Snowskiing?

We just moved to the area and I was thinking of trying to take my kids snow skiing over the break. Is there anywhere close to ski (i.e. >4 hours)? Where do folks go skiing around here?

I saw somewhere that there are 3 resorts that list skiing within about 2 hours, but the annual snowfall of 35 inches made me wonder if they ever open.

Thanks,
shamm

 

Google the following - Ski Liberty, Wisp, Whitetail. These are the closest. Others a longer than 2 hours - Roundtop, Canaan Valley, Snowshoe (maybe the best, closest but still 5 hours). Seven Springs (bout 4 hours) has always been a favorite and typically has good snowfall.

 

Go to www.dcski.com and it gives you information and websites for all the local resorts within the VA, PA, MD and WV area. The closer you are to DC you will be skiing on more man-made snow and as you get into the mountains of western MD, WV and PA you can find some resorts that get over 150 inches of snow a season. It is really kind of hit or miss with a number of the local resorts in terms of snow quality. I have been on days when they had just made fresh snow and the conditions were pretty good, but have been other times when the conditions are very icy. We have a lot of days above 32 with sun at local resorts and the snow melts some during the day and then refreezes as the sun goes down. Nothing at all like the consistency of conditions that you get out west.

 

a warning: if you come from out west, please be aware that most east coast skiing is actually downhill ice skating [8D]

 

Way too many people on the slopes around here - and most not knowing what they're doing! I'm an avid skier, always go out West....skiing is pretty mediocre around here. West Virginia isn't bad, but forget about Liberty or the others! I hate man made snow......[xx(]

 

As a westerner, I am a little hesitant to ski too much around here, but I have been to Canaan Valley/Timberline WV (105 mi) and Blue Knob PA (90 mi), which are some of the resorts with the biggest vertical drops around here (~1000 ft, which *almost* makes them mountains to this too-long-displaced CO girl).

There is heavy reliance on snowmaking, but if you can do last minute planning, will drive in snow, and you get good timing, you can get some decent skiing. I keep an eye on the forecast and snow conditions at weather.com--just put in a zip code and it gives you the closest resorts. As a childless person with flexible work schedule, I had one great Friday on the slopes last January. I don't know about the lines on weekends/holidays, but I have a feeling the closer resorts aren't a lot of fun then.

It looks like the weather may stay cold enough for some good snowmaking (today certainly was), so skiing in the otherwise iffy month of December might be a decent proposition. I would love to get to Snowshoe in WV sometime, but according to T8erman, it is a bit far.

Good luck!

 

Real close is Whitetail. About an hour drive. Wintergreen is about 2 hours, just outside of Richmond. I prefer the 5 hour drive to Snowshoe WVA. Yes, east coast skiing around the mid atlantic area is no comparision to west coast skiing. I prefer Breckenridge, Co.

-Teak

 

Thanks for all the great info. We typically ski in Idaho or Utah so we will see how it goes. The kids are still beginners so I'm hoping it won't make too much difference to them.

I did wonder if the skiing is so bad, how come so many folks still do it around here?

Any favorite sledding hills?

shamm

 

There's also Wintergreen Resort which is about 3 hours away.

 

Shamm - I don't ski in this area anymore - it's just not worth it!!!! If you're used to Utah or Idaho, well, you won't like the skiing around here. I feel sorry for kids in this area - yes we do get snow - but usually not enough to do anything in. When we do get hit with a lot - it really doesn't last that long.

 

I can handle the changing snow conditions, the smaller mountains, and the high prices around here to ski, but it's the crowds that turn me away. I used to ski about 10-15 times a winter around here (mainly day trips), but then went out to Colorado and western Canada. After skiing at resorts like Lake Louise, Sunshine, Keystone, etc. I have had no desire to really ski much around here except if I can take a weekday off and go somewhere. Any resort in the area is incredibly packed on weekends and your lift wait times will be very, very long. At least some resorts like Wintergreen and Whitetail have high speed lifts that get you up the mountain quickly, but you'll still have very long waits. Liberty and Whitetail are particulary horrible to deal with on weekends. Just go look at their webcams to see how long the lift lines are. There are some days you can get out there and find it manageable like if it is raining, Superbowl Sunday at night, if it's really, really cold, but mostly it will be packed.

 

yeah, when a little twit (10 year old or so) skied right across the fron of my skis, I decided thaings were getting a bit crowded and reckless. Not worth the prices.

 

Has anyone set up their kids for ski lessons or know of a good program for that in the area? I was hoping one of the closer resorts would have a program. Lift tickets see pretty pricey compared to what I'm use to.

 

For beginners Bryce Resort (off of 81 about 1.75 hours from No VA) is a small mountain, has cheaper prices and is not as crowded as other local resorts. They have very good introductory packages and have a highly regarded ski school.