. But if you happen to be in Taos for that magic event, you are likely to be enjoying the heck out of things for about a week. We aren’t on the beaten path… A heck of a lot of folks think they need a passport and some shots to visit Taos. Shots yes, passport no. You can’t ski out Taos Ski Valley in a day or a week or a season. It’s complicated and we like it that way.” – Dave Hahn, Taos Ski Patroller, Mountain Guide with 14 summits of Everest, 20 summits of Denali, 30 summits of Vinson Massif in Antarctica
#7 – Big Sky, MT
– Average snowfall = 400 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 5,800+ acres
– Top elevation = 11,166 feet
– Bottom elevation = 6,800 feet
– Total vertical drop = 4,366 feet
– Trails = 300+
– Lifts = 34
– Why Big Sky is Great = The Steeps
#8 – Kicking Horse, BC
– Average snowfall = 295 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 2,800 acres
– Top elevation = 8,033 feet
– Bottom elevation = 3,900 feet
– Total vertical drop = 4,133 feet
– Trails = 120
– Lifts = 4
– Why Kicking Horse is Great = The Lack of Crowds + Big Terrain
– Local Quote = This place is so new and unfrequented, that we couldn’t even get someone to quote…
#9 – Mount Baker, WA
– Average snowfall = 641 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 1,000 acres
– Top elevation = 5,089 feet
– Bottom elevation = 3,500 feet
– Total vertical drop = 1,589 feet
– Trails = 31
– Lifts = 8
– Why Mt Baker is Great = The Snow Quantity (world record set in ’98/99 at 1,140 inches”)
– Local Quote = “Baker is great because you have this amazing mixture of constantly deep snow, amazing terrain, and a Mountain Management policy that is more about people taking responsibility for there own actions, and lets people make there own decisions about riding some of the incredibly challenging terrain. Not to mention the limitless backcountry that is easily accessible from the ski area.” – Grant Gunderson
#10 – Silverton, CO
– Average snowfall = 400 inches
– Total inbounds terrain = 1,819 acres. Plus 22,000+acres heli & hike to.
– Top elevation = 13,487 feet
– Bottom elevation = 10,400 feet
– Total vertical drop = 3,000 feet
– Trails = 0
– Lifts = 1
– Why Silverton is Great = The Heli-Skiing Experience at a Ski Resort
– Local Quote = “Silverton Mountain is pretty close to the purest skiing experience one can find today – an epic mountain, bountiful snowfall (the deep and light Colorado kind!), and none of the distractions of other ski areas (crowds!). Silverton is like heli-skiing with a chairlift!” – Chris Davenport, Big-Time Professional Skier, and Mountaineer
Jackson Hole, Squaw Valley, Snowbird, Revelstoke, Taos, and Big Sky are just 6 of the 43 iconic destinations on the Ikon Pass.
I think Revelstoke is my number 1
I saw a very different rating by this guys btw -https://wertu.ai/
I’ve skied all but Taos and Silverton. Devil’s Advocate opinions:
JH: Way over crowded – yes, even weekdays. 1 hour waits for the tram.
WB: Thanks to to the Epic(fail), it’s overcrowded.
SqV: Best snow quality? In the Sierra? Maybe a couple times a season. And traffic from HELL. Just look @ CalTrans.
SB: Little Cottonwood: Anything more than an foot and they close it down. Unless you’ve got $$ to stay on the mtn, you’ll miss it. Skied out by 10a.m.
Revie: Only one way up. Hopefully that new lift helps weekend crowds.
Taos: Bucket List…when they have a decent snow season.
BS: NO Place to stay near the resort for us mid-classers. Bozeman is an hour away. Takes a lot of snow to open the good stuff and usually not ’til February.
KH: I’ll say it again. NEEDS ANOTHER LIFT, FTLoG.
Baker: Too close to Seattle.
Silverton: Is it really worth the trouble? You need an appointment, right?
I’ve skied every one of these resorts (except Taos and Silverton) in my skiing career. Admittedly, some in the distant past (ie, Squaw not since 1980, Jackson in ’82, Baker in ’85) but LOTS of Whistler, KH in ’14, Revy several times in ’15, ’17, ’18, etc. By far the tops in terms of snow, terrain, ski town, etc is Whistler. Snow and terrain, Big Sky takes second, JH third.
