# Top United States/Canadian Powder Resorts?



## Qball (Jun 22, 2010)

Baker. Not always super light powder but more snow than anywhere else


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## Bones (Feb 24, 2008)

Revelstoke


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## roremc (Oct 25, 2009)

Jan - Feb Powderhighway: main
Mar - May around Banff. Early April especially!


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Qball said:


> Baker. Not always super light powder but more snow than anywhere else


uh..."not always"...more like "rarely"


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Light powder in the PNW? That's like finding a Unicorn.

Here's a few that I've been to and think they do get good snow.

CO: Steamboat, Silverton, Vail
UT: Powder Mountain, Snowbasin, Snowbird, Brighton
WY: Targhee, Jackson Hole
CA: Tahoe, Mammoth
OR: Mount Hood Meadows
WA: Stevens Pass, Crystal, Baker
Canaduh: Whistler/Blackcomb, Revelstoke, Fernie


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## 25581 (Jul 19, 2011)

Yo Burton, appreciate the list. I've been to Utah, and absolutely loved park city and snowbird. I also liked night riding at Brighton, but never really rode the entire mountain. I also looked into j hole, how is that compared to utah?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

JACKSON HOLE> EVERYWHERE ELSE IN THE CONTINENTAL NORTH AMERICA! Excluding Alaska heliskiing of course.


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## SHREDDER97 (Aug 1, 2010)

Agree completely with BA jhole is BEAST. But BA is it really the best place you have been in North America?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Depends on what you're looking for every resort has it's pros and cons.


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## 25581 (Jul 19, 2011)

Well honestly, I live on the East Coast, so the snow is crap. I pretty much just ride park here, so if I'm going out west or up north, I'm looking for pow. What about any resorts up north, like Killington, or Jay Peak?


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## SHREDDER97 (Aug 1, 2010)

Jay peak is the only one worth going to


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## 25581 (Jul 19, 2011)

SHREDDER97 said:


> Jay peak is the only one worth going to


Are you talking about north america, or up north (I hope)?


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## SHREDDER97 (Aug 1, 2010)

On the east coast jay peak is th only resort worth going to. So up north


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## Tarzanman (Dec 20, 2008)

SHREDDER97 said:


> Agree completely with BA jhole is BEAST. But BA is it really the best place you have been in North America?


Jackson Hole has a lot of steep squeezed in to one resort. 10% of the terrain is considered beginner terrain and 40% is 'intermediate'. There is a small village around the resort (Teton Village), and the town of Jackson is 10-15 minutes from the resort. 

There is good riding to be had on all of their inbounds terrain and the scuttlebutt is that the out-of-bounds stuff will make you slap your granny.

Here is a review - 
http://www.welove2ski.com/jsp/index.jsp?lnk=101&id=117&desc=Jackson+Hole,+USA&resname=117&x=13&y=7


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

Most of those other resorts get more visitors on a busy weekend than Revelstoke gets in an entire season. (I'm not just saying that, I can show you some stats). Combine that fact with a serious amount of conservatively measured dry powder, and some gnarly terrain, should pretty much put it above anywhere else in terms of what you're looking for.


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## cjcameron11 (Feb 5, 2011)

does Breck get much powder? and are their inbounds runs all groomed or do they leave some with fresh pow for those who have no backcounty desires of yet?


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

They have powder when it snows.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

killclimbz said:


> They have powder when it snows.


I don't know why, this made me laugh :laugh:


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

I'm doing an East Coast season this year (hold the laughs). I'll be shredding around Quebec City most of the time (Relais jumps, Stoneham & Mt Ste Anne jibs, Massif-de-Charlevoix freeride). 
Will do a couple trips to Jay Peak and some snowshoe-boarding at Mt Valin (Saguenay 600+cm)
Definitely the best eastern ski hills for freeriding powder would be Massif-de-Charlevoix, QC and Jay Peak, VT.
Also going to do a day of cat-skiing at Chic Chocs (Gaspe, QC 700cm) definitely the best cat-skiing in the east. Check out their site and these few pics...
skichicchocs.com
http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v122/53/107/536065549/n536065549_236703_585.jpg
http://www.chinookaventure.com/photos/Chic-Chocs-2009-(1)/Chic-Chocs-2009-(30).jpg
http://skichicchocs.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/CNJ_ChicChocs48_LR0708.jpg
All sizes | Auberge de Montagne des Chic-Chocs | Flickr - Photo Sharing!


