Hi all,
My wife and I just moved to D.C. and we've heard that Snowshoe Mtn is some of the best skiing around, but we were curious what people who would know (this forum) thinks the best day trip from D.C. would be (so about 2 hours or so in the car each way is doable in our eyes)? We've skiied all over the country and realize that day trip locations are not going to be anything super spectacular, but just to start the season with something that is easy to drive to last second would be ideal. We have no kids so it doesn't need to be family friendly, just good runs and worth the drive. Any recommendations would be awesome!
Assuming no traffic:
Timberline Ski Area - 3Hrs Best Snow/Terrain within 3 Hrs DC (Minimial Amenities)
Whitetail - 1.5 Hours Best Lifts and Snow Making
Liberty - 1.5 Hours or less Closest
These are the three places I would go to from DC. Snowshoe is a hike from DC, personally if I'm driving that far then I would go to Elk Mountain in PA or Plattykill in Catskills.
Agree with Tom H. If 2 hrs is your limit (each way), in my view Whitetail is a no brainer. Far better terrain and lifts than the closest areas (Liberty and Roundtop). As a Timberline homeowner, I would of course encourage you to spend the extra hour and come up there. But it does push the day trip definition a little.
Snowshoe is the closest thing resembling a big resort in the Mid Atlantic, but I would say its terrain leaves something to be desired. They advertise 1500 feet of vertical, which is true....for two trails on the back side of the mountain. The main basin area has something like 750 feet of vertical. Add to that the distance from DC, the lack of (affordable) lodging options not part of the resort, and the insanely high lift ticket prices, and a day trip you do not have!
Whitetail is the go-to place for its express lift, 900 feet of vertical, and relatively easy access. Lift tickets are also not that cheap, but you have some more options to get around that if on a budget. Liberty is owned by the same company but is smaller.
Timberline is further, but access has become easier in recent years with the phased completion of the Corridor H (US 48) highway. At least with Timberline, you have Canaan Valley State Park down the road with its own lodge and skiing options (as well as other winter activities, a National Wildlife Refuge, xc ski center, and Blackwater Falls State Park). I have done it as a day trip (as a college student), but it's pushing it. There are also other lodging options in Elkins if you wanted to spend the night about 45 mins away.
The only times I've been, I've done Timberline as a day trip. 3 hours isn't horrible, especially without kids. Leave at 5 or 6, return at 6 or 7.
Heck, I've done Snowshoe as a day trip, but I would not advise that. The issue is not so much the drive time (4 hours), but the intensity of the drive for the last 90 minutes getting there, and the first 90 minutes leaving.
So, I'll echo the Timberline and Whitetail recommendations in this thread as being the clear winners. Wisp? Not worth it. Massanutten? Something different, but only as a change of pace. Roundtop or Liberty? Not over Whitetail.
The problem with Whitetails is that the lines can get long for the high speed lift, and the trails on that side can get crowded. I generally stay in the expert area (minimal crowding / lines), but then lose the high speed lift amenity (which is important to me when skiing such limited vertical feet), and some of the vertical (I think the expert area is only around 600 feet).
Timberline has much more terrain, better snow, and not much of an issue with liftlines, but it's an hour farther, and you also don't get the high speed lift amenity.
Snowshoe is definitely worth it for a weekend for the resort atmosphere (if you're into that sort of thing; I am), and lapping Western Territory's perfect combination of little crowds / liftlines, lots of vertical, and a high speed lift.
Wintergreen on a weekday when Highlands is open.
Welcome to the area. Good comments throughout. I add on two more bits:
if Whitetail on a weekend, try go get there on snow by its 8:30AM opening. The mountain offers repeated laps until everyone else shows up by 10:30/11. A Sunday over a Saturday, even better.
Elk is way under-rated (or not acknowledged) by DC area skiers. Gonna push it for a day trip, but it's a little slice of Vt only 5 hours away. Interstate almost all of it. Can stop over at Montage on the second day, on your way back.
Welcome to the site and to the area. Comments so far have been spot on. I would add Blue Knob to the list - like Timberline, it is short on the amenities but really worth checking out after a good snowfall. I think you can get there in 3 hours or so from DC. Both places have some of the most legimately solid terrain in the Mid-Atlantic. You'll want to check ahead to make sure the more interesting runs are actually open before you go.
Couple other points:
1) If you can swing it, mid-week is the time to go. The ski areas in the Mid-A serve a large population base and can get crowded on the weekends. As mentioned earlier, this is more of an issue with some resorts than with others.
2) The resorts on the west side of the Eastern Continental divide (such as Timberline) get much more snow than the resorts on the east side of the Eastern Continental divide (such as Whitetail). Search through the archives here and you will find some trip reports describing some pretty epic days.
Let us know where you end up going!