But it really depends on the conditions when you are there. Some people say “but the snow at Whistler is heavy and wet, you’ll get rained on”. I’ve skied cold smoke at Whistler (yes I had a season pass to Bridger for six years); I’ve been rained on at Snowbird in January. So – it just depends on the conditions on the days when you are there. I will say Revy is WAY overrated. Very limited lifts, tends to cloudy/foggy conditions. Same at KH – limited lifts, not that many runs. I’ll keep coming back to Whistler/Blackcomb, thanks.
What about vail, they should be on the list
Is Taos better than Alyeska?
Squaw has the best natural granite features of any ski area in the US. No American ski area has more interesting and varied natural features than Squaw. Kirkwood is almost as awesome as Squaw, but Squaw is best. I have skied all over Colorado and Utah and love them all. And here is something that many people don’t know, Heavenly on the Nevada side has two of the most excellent double black diamond canyons ever, Mott Canyon and Killibrew Canyon, and you may see a bear sitting in a tree riding up the chairlift.
I actually worked at Kirkwood last winter and skied a lot there as well as at Heavenly. Kirkwood is truly epic after some good powder. Unfortunately, their lift system is not the worst in the world but still terrible. They only have one high speed which access limited terrain and gets skied out super fast. On a big powder day you never know when Avalanec control will green light but its often after noon. The first place to open is chair 6, the only high speed, so it gets skied out like a mofo. Then if you are lucky they will get 10 open that same day, the biggest steepest chair possibly in cali, and one of the top 5 steepest runs in the US afaik. Unfortunately that lift takes 20 minutes in some seriously biting wind. If it doesn’t open by 2PM or so then the day after a huge storm is usually when the best part of the mountain opens which is the back side. Unfortunately this side has only one main lift, and it is slow afffffffffff. Again it takes about 20 minutes in biting wind. And the lines at this lift get 10 minutes long and longer when everyone is rushing to get there. This too get skied out quickly. So on a slow week day with unexpected powder I’ve had some truly great times at Kirkwood, but it has some major drawbacks. These days parking is a huge issue too as Vail tries to overpack the mountain.
The solution to these issues with south tahoe skiing came to me rather unexpectedly. From the gaper mountain of Heavenly. Even the mention of Heavenly is enough to make any Kirkwood enthusiast cringe. They claim its not steep enough, and is full of gapers, too pretentious and crowded. But the truth is they either haven’t given Heavenly the shot it deserves, or feel unwelcome there becuase they are not as friendly to bum ass lift operators with dreads, six packs snowboards etc. (they actually do have a pretty strict mountain patrol)
But the truth is that while there are a ton of gapers at heavenly, they all stay confined to a few large pistes, and since everyone believes its just a gaper mountain, most of the advanced skiers who can do the off piste and awesome powder bowls/tree runs at heavenly (which there are plenty) don’t even bother. Of all the best runs of my life at least half were there. After the major system late last winter Mott Canyon was the deepest snow I have ever experienced, chest deep. It was basically like surfing an avalanche. The snow was so deep that any thing less than a black and you were stuck. Even in mott, a steep double black I had trouble staying going. And the views at Heavenly are astounding.
The best run of my life was there, from the top of the gondola through the fire break gate and all the way down to the ice covered road in town only seeing one other person and skiing trough wide open miles of powder.
So I am not going to call Heavenly one of the top 10 but Im a huge fanboy. Everyone at kirkwood hated me for it. But I skied way more powder than they did that season because they were too proud to go. Funniest thing about all the lifties hating on heavenly is their park is 10X better, actaulll all of their many parks are.
OMG I know all the ski resort in North America on this list! I would love to ski but don’t enough time to plan properly. I am starting ski next season and I wanted to know some things about it. This list helped me to plan ski. Thanks
As a cross-country rider, I would go for Mount Baker, since the terrain is great for the skating technique (described also here https://www.sport2000rent.com/en/skirental/blog/cross-country-ski/ ). Of course Snowbird is also a great option for practicing different ski techniques. Wolf Creek and Loveland are also worth mentioning.
Finally a great list ! I could be happy with any of them. Real list for real skiers.
not PR drivel from the worthless ski rags. Some could move several notches.
eg; Snowbird up 2 to 3 notches for great terrain and great snow usually.
Whistler & Squaw down a notch or 2. Sure they have great terrain but often
wet cement like snow due to damp coastal storms. Fine list. I’ve skied most
many times.
