Norden, CA

Donner is the kind of unpretentious place where it's OK to be out of the loop in the world of winter fashion. People at Donner ski and snowboard in quilted 49ers jackets with blue jeans tucked inside their boots, happily oblivious to the existence of such stuff as technical outerwear. Donner's ...

Durango, CO

This friendly resort in southwestern Colorado is a charmer with a reputation for the mildest, sunniest weather, but still with good snow. The beguiling terrain ranges from a separate beginner area to mogul-dotted steeps. The delightful town of Durango offers economical lodging and plenty of ...

Nederland, CO

Close to Denver and just 21 miles from Boulder (you can even get here via Boulder bus), this frills-free area offers unsurpassed convenience. The frontside trails are narrow classics cascading down to a small base complex, while Corona Bowl and the Indian Peaks Area on the backside offer true ...

Union Dale, PA

Elk sits in the Endless Mountains, north of Scranton. It advertises itself as offering Vermont skiing, and the trail system does contain stretches that live up that billing. No resort amenities are to be found nearby, but if you come here to simply ride or ski—and maybe have dinner in the ...

Fernie, BC

Fernie may be a bit off the beaten path, but the resort is well worth the time it takes to get there. A three-hour drive from Calgary International Airport, or 1.25-hour trip from the Cranbrook Airport, deposits you into an alpine realm of steep mountain slopes covered in spruce, fir, and larch ...

North Creek, NY

Gore is considered Whiteface's "sister" because they're both operated by the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), but that's about as far as the relationship goes. Gore's trail system bespeaks times gone by—tree-lined, they present twists and turns in a meandering texture. Gore ...

Alta, WY

If it's powder that you are searching for, Grand Targhee, on the western slopes of the Tetons and an hour's drive from Jackson, is a must-visit. "Snow from heaven, not hoses" is Targhee's mantra. There is not a single snowmaking machine anywhere on the mountain and Targhee still has more snow ...

Cortland, NY

Oswego, Ithaca, Utica, Oneonta: The names given to central New York towns located in the Military Tract (a tract of land originally intended to be given as bounty to soldiers of the Revolutionary War) are mostly Greek and Roman inspired. And for more than 50 years, Greek Peak, a ski resort in ...

Nagano City served as the central hub for the 1998 Winter Olympics, but the majority of the alpine events were held in the small towns scattered in the surrounding, snow-choked mountains of the Japanese Alps. And of those many enclaves, Hakuba is one of the best.

Less a town and more a ...

South Lake Tahoe, CA, CA

Heavenly is unique in that it sprawls across state boundaries. Part of the ski area is in California and part is in Nevada, and for my money, the Nevada part is the better part. The fall line is more sustained, meaning that runs tend to be longer.

For novice skiers, Heavenly can be ...