A further thought, for what its worth, to add to the comments above. If going 3 hrs. Or more, one way, i prefered to drive out the previous night, sleep there, then ski and return home after skiing. I'm slowing down with age, and no longer enjoy long round trip drives on the same day as skiing. In Canaan Valley i used to stay with a friend who has a couple of condos at timberline. If he had them all rented out then blackwater falls lodge, where i liked the ambience more than the CV state park lodge. It is rarely full on S- Th nights excepting holidays. This was a good way to chase snow, since i could watch something developing from work and if it looked promising drive out after a full day of work. I had the division receptionist conditioned to the "mental health day" concept.
now i'm retired, living in CA, and skiing Tahoe, mostly Kirkwood. :)
I think roundtop has he best expert terrain( my opinion) out of the 3 sister resorts i also has a seperates expert area which you can escape crowds in like whitetail. Liberty it is imposible to escape the crowds. I have hiked up and it was faster then the lift ( mlk Monday) but its near Harrisburg so it 2 hours from dc 1 30 from northern burbs
Shhhh. Don't tell anyone about Elk. Its 4.5 hours from Herndon and in the middle of no where. Never a crowd (even on the weekend) Can't find a discount tho'. If you go, hit Montage and buy tickets on Liftopic for big discounts!!
All the other comments are right on!
FreshPow wrote:
Welcome to the area. Good comments throughout. I add on two more bits:
if Whitetail on a weekend, try go get there on snow by its 8:30AM opening. The mountain offers repeated laps until everyone else shows up by 10:30/11. A Sunday over a Saturday, even better.
Elk is way under-rated (or not acknowledged) by DC area skiers. Gonna push it for a day trip, but it's a little slice of Vt only 5 hours away. Interstate almost all of it. Can stop over at Montage on the second day, on your way back.
Having just been to Timberline for the first time, I would agree that driving there from DC is worth it but driving to Snowshoe is not. Assuming you also plan to take trips to big mountains out west or in Europe. It's not just the length of the drive, but also the potential difficulty if the weather is snowy.
The Canaan Valley Lodge was rebuilt recently. Opened Oct 2013. It's quite nice. Good food at the restaurant so no need to go out for dinner.
The reason to check out Massanutten at some point is to be able to ski all day on advanced trails without waiting in a lift line on weekends. 850' vertical on Lift 6, which is a fair amount in the Mid-Atlantic.
The Highlands at Wintergreen on weekdays is quite fun because the high speed detachable 6-pack means it's possible to get in a lot of skiing. 990' vertical. Best to wait until all the Highlands trails are open.
Welcome! Closest area is relative where you live and when you leave. If leaving from Northen VA, especially if out Manassas way, then Bryce & Massanutten are closer than the local PA resorts, especially if you have to negotiate Beltway and MD suburban traffic during rush hours.
Again, welcome to Mid-A skiing and especially to DCSki!
By the way, where did you live/ski before moving to the Washington DC area?
The Colonel
This is a great thread. I've skied local for a few years now and never realized Chair 6 at Massanutten served that much vert, I'll have to put that on my bucket list. I would echo what other posters have said above- it's all about where you live in the DMV region. Since you just moved here I'm sorry to have to break the news to you - yes, we even have traffic on the weekends. As for resorts - Whitetail is the most crowded because it is the best closest resort. The mountain was opened only 25 years ago, everything is modern, well laid out, they have good terrain, and most importantly, they can make unbelivable amounts of snow. They have good uphill capacity as well, and can deal with a fair amount of skiers. It is the rest of the oepration that gets slammed- lodge is literally bursting with people, parking lot is full, and they have even occasionally run out of rental skis, which gives you an idea about who is showing up to ski Whitetail on a Saturday (as noted above, Sunday first chair and for two hours after that can be great, plus most bus groups- church, scouts, etc - show up on Saturdays). But every mountain in this region has something to offer and a different vibe, so you might enjoy trying a few different hills. I ski Liberty mostly because a) I have youngsters and b) everyone there is so damn friendly. Whitetail on a Friday can be great. My insider tip- if you don't mind the ramshackle ambience and you live close to I-270 Blue Knob is a doable daytrip. It is an all interstate drive and a fast-lane trip will get you there in under 2.5 hours. As you'll see written up elsewhere on this site, Blue Knob has some legit skiing (need good natural snow cover) and it is never crowded, ever. Enjoy!
Funny, nobody mentions Seven Springs. From Maryland suburbs off of 270 it's what 3.5 hours? Lots of intermediate skiing and advanced intermediate, no really steep stuff. pockets of moguls and overly thinned glades (most snowmaking acreage of all resorts mentioned, 200 acres + except possibly Snowshoe). Almost all interstate driving (toll road PA turnpike). 750 vertical back side, what 400, 500 vertical front side. Lots of parks , huge pipe and jumps. 2 high speed six packs 4 fixed quads 4 or 5 triples. Everything you could want at the base complex and a ton of crap you probably wouldn't miss if all you really want to do is ski.
Come meet Pittsburgh and find out what a yinzer is. Do not wear Ravens or Capitols apparel. Washington Deadskins or Nationals ok, nobody here really cares.
I'd go to Blue Knob with a good dump or Timberline come February when everything is open.
Out of curiosity is roundtop considerably less crowded than liberty and whitetail on weekends? Seems like it is more out of the way and from my one not peak season trip there it seems like the terrain isn't lacking any more than liberty.
In regards to 7 springs...for day trips thier prices seem insane to me. Not a bad trip from dc, but look at the lodging packages. IMO they are worth the cost and there is enough terrain and resorts amenities you can easily do a weekend there.