Oh, and not having Alta somewhere is a serious omission.
the food at the top of the mountain at Snowbird and the setting are both unbelieveable. And the food was the standard ski resort pricing. Which is to say kinda high but darn well worth it for a change.
#1 Alta , no snowboarding .
#2 mammoth , powder in may .
#3 Kirkwood , crazy steep .
#4 crystal mountain , best access to backcountry.
#5 revelstoke , the town gets bonus points, access to Heli and snowcat skiing unlike anywhere else . But extremely hard to get there .
I hate to be this guy, buuuuuuuut.. Montana hit the million mark in late 2011. You’re a bit off bud 😉
I’m an AltaBird local, so I’m biased, but they are still the best two mountains I’ve skied and while I haven’t hit all of these, I have been around. Sure, the signature terrain may not be as fancy as at Jackson or Squaw, but the sheer amount of long, sustained pitches that aren’t too difficult to access blows Whistler and Squaw out of the water. Plus, it’s a tourist myth that they track out fast. Of course the Cirque and Sunspot are tracked out at 10, that type is tracked out at all the big mountains. There are a ton of great pitches hidden in the trees off the traverse that just won’t get skied, something like the Nest or STH.
Pow Mow and Bridger are contenders in the local category though.
Ahhh Baker!!!!! Nothing Like it.
Several of these areas have seriously inflated snow totals, either from marketing brochure quotes (Big Sky, Silverton) or upper mountain sites not representative of ski terrain as a whole (Jackson, Squaw). Some of the other places have more modest overstatements. See my website bestsnow.net for real world numbers.
The author is not listed, but I would expect SnowBrains to do a better job of validating data before publication.
Kicking Horse has been good bet for many years, I have friends from Australia that come up every year to ski W. N.A. (they have also skied Japan – loved it) – they have skied all of the top 10 here and they ALWAYS start & end at Kicking Horse – he is a speed demon & she is less so but they both get what they want ! The past decade they have come from Oz to ski the big mountains.. stories to tell 🙂
I would swap Whistlerfor Crested Butte. I’ve skied both more than six times, and the challenging stuff at CB is as good as Big Sky, Jackson, Kicking Horse, Taos, Telluride, and some runs at Silverton. Whistler is a big salad bar, not top cuisine skiing.
Personally I would recommend Snowbird, I have been on most of them, but the one which was the best for me is Snowbird.
Taos! See you boys on the west basin.
Revelstoke is over hyped. Waited literally an hour to get on the gondola on a powder morning. Yes, it has massive vertical North to South but its narrow East to West and gets skied out in about an hour. Some of the glades are great but a lot of them need much more glading work done so you can let your skis run. It does have a beautiful view.
Completely agree. Lift access needs improvement at Revi. Far too much standing in line and not enough skiing. Bottom half of the mountain isn’t great so you’re lapping a couple chairs all day with massive lines. Kicking horse is worse. They’ve talked about adding capacity to the Gondi since they put it in. They could probably triple the gondi count but don’t want to spend the money. Backcountry at kicking horse is amazing but lift access is severely lacking.
Mad River Glen – ski it if you can! Lots of free heeling bark eaters.
Here is my top 7
1 revelstoke , longest and steepest vertical drop in North America
2 mammoth, powder skiing in late may
3 crystal mountain , largest ski area in Washington plus tons of backcountry accessed thru gates
4 alta , no snowboarders
5 kirkwood , steep powder
6 alpine meadows before squaw
7 any backcountry accessed by snowmobile , snowcat , or helicopter is better than any ski resort skiing anywhere in the world !!!
You need to go North in Washington to Baker.
Taos @ #6? maybe once every decade, I spent 4 years there and one was decent the rest were horrible. now there is a lift to the top of Kachina Peak, Taos is DEAD! No Crested Butte? some of the best lift serviced hike-to terrain off of high lift and out to third bowl. Happy to see Silverton on the list although I think there are a half dozen other resorts that are better on any given day, another mountain that needs a perfect day to get the goods. It is an amazing experience any day but not always great skiing like these other resorts offer. Just my 2 cents… go to http://www.powderpages.com for videos pics and discussion of mountain culture….. thanks Snowbrains Keep it up!!!
Well said Scott Gaffney. Merica!
Good to see Jackson representing Wyoming at #1. Now, where the hell is Targhee?
Mammoth???
Kirkwood:
Steeps…..wolrd extremes! no reason to say more.
