- HURRICANE RIDGE
Perched within the jaw-dropping panoramas of Olympic National Park, 17 miles outside of Port Angeles, Hurricane Ridge is one of only three lift-accessed resorts in the country to be located inside a national park. - MOUNT BAKER SKI AREA
Local legends at Baker include the late Craig Kelly, a world-renowned pioneer of snowboarding, and the epic winter of 1998, when the mountain nearly buckled under 1,140 inches of snow, the most ever recorded anywhere. Average seasons aren’t bad either, with some 647 inches falling. - SUMMIT AT SNOQUALMIE
When one mountain isn’t enough, dial up this mammoth ski area west of North Bend, home to four distinct experiences. Pick between Alpental (gutchecking cliff runs and backcountry access); Summit West (an open bowl ideal for intermediates); Summit East (steep gullies, blue cruisers, gentle greens, and a Nordic center); and Central Summit (nine lifts accessing more than a dozen runs, a terrain park, a superpipe, and a tubing center). - STEVENS PASS
Less than two hours from Seattle, skiers can plunge down black-diamond runs like Cloud-9 or sink their edges into wide-open blues like Skyline. The mountain embraces plenty of green, too: lifts here operate solely from wind power. - LOUP LOUP SKI BOWL
Rising above the Okanogan Valley, Little Buck Mountain offers local charm by the ton. Lap the dozen or so runs, accessed by Loup Loup’s three lifts, and warm yourself by the lodge’s towering stone fireplace. - 49 DEGREES NORTH
This 5,774-foot-tall ski hill just east of Chewelah has long been a favored destination for families, thanks to a trove of confidence-boosting terrain—a full 70 percent of the mountain is dedicated to beginner and intermediate runs. Fan of glades? 49 Degrees North added 200 acres of tree-speckled territory on neighboring Angel Peak, bringing its tally of carveable real estate to 2,325 acres. - CRYSTAL MOUNTAIN
In a word, it’s enormous: 2,600 acres and more than 50 named ski runs make Crystal the largest ski resort in the state. It might also be the tastiest—a newly renovated Summit House Bistro serves fare like blue cheese–coated New York strip and roasted garlic truffle parmesan fries. - WHITE PASS SKI RESORT
A 700-acre expansion—complete with a new midmountain lodge and two high-speed quads—means this tiny resort 50 miles west of Yakima just went big-time, with more than 1,400 skiable acres. Small-time charms persist, however, such as the Winter Carnival’s torchlight parade, a 25-year tradition.
More about skiing in Washington >>
-Christopher van Tilburg
