Just across the freeway from the love-hate relationship that is the Summit at Snoqualmie lies Alpental. This smaller resort represents everything good about Snoqualmie and none of the bad. There are way too many upsides to count, but a few are the snow quality, the terrain, and best of all, the open space.
Although it’s literally a single mile away, the quality of the snow at Alpental is worlds ahead of Snoqualmie. The fact that it’s a taller mountain makes it colder and attracts more snowfall in general, and in turn more powder. More powder means an all-around more enjoyable time, as it’s not only easier to ski on compared to older snow, but also more satisfying to be the first one to take your specific line down. One drawback of it being as tall as it is, however, is that there ends up being a lot of wind. A lot of wind means some of the fresh powder gets blown around, which exposes some ice.
Alpental’s terrain is 10 times better than Snoqualmie’s. Unlike the Snoqualmie tree runs which are too full of trees to actually be fun, there are actually a couple tree runs at Alpental that let you go semi-fast. Despite the fact that there’s no designated terrain park, there are still a lot of decent jumps that end up developing pretty well toward the middle of the season.
The absolute best part about Alpental is the fact that it’s almost completely empty. The resort is often considered as a dangerous mountain, which repels most beginners and parents of beginners, leading to a lot more open space to have fun in. The fact that beginners often stay away makes this “dangerous” mountain extremely safe compared to the likes of Snoqualmie and Steven’s Pass. This is because of one thing: predictability. Anyone who has ever skied around a lot of beginners knows just how unpredictable they can be, and how hard it is to dodge one. Because there are virtually no beginners, it’s a lot safer at higher speeds.
To answer the question, yes, Alpental is the ultimate Snoqualmie. Its snow is so much better, its terrain is so much better, its open space is so much better, all for the same price and the same travel time as Snoqualmie.