Pow….plenty (even in extreme drought 300-400″, 600+ normal)
Sun…plenty, come on, it is Northern California
Terrain….steep, open bowls, trees and groomers, If you like that type of thing
crowds….none
nightlife/bars…none (well 5 out of 6 isn’t bad)
#1 Kicking Horse
# 2 Telluride
#3 Squaw
Agree, Lake Louise is #1 for scenery.
Tahoe gets in @ # 1 for waterskiing the last year!
No Banff…no Jasper and nothing east at all? Sugarloaf,Jays Peak,Killington and Sunday River anybody?
Thank you for mentioning any eastern hills, but no whiteface?
I skied Sugarloaf May 3 top to bottom all terrain even the trails with no snowmaking
Fernie
It is always about the snow, not who has the best lodge, or the nicest parking lot or a good menu or affordable daycare, it always comes back to the snow. If you are a groomer, good for you, you can ski on an ice rink. If you like moguls, you need to get out of the 80’s. If you like snow, and I’m talking about dumping all the time, consistent 10+ inch overnight dumps that happen 30+ times a year, then you are talking about Mt Baker, the king of snow. The closest place on this list is 141 inches, or almost 12 feet less in snow for the season! This isn’t a place where you get a 40 inch dump and no snow for 3 weeks. Beyond that, it has arguably the best chair lift or book packed backcountry access in the world. They don’t groom 80% of the killer inbounds terrain, because why ruin a good thing? It always comes back to the snow and the terrain under it, and with that in mind, Mt Baker can’t be beat…period.
Snowiest places in 2012/13. And this is an average year at Baker! But look at the rest of the list, the PNW is where it is at if you want snow! But please don’t come here, the canadians have already infiltrated the area, and we don’t want anymore. Thanks in advance!
#1 – Mt. Baker, WA = 720″
#2 – Alyeska, AK = 718”
#3 – Mt. Washington, B.C. = 685″
#4 – Timberline, OR = 544″
#5 – Stevens Pass, WA = 541″
and crystal..
With climate change, there is NO consistant dumps of snow… mt. Washington was closed ALL year this past Winter because of no snow… go figure ! We can not expect normal conditions now or in the future unfortunately
Kicking Horse = Jackson without the crowds
Alta on top of Snowbird = Whistler (not including Blackcomb)
Revelstoke has 5700+ lift served vert of expert terrain +cat skiing + heli + year round snow
Banff/Lake Louise has the best scenery and wildlife on the planet + some kick a** skiing
British Columbia (B.C.) = backcountry
Canada Rules!
Where’s Loveland, Wolf Creek, and Telluride? Colorado has the best skiing in the USA!!! Loveland has 450 inches of snow and great steeps, Wolf Creek has 500 inches of the best powder anywhere. Telluride has everything too! California and Utah always put down Colorado to make themselves feel better, but everything they say is B.S. Both Utah and California lie about their snowfall and terrain, when Colorado is too modest. Why is everyone so jealous of Colorado? If they weren’t then why do they always feel the need to disparage it?
You are completely clueless. Maritime mountain ranges kick ass on any mountain in Colorado. Colorado is the king of dust on crust even after a two foot storm which is extremely rare. Colorado sucks…
How about a nod to Jay Peak!?
Kirkwood & Sugar Bowl in Tahoe get more snow and have a better variety of terrain than Squaw in my book…
Definitely. I prefer both of them to Squawlpine.
Sun Valley should be on the list. Awesome mountain.
Silverton requires that you have backcountry gear if that tells you anything.
And stay away from Telluride- it super-sucks, no need to go there
Baker requires that you have activated your avy gear to even get on the chair
Dude, BAR none Revelstoke takes the win. Brand new, no one knows about it, and they get more snow than alsmost anyone, no crowds (far to get to), and was even in Art Of Flight (unfortunate :/). I have been to all of these, numerous times except silverton, and all over the world for that matter (thanks government job) and for real un biased since I live on the east cost now REVELSTOKE is KING. PERIOD. And snowbird blows compared to snowbasis, that was the deepest dryest pow of my life 55inches inches in 24 hours. Jackson is awesome for sure, but windblown and icy as you all know as soon as it get’s exposed. Revelstoke baky, get reved!! Plus the town is way cooler than any of them, not built up yet, and have way better heli skiing than any of the above listed for 10x cheaper. WORD
It’s difficult to really narrow it down to just 10. Certainly JH get #1 and Whistler #2. Telluride, Crested Butte and Alta all get nods as well in my book.
