Lifts & Terrain
Atla Ski Resort TerrainAlta ski resort in Utah has stunning scenery, especially from the top of Sugarloaf, but the scenery pales into insignificance in comparison to the ski terrain and the snow. The mountain is pristine and less rugged than Snowbird, but the terrain still has plenty of roughness around the edges, particularly amongst the many expert runs that include steep chutes and little cliffs. Thankfully the cliffs are well marked, particularly because there is no differentiation between single black and double black runs. It’s up to you to figure it out! Even though Alta caters very well to expert skiers, there is also more than ample terrain for all other ability levels.
At the top of the mountain there are sporadic trees or open alpine areas, and further down there are well spaced gladed areas. There are lots of routes that aren’t marked on the trail map. Go off-piste and there are never-ending options for lines.
Other than the terrain, the other highlight of the skiing is the dry powder. It falls in abundance and the snow holds up much better than at the neighbouring resort of Snowbird. The volume of skiers is less at Alta, but Alta traditionalists say that it’s due to the absence of snowboarders who “push” the snow off the mountain. This may be up for debate, but powder preservation is definitely evident. Every fresh face of deep snow has beautifully tight squiggles of skiers’ turns that are very close to each other. Even after a day after a weekend powder day, there are still freshies to be had, particularly if you know the secret spots or are prepared to go for a short hike.
The mountain has two base areas – Wildcat and Albion. Both bases have facilities, but the Albion area has the Children’s centre and ski school which is indicative of the beginner type terrain that initially rises from here. Most advanced and expert skiers will start at the Wildcat base. The two base areas are interlinked by a long two-way tow rope.
Snowbird – Neighbour of Alta
Snowbird and Alta resorts are connected by a trail between Snowbird’s Mineral Basin and Alta’s Albion Basin. If it’s windy this access might be closed, so the alternative is to catch a bus. For experts, there are also various exit points to Snowbird to the skiers’ left of the Wildcat chair lift. A joint lift pass is required to pass through the gate at the top of Sugarloaf Pass to get to Snowbird. This ticket costs an additional $26 for the privilege of skiing at Snowbird.
Alta Lifts
The resort has 2 detachable quad chairs, 1 detachable triple chair, 1 triple chair [fixed grip], 3 double chairs, and various surface tows. Some of the slow lifts don’t have safety bars, which is reasonably typical of US ski resorts, but is a bit scary for those not used to it. On a powder day there might be lift lines of about 10 minutes, but on pedestrian days the resort feels a little deserted.
Lift Tickets
Alta have taken the lead of Solitude and introduced an electronic lift ticket system. The cards are very responsive so unlike at some resorts in Japan, you don’t have to make love to the scanner for it to register the ticket in your pocket. Ticket prices are discounted by about $5 when re-loading the cards online. The costs are about “middle of the road” for Utah skiing but you get plenty of value for your money. Beginner lift tickets for the Albion, Sunnyside and Cecret lifts cost the same as a children’s pass.
Snow and Weather Conditions
Like other Utah ski resorts, Alta loves their motto of “The Greatest Snow on Earth” but the claim is deserved. Alta has the joy of both quantity and quality of powder, partly because Little Cottonwood Canyon catches all the dry snow that dumps from the Lake Effect phenomenon. A particularly sweet time to visit Alta is late Feb to early March, but anytime is good.
Considering the steep pitches and the copious snow, avalanche risk is present in-resort, so it wouldn’t hurt for those tackling the steeps to carry
avalanche safety gear. However you feel a level of comfort at Alta because the ski patrollers are very conservative and incredibly experienced.
For the Beginner
Beginners’ lifts are at the Albion base on Albion, Sunnyside and Cecret, with more than enough terrain to keep beginners interested. This region is not highly trafficked by fast skiers, so beginners can learn in peace. And without snowboarders scraping up behind them, any anxiousness will be further reduced.
Intermediate Ski Terrain
The remaining lifts have a range of intermediate runs, although Wildcat is predominantly a black run lift. Alta has lots of gentle groomers, some of which have whoopsie-doos (ie rollers) for a bit of fun. A few of the blue runs are not groomed so Alta is a good place to learn to ski bumps. Alta is also a great place to learn to ski powder as there are lots of places to pop off the side of a run and practise in the powder before returning to the piste. For plenty of space, the Ballroom is an intermediate powder bowl. The run becomes steeper the further you traverse from the Collins lift, so you can choose the pitch you like. The only downside of Ballroom is that it is probably the first run at Alta to become tracked out.
Alta Ski Terrain For the Family/Kids
There aren’t any places at Alta where the family can ski in close proximity to each other on runs for differing abilities, but no one seems to mind. Kids are well catered for in ski school and the resort is quite family friendly.
Parks & Pipes
Go to
Snowbird, or even better go to
Brighton Ski Resort in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Advanced Skiing
Alta is a bit tricky for advanced skiers because there is no differentiation between single and double blacks, although it’s generally easy enough to scope out the milder black runs from the lifts. The far reaches of the Ballroom is an easy black run. It is a wide open bowl with only moderate pitch. All the black runs in the vicinity of the Collins chair are placid, so long as you take a low traverse from the lift rather than the high traverse. The Wildcat and Sugarload lifts generally service very manageable black runs also.
Catherine’s area has some awesome tree runs. You need to walk up the hill a little when you get off the lift, and then traverse a fair way until you see the terrain open up into mellow powder meadows. As the runs flatten out you will need to get plenty of speed – lucky there are no snowboarders at Alta. Avoid any of the runs close to the Supreme lift (on either side) as these are definitely nasty double blacks, with cliffs and steep narrow chutes.
For the Expert
Even though no runs are marked as double black diamonds, there is definitely expert terrain and an abundance of it. Great pitch and great powder can be found in the East Greeley area, the Yellow Tail area, and Greeley Chutes. Off the high traverse are dozens of awesome runs, and if you can patiently continue the traverse and not be tempted to drop in somewhere, you get to Alf’s High Rustler which was one of Alf’s favourite runs.
Some other areas require a little work to get the steep powder rewards. Examples include Devil’s Castle (if it’s open), West Castle, East Castle (if it’s open) and the Baldy Chutes that can be hiked to from either Alta or Snowbird.
Skiing For the Powderhound
The reputation of being a great powderhound destination is well deserved with bountiful snow that is well retained. The trees and sheltered gullies hide lovely powder pockets to explore. Understandably the locals are protective of their secret stashes but there are plenty of non-secret stashes, and considering the openness of many of the trees, it is easy to be creative and find a line. The locals talk about Suzy’s trees being a great powder run, which is perhaps code for “don’t tell the journalists about our secret powder stashes and trick them into thinking there is some elusive powder run”?
For more detailed information on the terrain at Alta, have a read of “The Powder Hound’s Guide to Alta”. It wasn’t written by us but considering the name it must be fantastic!