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Outside Traveler Winter 2005

Top North American Ski Resorts
We Sing the Slopes Fantastic
UTAH :: THE CANYONS

By Tom Price


Intro | Aspen & Aspen Highlands, Colorado | Taos, New Mexico | Jackson Hole, Wyoming | Park City, Utah | Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia | Mammoth, California | Steamboat, Colorado | Big Sky, Montana | Alta & Snowbird, Utah | Stowe, Vermont | Vail & Beaver Creek, Colorado | Heavenly, California & Nevada | Lake Louise, Alberta | Telluride, Colorado | Big Mountain, Montana | Alpine Meadows, California | The Canyons, Utah | Mt. Bachelor, Oregon | Sun Valley, Idaho | Killington, Vermont | Moonlight Basin, Montana | Tamarack Resort, Idaho | Ski Emotionally Naked

The Canyons Ski Resort
(image courtesy, The Canyons Ski Resort)

A DECADE BACK, the resort that would become the Canyons was a pretty shabby, and not too popular, locals hill. Now it's the biggest, most unabashedly go-go resort in Utah-and, miraculously, it's crowd-free.
MOUNTAIN STATS:
SUMMIT, 9,990 feet
VERTICAL, 3,190 feet
SKIABLE ACRES, 3,500
ANNUAL SNOWFALL, 355 inches
LIFT TICKET, $66
435-649-5400, www.thecanyons.com
WHY WE LOVE IT: Besides the sharp new base village, it's got the real goods: Days after other Wasatch resorts are all skied out, you'll still be finding powder stashes hidden among the—count 'em—eight peaks.
NUMBER-ONE RUN: Take the hike up Murdock Peak right off the Super Condor Express Lift, then choose from among seven tempting lines. You're bound to find your favorite flavor: steep glade, wide-open bowl, or gnarly chute?
HOT LODGE: When NBC's Katie Couric and Matt Lauer wanted posh digs for their two-week Olympics gig, they picked the deluxe Grand Summit Resort Hotel—for good reason. After a soak in your jetted tub, survey the scene at the heated outdoor pool below, and the rest of Summit County, from the bay windows flanking your fireplace. And, of course, there's the supreme access: If the gondola were any closer, it would be inside. (Doubles, $279; 888-226-9667, www.thecanyons.com)
SOUL PATCH: Take a snowcat-drawn sleigh to midmountain, cross-country or snowshoe it through the woods, and hit the resort's secluded Viking Yurt for a delectable five-course Scandinavian feast. Go ahead and carbo-load—afterwards, the snowcat will drag you right back down to base.


Next Page: OREGON :: MT. BACHELOR

Intro | Aspen & Aspen Highlands, Colorado | Taos, New Mexico | Jackson Hole, Wyoming | Park City, Utah | Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia | Mammoth, California | Steamboat, Colorado | Big Sky, Montana | Alta & Snowbird, Utah | Stowe, Vermont | Vail & Beaver Creek, Colorado | Heavenly, California & Nevada | Lake Louise, Alberta | Telluride, Colorado | Big Mountain, Montana | Alpine Meadows, California | The Canyons, Utah | Mt. Bachelor, Oregon | Sun Valley, Idaho | Killington, Vermont | Moonlight Basin, Montana | Tamarack Resort, Idaho | Ski Emotionally Naked

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