Avoid Lift Lines and Ski More This Season

In the little-sister category, try Saddleback ($40), a family-owned mountain in western Maine just an hour from Sugarloaf.

The Rockies

There are plenty of choices here, but Wyoming's Grand Targhee ($59) is both little sister (to Jackson Hole, 90 minutes away) and a hard-to-reach resort. It enjoys an average snowfall of more than 500 inches, mostly of the fluffy variety.

Just a few miles outside of Salt Lake City is the aptly named Solitude ($55), one canyon over from two of America's best-known resorts. "Every time I go there people say, 'You gotta stop writing about Solitude,'" says Derek Taylor, editor of Powder magazine. "I say, 'Why? There's no one here. They all have passes to Alta and Snowbird.'"

Utah also boasts out-of-the-way Powder Mountain ($53), while Colorado is home to Monarch Mountain ($52), Crested Butte ($79) and experts-only Silverton ($49).

West Coast

Literally in the shadow of Squaw Valley USA, Alpine Meadows ($58) is "a smaller version of Squaw," according to Wilson. Adds Taylor, "It doesn't have Squaw's mystique, but it has a mystique of its own."

Out-of-the-way picks include Kirkwood in California ($69) and Mount Hoodoo in Oregon ($39).

Midwest

Taylor says Michigan's Mount Bohemia ($44) is a "long way from everything and gets more snow than anywhere else in the Midwest."

Purists will appreciate the yurts that serve as Bohemia's lodge and its quaint trailside cabins; advanced and expert skiers will appreciate the mountain's decidedly not-for-beginners terrain.

Canada

Given the exchange rate, you might want to restrict this year's ski trip to the U.S., but Canadian resorts are still appealing if your top priority is escaping crowds.

Marmot Basin (C$62) and Red Resort (C$58) are two of the best choices. "Almost anywhere in interior British Columbia won't be crowded," says Taylor. "There are a lot of good options near Vancouver, on the way to Whistler." Try Fernie Alpine Resort (C$72) or Kicking Horse (C$61).

None of these slopes may have the cachet of The Yellowstone Club. But when you're schussing down the mountain without a soul in sight, will you care?

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