Telluried and Crested Butte have good terrain but they have been seriously lacking in the snow department for the last couple of years…
If you have been to revelstoke you know it is the best. Only 3 lifts to access enormous terrain. Easy back/side country access a lot of snow. The trees are perfection. It is not uncommon to see an ambulance at the base. This place is perfection.
Revelstoke will challange any skier! not meant for families or beginners.
if that dont do it, rodgers pass will blow any ski touring- back country skiier
revelstoke is where it’s at, such a swell place all the time
Alpine IS Squaw now… gone are the days of the $45 ticket and the endless hike-able pow… Love this list, I can see how some are bantering about the order, but with several places off the beaten path that I’ve never tried, it’s time to get my ass out there! My heart will always stay in POWDER MOUNTAIN, UT, though… love that place!
POWMOW! Can’t believe it’s only been mentioned once here! Old School PowMow does it all….SHHHhhhh!
Well, I have to say I’ve had my absolute best pow days at Steamboat… for powder I have never had those days matched anywhere… I am talking deep, deep powder that is light as a feather!
I think Lake Louise has some fun terrain as well.. not the big pow- but amazing scenery, even better then Telluride.
All these resorts are good on their best day and conditions- but the boat consistently has good pow
Had two great days of fresh deep pow at Steamboat, but found Steamboat to be very flat. Mt. Werner has Chutes and Christmas Tree bowl, but they are short and a long runout with lots of poling. And a real wacky way to have to ski down the flat back bowl to take Morningside to get to the chutes, or have to hike off the Storm Peak lift. I wanted to like Steamboat, but just cannot get into it.
Morningside is a colossal waste of time. Literally you take six turns and your run is over. Flat! The best spots are the chutes and the little hike up to No Names and North St Pats, but it’s short too.
No ALTA….no way!
Love that Bridger is off the radar!!!!
There’s no snowboarding at Alta!! The bird blows doors on Alta anyway
Right. Which is a good thing really…
Do people ski upside down at Taos?
– Top elevation = 9,207 feet
– Bottom elevation = 12,481 feet
= negative vertical drop, which must be a first in the ski industry
people kept referring to this and I couldn’t figure out what they were talking about. Just fixed it. Thanks for getting thru to me and pointing that out.
What about Alta????
Alta????
Happy to see Snowbird, Taos & Squaw, but Alta is left out?
Jackson Hole Number 1. What a Joke. Im thinking more like 7 or 8.
Mt Bachelor doesn’t need to reopen– looking forward to a pow day on May 26th.
Hell yeah JH!
“iPhone toting hippies” ? Haha get over yourself Squaw.. It’s a great mountain with lots of fun terrain, but if you want local and lack of arrogance? Check out Alpine.
Amen. Alpine all the way.
Mammoth!!!
Good list homie. You know Snowbird should be above Squaw, but it is your site so I guess it is to be expected. Keep the good stuff rolling!
Snowbird Love! I think it could be above Squaw, but I’m happy with #4. On a late season powder, the place is unreal. Oh, yeah, kinda like today!
Dave Hahn is the man!
Where’s the love Snow Brains? Those stats are for Moonlight Basin & Big Sky Resort. Can you do us a solid & add us to #7? At least give us a shout out. Would be much appreciated. Thanks.
My bad, I thought you guys were kinda connected. Fixing it now.
What about Red in Canada?
You’ve got Taos going up hill. Gravity still should be applied to the drop.
Man, hard to not just have a top 15….
So many GREATS not on the list. Taos is up there for me for sure.
Aspen’s power of 4 is hard to not recognize….
As for the, it’s epic on the right day re: silverton, so is all of the other resorts. But Silverton is a tremendous experience.
Crested Butte when its %100 open.
Taos Baby!
How’d Jackson gain 100 more vertical? Must be new Math, or just excited to be #1.
Both. Naw, typo, my bad. Thanks for catching that.
I just skied Kicking Horse. It should be third, if not first. Kicking Horse has more in-bounds steeps than Jackson, and incredible backcountry terrain and access.
Squaw is great but should be far below. It just does not have the sustained vertical of the others and the snow quality is bad.
KT has nothing but steeps and vertical
Revelstoke is even better than KH
KH just added more terrain. People say snow quality is better at KH than Revy…more at Revelstoke but better, lighter at KH.
I would have added Created Butte to that list
Yep. Their north face is pretty epic!
