Living in the US for a year

So I might be going to the us next year.
I can pretty much go wherever I'd like, the only criteria is that there's a high school there.

I'm mainly going for the skiing but I also like surfing. so I've basically narrowed it down to these states:

California. Legal weed, sick parks. How is the backcountry? and is it possible to combine skiing and surfing without endless amounts of driving?

Also there's Colorado or Utah. Powder would be the reason for choosing either of those. Which one has the best bc? are the parks any good? Is Utah mainly mormon country?

are there others states I should take into consideration? are there any reasonably populated areas close to resorts?

Advice would be appreciated