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

The cat skiing in the Chic Chocs looks like the real deal to me. I'd love to do some touring in that range.


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## cjcameron11 (Feb 5, 2011)

well im glad when it snows there is powder at least the world is still working right. maybe i should have been more specific, Is Breck considered a good resort for people chasing pow? (even after it has snowed)


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

killclimbz said:


> The cat skiing in the Chic Chocs looks like the real deal to me. I'd love to do some touring in that range.


The terrain & snow looks pretty good (but wind-blown hard-pack above treeline). The downsides would be it's a relatively new operation, so their cat road network is probably not that extensive yet, and they have crappy small slow cats - meaning you won't get a lot of great runs in a day. I guess we'll see how it goes! Going to try and do a short notice booking so I can guarantee good pow.


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

Heres my 2 cents ... every resort has great powder if you get lucky on a storm cycle. Unless you are literally going to choose a resort overnight and fly there for the next day to get good powder planning a trip just for good powder is a crap shoot. What I would recommend is picking one of the big four areas SLC, Tahoe, Col, Whistler* and hoping for the best weather wise. That way if you happened to get skunked on the weather you can still enjoy a large choice of resorts that can offer you fun groomers, inbounds freeriding, and park. Yes JH is epic but Id hate to plan a trip months in advance get there and it be solid ice the entire time. At least with the big four destinations you could hit a good park resort or whatever if you dont get the pow youre hoping for.



* I realize Whistler is one resort but its big enough and has a good enough park options that even iced in you should be able to be satisfied


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

chupacabraman said:


> The terrain & snow looks pretty good (but wind-blown hard-pack above treeline). The downsides would be it's a relatively new operation, so their cat road network is probably not that extensive yet, and they have crappy small slow cats - meaning you won't get a lot of great runs in a day. I guess we'll see how it goes! Going to try and do a short notice booking so I can guarantee good pow.


They've been around for at least three years, maybe five. I read about the op a good while ago now. The snowcat quality and such, well no surprise there. 

Windblown above treeline? Most places get that way at some point during the season. Especially mid winter. It happens around here. There are also plenty of powder days too. I imagine it's much the same in the Chic Chocs. I suppose they could have the wind blown conditions more often but still. 

Anyway, take lot's of pics and give us a full TR is you make it to their operation. That one has intrigued me over the years.


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

killclimbz said:


> They've been around for at least three years, maybe five. I read about the op a good while ago now. The snowcat quality and such, well no surprise there.
> 
> Windblown above treeline? Most places get that way at some point during the season. Especially mid winter. It happens around here. There are also plenty of powder days too. I imagine it's much the same in the Chic Chocs. I suppose they could have the wind blown conditions more often but still.
> 
> Anyway, take lot's of pics and give us a full TR is you make it to their operation. That one has intrigued me over the years.


I think they do get windblown up top more often than most. At least from all the reviews I read from people touring there, it's basically VERY hard pack and everyone talks about the intense winds on the "high plateaus" where it's hard to even stand up in. I do know that no matter where the Jet Stream is shifting, it often seems to end up passing over that area, and according to Env Canada this region gets the most "blowing snow days" (Saguenay->Gaspe->Labrador->Western NFLD).
I'll definitely give a full TR with pics when I do it!
Sorry for hijacking this thread off topic a bit lol.


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## snowvols (Apr 16, 2008)

It's never off topic if you're talking about powder....


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## nagle007 (Jan 22, 2011)

.


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## skycdo (Sep 15, 2011)

cjcameron11 said:


> well im glad when it snows there is powder at least the world is still working right. maybe i should have been more specific, Is Breck considered a good resort for people chasing pow? (even after it has snowed)


If you are in that neck of the woods make the drive to Vail. Much bigger resort, much less crowded.


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## 604 (Aug 22, 2011)

For Canada, The Powder Highway.

Revelstoke
Whitewater
Fernie
Kicking Horse
Red Mountain

Some of the best powder in the world.


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

I wouldn't exactly include Kicking Horse and Red Mountain on the list, although they do get their fair share of snow, it's nowhere near as much as the other three resorts (about 60%). Don't forget about Castle - but only on a good year.
The big advantage these resorts have over the us ones are their lower skier density, shit doesn't get tracked up quickly (or sometimes at all)


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## hikeswithdogs (Sep 23, 2011)

Utah is where the good pow is at 700+ inches of dry at Snowbird\Brighton last year, and 9 resorts within an hour of a major airport city.

No where better to live in North America if you work in corporate america or need a real non-mountain ski-bum job.


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