Any skier worth that title knows of Snowbird, even if they've yet to ski there. This world famous resort is nestled up Little Cottonwood Canyon here in the Salt Lake area, and it truly is a gem of a ski area. The terrain is variable and mostly intermediate and up, with quite a bit of in-bounds advanced and expert terrain. There's also some great side-country/hikeable terrain such as the chutes off of Baldy and the insanely challenging (even just the hike, much less the run) Pipeline. No matter your skill level, you will have a hard time getting bored here.
Being located near the Great Salt Lake, Snowbird as well as the nearby resorts of Alta, Brighton, Solitude, Park City, Deer Valley, Snowbasin, Canyons, and Powder Mountain all reap the benefits of 'lake effect'. For anyone who hasn't heard of this effect, just know it leaves the snow drier and fluffier than most other places in the country/world. It's even been granted the nickname of the greatest snow on earth, and so far it's been the best snow of my lifetime.
In my one season at this resort my skill level has gone from advanced verging on expert to expert in full. The range of terrain available off the lift, combined with the snow (I've hit every type of snow condition here; when Mineral is an ice rink it's insanely terrifying, just fyi) and people I've skied with here have all worked to propel me forward. It's no wonder so many local kids grow up to be sponsored skiers; the terrain is pretty much a make or break environment.
This resort proved tricky for me at the beginning of the season. It was a completely new place and difficult to navigate. Unlike Moonlight Basin and Big Sky up in Montana, this resort is very closed off. By this I mean you can't see most of the mountain from the bottom and once you're on top of a run you can't see the bottom (weird how that works, huh?). It's easy to get lost, and I ended up having to hike off the top of a 40' cliff in my first two weeks there because I got myself stuck. Now that I'm starting to know the mountain better it's amazing how much it's opened up. I've even gotten to ski two of the deepest days of my life at this mountain, and since I'd figured a good portion out by then I was really able to let go and enjoy the moment.
Snowbird is not a forgiving place by any means; you can easily get on something out of your ability range (especially if you're an intermediate skier) so ski with serious caution. There's also a cadre of people that are "Salt Lake Serious" who will act kind of douche-y, especially on powder days. Watch out for them screaming by you on narrow cat tracks or racing to get those freshies down below. All in all though it's a resort that has amazing snow, awesome terrain, and generally great people (though there is a distinct lack of ski etiquette that I find upsetting). It's worth a visit if you've never been; just be prepared for return trips because you're going to want to take them. It's weird to call anything but Moonlight Basin my home resort, but Snowbird is my new ski home. Now to just make it up to Pipeline. . .
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