photo: Hubert SchrieblAcres: 600 | Vertical: 2,003 | Snowfall: 180 | Web: stratton.com

Stratton turns 50 this winter and it has a few gifts waiting for guests. Expect four new intermediate trails in the Sun Bowl that catch early morning sun. Two new snowcats and 300 new tower guns will improve grooming and snowmaking. Recent investments in snow quality have earned Stratton a lot of props, and the area has come into its own as a community. Case in point: Mark McKenna (who also turns 50 this year) grew up with Stratton. He stepped into skis here at age two and spent every weekend with his parents and four siblings. His father's friends can still be found on the slopes, and so can McKenna's five kids. "There's a multi-generational scene happening," says McKenna. "It's really been a great place for families to come together."

From the Early Winter 2012 issue