Best Washington mtns

I hope your brought your umbrella and trash bag.

We got those Colorado prices and lift lines now, should be a smooth transition for you.

stevens pass & crystal?

I'd say mt. spokane, completely worth the drive and in such a beautiful city.

Alpental is also supposed to have some great terrain. Washington has some great mountains. They don't tend to be well known. I believe Mt. Baker is a bit more of a drive from Seattle than the others, but it is sick and gets a ton of snow.

dan4060Alpental is also supposed to have some great terrain. Washington has some great mountains. They don't tend to be well known. I believe Mt. Baker is a bit more of a drive from Seattle than the others, but it is sick and gets a ton of snow.

Well if you consider a 45 minute lift line on a Tuesday unknown than Alpental is your secret jam. But shhh keep your spots low-key.

CaseyWell if you consider a 45 minute lift line on a Tuesday unknown than Alpental is your secret jam. But shhh keep your spots low-key.

Oh the joys of a high speed detachable quad feeding in to a two person fixed lift. 45 minutes is average, I've had many 1.5 hours waited on big dump days. The plus side is no one skis after 1:00pm so the afternoon is usually wide open.

Ski the loop man.

CaseyWell if you consider a 45 minute lift line on a Tuesday unknown than Alpental is your secret jam. But shhh keep your spots low-key.

Nationally it is not well known. I've had people tell me Alpental has better terrain than Park City. I don't know, as I've never been to Alpental, but it is not nearly as famous as lots of mountains with lesser terrain. Seattle has a huge population of skiers, so it is not surprising that Alpental gets big crowds, but nationally it is not well known. How many people from Chicago are taking their winter break there? Probably not many. Alpental is known among serious skiers, but among people who ski 5 days a year and don't live in Washington it is not very famous. Unfortunately with a big city close by crowds will come with the territory. So I would consider Alpental nationally unknown, even if it is crowded. Put it this way, it is not nearly as famous as Breckenridge and I've heard it has better terrain.

dan4060I've had people tell me Alpental has better terrain than Park City.

that is pretty easy benchmark to surpass when it comes to western mountains

Just drive to Whistler..

Are any of the mountains in Washington "world class"?

Never been to Colorado but Washington can have some pretty good skiing, although you might have to put yourself through a few rainstorms to get the pow. Summit at snoqualmie is the most well known resort due to its proximity to the Seattle area. On Friday nights when all the middle schoolers come up the lift lines are 30 mins for maybe 1000 feet of vertical, never go on Fridays. However it also has smaller side "mountains", don't really know what to call them, fittingly named East and West, that are much less crowded. East does not offer night skiing. West is largely shit. East however is not. Of the three areas go here if it dumps. I think it only has two or three chairs, but we got about a foot in February and I skied about eight runs right onto the lift. Also has some pretty sick tree skiing. Alpental is also run by Snoqualmie and is a short ten minute drive away. Far less popular, this may due to quality of chairs, it accesses much more and much more advanced terrain. If you are really good skier this is your go to mountain if you live in Seattle.
Crystal Mountain is about a two hour drive from Seattle but unlike the Summit at Snoqualmie if is actually a mountain. Has a bunch of really nice lifts and if you want to walk a bit, some pretty nice bowl skiing. Due to its size you can usually find some pretty empty lift lines upper mountain.
I've never been to Stevens or Baker but if you are looking for really good skiing go to Baker, if gets a shit ton of pow, in fact I think it has the world record for snowfall in a season, and a lot of ski movie parts or just short segments are shot there. Baker has the best big mountain skiing especially if you can walk or tour.
Looking at your question again I realize I forgot to answer the park part, both summit central and crystal have parks, I think central's is better, but not too sure. Welcome to the city of rain.

PharoahJust drive to Whistler..

Are any of the mountains in Washington "world class"?

I wouldn't say any Washington mountains are bringing in a lot of out of state or international tourism. They either don't have the terrain (Snoqualmie), or are out in BFE with no high class accommodations nearby (crystal/Baker).