Hellsyeah for Silverton! – Albeit, – Jackson hole is my Favorite as well !!!
It’s not too late, bump Silverton up. If you’ve been there, you should know. It’s epic on the right day
I have been to Silverton, I know, and you are correct. Silverton makes every run at every other ski resort look flat by comparison. I have skied nearly every double-black diamond and EXterrain at 3/4ths of Colorado ski areas, there is nothing like Silverton. Some of their terrain is quadruple black diamond. The waiver that you sign beforehand says it all. Level 9 extreme skiing all the way.
I skied there in December ’10 and they had like 40 inches in two days. Sick steeps and deep everywhere. Add the very high elevation and it should be higher on the list cause it’s so physically demanding. I’m planning on another trip next month!
Guided only for almost the entire season, I’m not sure that they should qualify against traditional resorts….s
Yeah!
Jackson closed, others riding powder, Jackson measures snow from Top of mountain others mid mountain. Overpriced should be number 3 or 4. Baker steeper, better outback, more snow, cheaper.
Only problem….west coast cement for snow!!
What about Mount Southington????
What about Targhee?? Good to see Jackson in it’s rightful top spot!
not steep enough
Targhee, not steep enough, groupies style environment
Yea Baker! Show those big dawgs whats up
Taos before Big Sky? Boo!
Taos has some great stuff, come out sometime and I’ll show ya 😉
Taos is ahead of most. Steep narrow, tight trees. Cliffs, terrain, been going back for 12 years and still haven’t skied it all.
Awesome…
I can scare anyone at Taos, particularly when the conditions are of the eastern variety. No resorts in Colorado? Comon…
and then there is Mad River Glen, best skiers in the world ski here…Flyin Ryan looks over the biggest of the cliff drops!
Flying over a cliff doesn’t make you a great skier; way over hyped!
Way to miss the Flyin Ryan reference!
The East
Silverton is in Colorado. What resorts could you be thinking of? Most CO resorts don’t get the snow, don’t have steep terrain, and don’t have accessibility. Maybe if they factored in crowd congestion more Colorado resorts would do better.
UMMM Telluride is a backcountry mecca and has the in bounds terrain as well! Crusty Butte! ummm Colorado has terrain! Get off the I-70 corridor!
Colorado has tons of snow and powder, WHY DO PEOPLE THINK SUMMIT COUNTY IS ALL THAT COLORADO HAS TO OFFER? If places like Wyoming, or Utah had more mountain ranges then they’d be in the same boat as Colorado in terms of snow diversity! Jackson Hole in fact has averaged only 320 inches of snow the last three years! I would rank Telluride and Wolf Creek above most of the resorts elsewhere. Why do people think that Colorado has no steep terrain, just because a ski resort like Breck or Vail is flat doesn’t mean that steep mountains don’t exist in CO!! Remember the winter of 2011-2012, Alta and the rest of Utah got less snow than Summit County!! People who think Colorado doesn’t get the snow of other places are seriously narrow minded and clueless. California snow is too hard, but I guess some people like that.
Sean you have no clue. You have never skied any “real” Colorado mountains.
Steeps: Crested Butte/Abasin/Loveland…..some of the steepest runs in US
Crowds: Abasin/Loveland/Monarch/Wolf Creek/Crested Butte/Jane….none ever.
But Big sky has even more difficult terrain
anyone doubt it….
last I checked the killer place called Silverton is in Colorado
Silverton is in south west Colorado.
Silverton is in Colorado last I heard and should be a lot higher!!!
Squaw, the center of the universe, and 3rd?
Kirkwood smokes Squaw any day!
On the dark side of Big Sky is Moonlight Basin. Great tree skiing, Groomers and Headwaters is as bad as you wanna be.
I’d have bumped KH up a bit.
The lift system at KH leaves a lot to be desired.
Jackson on top. Sounds about right to me.
Great mountain but the Jackson backcountry gets tracked up faster than a lot of resorts inbounds. Scary how fast people go out after a storm.
Don’t come to Mt Baker… Will it be a second El Nino year with rain and dirt? Nobody knows… except the snow gods and Duncan. But if you need a place to stay from $49, text MTBAKER to 33444. Let it snow! 2016-17 will be epic as my lady La Nina is coming back!!!
snowbird jackson and squaw get scraped out within hours so kind of more hype than reality, terrain alone sure but beyond that way better places to ski powder inbounds