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Powder Mountain Ski Resort
Location: The resort is 19 miles from downtown Ogden. Head east through Ogden Canyon to Pineview Reservoir, turn left over the dam and continue to Eden. Proceed through the four-way stop and continue up the canyon to the resort.
Lifts: Seven lifts—two double, one triple, one high-speed quad, three surface lifts.
Base: 6,895 feet.
Peak: 9,800 feet.
Skiable area: 5,500 acres—81 runs with 10 percent beginner, 50 percent intermediate and 40 percent advanced.
Lift passes:
All-day $37
Half-day $30
Children $20
What it's known for: As the name implies, it's the powder snow. Powder Mountain—along with Alta, Snowbird and Brighton—each receive about 500 inches of snow annually. The terrain is also more flowing, thus is well-suited for beginners and intermediates. A lot of skiers have learned the art of powder skiing at Powder Mountain. 
Powder Mountain is best known for its powder.
Tom Smart, Deseret News |
If you go: Despite the fact it has only seven lifts, Powder Mountain is recognized as the largest ski area in the United States. Owners, in fact, have title to nearly 10,000 acres, but only about 5,500 are in use. While people are aware of the lift trails, there are a number of backcountry packages, ranging from intermediate to expert. Powder Country services 1,200 acres of backcountry and mountain skiing, and Wolf Creek opens up 2,500 to 2,800 vertical feet. Private tours, with guides, cost $50, or $25 for three or more. Skiers are led through fields of powder to the base where a van picks up and returns the skiers to the resort. A typical run takes about 90 minutes. For $6 and a lift pass, skiers can take Lightning Ridge, which accesses 700 acres of open canyons and bowls and 2,100 vertical feet of skiing. The extra cost is for a snowmobile tow to the top of the area. The three tours are for experts. The newest tour, to Cobabe Canyon, which also costs $6 for the snowmobile tow, is for intermediates. A guide will lead skiers through untouched powder and back to the lift. This is an opportunity for intermediate skiers to experience what experts have long enjoyed.
Best kept secret: Few people know about the resort or that it offers some of the best powder skiing in the country, even two or three days after a storm. A lot of the more savvy skiers will hit the other resorts after a storm, then head for Powder Mountain a day or two later to pick up on some of the backcountry powder that's still around.
For more information visit the resort's Web site at www.powdermountain.com.
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