For just pure quantity of snow it is very tough to beat the Sierras and or PacNW. Squaw gets 400 inches in a bad year. As well the dumps are big (usualy 2-3 feet at a time). It is definitely heavier snow but if you learn to ski it you can ski powder anywhere because everywhere else will be easier. I learned to ski pow in it. Unfortunately a trip to Squaw or Mammoth does not guarantee that you will get dumped on while you are there but the odds are greater in the Sierras or Pac NW than anywhere else in the country. (Some seasons Cottonwwod Canyon in Utah gets as much and the snow is lighter there).
What Liam said is also key. When I was learning how to ski pow, when Tahoe got 2-3 feet I found a way to play hooky from life and drive up there for the day and ski in it. It's a 3-4 hour drive each way but it was well worth humping it up and back on 8-10 pow days per year.
Not sure where you live, but there may be some nice spots you can drive to when a big dump shows up. Small out of the way resorts with more modest terrain are definitely the best places to learn to ski pow. Steeper and better terrain attracts skiers in droves when it snows. You often can ski fresh lines at smaller resorts for much of the day especially if they are close to the big ones where all the people go. And to learn you don't need the steepest and most challenging terrain.
Home
Login
Register