I wish Washington had just one big resort. I love washington, but the skiing just seems so mediocre.

Yes there are some gnarly lines some places, and Baker looks fun. But the overall vertical, acreage, and just the experience of the ski mountains they have set up, feels smaller.

They have the big mountains, just not the infrastructure around them.

PharoahI love washington, but the skiing just seems so mediocre.

Sure, mediocre. Is Deer Valley your definition of world class skiing?

https://www.newschoolers.com/videos/watch/833968/En-Route-Cascadia

I meant lift served skiing. The backcountry there is sick.

I meant more like Big Sky, not deer valley..

I've skied Washington my whole life...I gotta say its really awesome if you know "the spots" skiing endless groomers is kinda lame, but if you find someone who can show you alot of in between lines you will be set. Also a lot of people say it is really wet and rains. It does to an extent, and you will become familiar with the term "cascade concrete"... but once late December/early January hits its pretty much always gonna be snow.... at the end of the day you gotta realize "bad" conditions are just a mindset!

Your best bet coming from Colorado in my opinion has got to be Crystal Mt. right on the edge of mt. Rainier National Park, Its got the highest elevation (4 and a half thousand at the base and 7 grand if you hike to the very top) its actually got some really sick underrated terrain. The park scene is pretty piss poor, but it has some of the best "side country" I've skied. Its made up of about 7 valleys. The middle 3 are generally where most people ski because its where they groom... But a hike out to the "south-back" or take an afternoon in "north-back" and you can have an insanely sick time. Rad trees with some sick cliffs hidden in them are easy to find with a little exploring. Cornis's and giant bowls are a blast to shred especially on powder days which can happen pretty often. lift ticket prices have irrationally gone up ever since they re-labeled themselves as a "resort" but comparing it to the ski resorts in Colorado and Utah its definitely still just a ski area.

If your looking for park skiing Summit at Snoqualmie (just 45 minutes from Seattle) has one and you need to take a course to get in.... Which in my mind is a good thing because it keeps oblivious people out...Its been a while since ive been so I couldn't really rate it for you... I believe Stevens pass also has one, but I haven't been there in years, ever since I got kicked off the hill for hiking the lifts...

I hope you enjoy Seattle... don't let the passive aggressive rando's around town shy you away, there are actually some really cool people in Seattle, you just gotta find them.

hang loose!

crystal baker or alpy for big mountain or backcountry, depending on where you are and how far you want to drive. Stevens probably has the best park, and has some pretty solid terrain too. Snocompton has a damn fun park too and you cant beat 35 minutes from bellevue

PharoahI wish Washington had just one big resort. I love washington, but the skiing just seems so mediocre.

Yes there are some gnarly lines some places, and Baker looks fun. But the overall vertical, acreage, and just the experience of the ski mountains they have set up, feels smaller.

They have the big mountains, just not the infrastructure around them.

I feel like an idiot for posting this. I have never skied in WA, so I shouldnt have spoken. Maybe it's nicer for you to have a small mountain vibe, I always liked A-Basin for that aspect. The mountains look like they have good terrain, and snow.

Yeah, skiing is underserved, minimal vertical, long lines, go to Mount Hood, or fly back to CO each week. the one good side of Amazon and co fucking this city over is the plethora of flights out of SEA every day.

lived in seattle all my life. What it sounds like you're looking for is stevens. They gotta park and pretty solid big mountain. It is crowded, though. If you want pow then go to Baker. Easily best mountain I've skied in Washington. Alpental/Snoqualmie is the shortest drive. I like to ski Alpental in the morning, then drive over to Snoqualmie to hit park.

It's gotta be Baker. Granted I haven't skied Crystal, but from what I've seen Steven's Pass and Alpental are shitshows on the weekend (which is really the only time working stiffs like me can get down there). The terrain at Baker is solid, I love changing it up from Whis and going down there instead. The snow is usually good, albeit heavy, and the lines are manageable. I have yet to get in to the BC there, since I don't know anyone from the area who could be a tour buddy - but I've heard good things.

Problem is, Baker's still pretty far from Seattle.