Alta Ski Area, in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains at the head of Little Cottonwood Canyon, is one of the oldest ski areas in the United States, opening its first lift in 1939. Known for heavy snowfall, north- and west-facing terrain, and steep runs such as High Rustler, Stone Crusher, and the Baldy Chutes, it has earned a reputation for challenging in-bounds skiing. The site began as the mining town of Alta in 1871 before decline and disaster left it dormant. Ski development followed in the 1930s, and Alta later helped pioneer avalanche control. Though modernized in recent decades, it has retained a traditional identity and a skiers-only policy.