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Alta's reputation is for remarkable amounts of powder snow to arrive with great regularity and for great skiing is desrved. Alta sits at the craggy head of Little Cottonwood Canyon, 2km beyond Snowbird and less than an hour's drive from downtown Salt Lake City. The lovely peaceful location was once the scene of a bustling and bawdy mining town - long since flattened by avalanches and neglect. The 'new' Alta is a strung-out handful of lodges and parking areas that lacks a centre; life revolves around the two separate lift base areas - Albion and Wildcat -which are linked by a bi-directional rope tow along the flat valley floor. The dominant feature seen from the resort is the steep end of a ridge that separates the two basins. To the left, from Albion base at the head of the canyon, the skiing stretches away over easy green terrain towards the black runs of Point Supreme; to the right, a more concentrated bowl with blue runs down the middle and blacks either side. There are lift links between the areas in both directions. A base altitude of 2600m and a vertical drop of 600m are modest statistics for US resorts - but the quantity and quality of snow that falls here, and the northerly orientation of the slopes, put Alta right in the top drawer for snow reliability. Small though it is, Alta is great for advanced skiers, who flock to the high ridges after a fresh snowfall. There are dozens of steep chutes through the trees on the front faces leading back to the Wildcat base area, and wide steep slopes around the rim of the Albion basin. Intermediate skiers with a sense of adventure do pretty well at Alta, too - there's good variety in the standard of runs and the easier blacks offer a gradual progression. But high-mileage piste-bashers will find it very limited. Timid intermediates and beginners need to stick to the Albion side, where most of the lower runs are broad, gentle and well groomed.

There's little provision for cross­country skiing but it does go on - mainly across the road from the downhill slopes - and those experienced enough or willing to hire a guide could certainly venture into the surrounding back-country. Queues are not unknown at Alta -the snow record, easy access from Salt Lake City and the rather slow chair-lifts see to that - especially in spring and on sunny weekends. At least the lift company limits the tickets sold. There's a mountain restaurant in each sector of the skiing - the Alpenglow on the Albion side has a small, often busy, terrace and a slightly Alpine feel to it and Watson's Shelter on Wildcat has both cafeteria and table-service sections. The famous Alf Engen ski school has been going for over 50 years, which is plenty of time to sharpen up the powder lessons in which it specialises. All the regular classes and clinics are also available and the small classes, enthusiastic teachers and low prices provide good value.