Alpine Meadows, California

The snow at Alpine can be incredible - storms roll off the Pacific, hit the Sierra crest, and dump tremendous amounts of snow. Between the storms, the sun shines - so, voilą, the perfect combination, sun and powder. Alpine is about a mile south of Squaw Valley, but (as its base area is higher) the snow tends to be in better condition, with less 'sugar' on warm days.

Novices will appreciate the good ski school, but there are few very easy runs, and even after you've picked up the basics, you'll be confined to limited skiing near the base area.

The skiing is excellent for intermediates, with a great variety of gradients and terrain available. Definitely better than Squaw Valley next door. The runs off the Roundhouse and Yellow chairs (incongrously named Red Trail, Yellow Trail, Red Trail, and Blue Trail) are very popular. Slightly higher up, Alpine Bowl off the top Alpine Bowl lift is brilliant. The trails on the backside (below the Lakeview chair) like Winter Road, and Outer Limits can also be recommended - but polish these runs off in the morning, as they're south facing, and can soften up badly on a warm day. Also you'll spot several short easier mogul sections which will have you whooping with fun.

For experts, there's plenty to keep you busy. A great run is Scott chute, the line below Scott chair, a fiery set of moguls for 1000' vertical. North facing Alpine Bowl has numerous exciting chutes, like Palisades and Keyhole, with very steep starts.

Snowboarders will love the powder and chutes high up the mountain. For freestylers, there's a decent 'Gravity Cavity' half-pipe, and a permanent board jumps/rails course named 'Roos' Ride'.

Very limited lodging is available at the ski base area, which is the major downside of Alpine Meadows. There's plenty of accommodation nearby, either in the next valley (Squaw Valley), or at Tahoe City (on the west side of Lake Tahoe). Hwy 89 can be very busy between Tahoe City and Alpine - this can be avoided by utilizing the free shuttle bus to the Sherwood lift from Sunnyside.