Powder Mountain is an area that has not been fully discovered by Utah skiers. After a storm it is a powder skier's paradise.

Snowbasin

Number of lifts: 11 — 2 gondolas, 1 tram, 1 high-speed quad, 1 double, 4 triple, 2 surface

Vertical drop: 2,950 feet

Skiable acres: 3,300

Terrain: 20 percent beginner, 50 percent intermediate, 30 percent expert.

Top elevation: 9,465 feet

Number of runs: 113

Snowboarding: Yes

Halfpipe: 1

Terrain parks: 2

Comment: Interestingly enough, it was Alf Engen, who was instrumental in the discovery of Alta, who recommended building a ski area in Wheeler Basin, the current location of Snowbasin.

Snowbasin officially opened in 1940 after the road was completed, with two rope tows up Becker Hill, site of the current Becker chairlift. After one change in ownership, Earl and Carol Holding purchased the troubled ski area in 1984.

Long before the Holdings purchased Snowbasin, consensus was that this was the one resort in Utah with the most potential. As Engen saw, the slopes and the snow conditions are conducive to great skiing. Since the new lifts were introduced prior to the Olympics, the whole mountain has changed — it is more open, more accessible and offers a whole range of great skiable terrain.

Snowbird

Number of lifts: 11 — 1 tram, 4 high-speed quad, 6 double chair

Vertical drop: 3,240

Skiable acres: 2,500

Terrain: 27 percent beginner, 38 percent intermediate, 35 percent expert

Top elevation: 11,000 feet

Number of runs: 85

Snowboarding: Yes

Halfpipe: 1

Terrain parks: 2

Comment: The resort opened in December 1971 with three lifts, the tram, the Snowbird Center and one lodge, the Lodge at Snowbird. Key figures in the founding of Snowbird were Dick Bass and Ted Johnson.