Snowshoe Mountain, Nov 23-26

[Olesya Chornoguz]

I just took a 3 day trip (Nov 23-26) to Snowshoe Mountain, had a lot of fun, very positive experience overall. Conditions were nice for the early season, they had 3 top to bottom runs open (2 at main village and 1 at Silver Creek).
Friday evening – night skiing at Silver Creek. It was a very enjoyable first day on the snow for me. There was only one top to bottom trail with decent snow quality in the evening, soft in most places, occasionally icy. It was not very crowded so I was very happy to be skiing (in November!) and getting my ski legs back.
Saturday. It snowed all day which was nice, but it was also very cold and very crowded. In the morning and afternoon I skied at the main village area. One place of the green run turned into WROD, bodies lying everywhere and skiers and boarders out of control, snowboarder crashed into me from behind Everything is ok though, no injuries. The blue run was really icy and crowded, although skiers and boarders were more in control. However the night skiing at Silver Creek made up for the negative experience at the main village. Left the main village area around 3 pm and decided to take a break and do some night skiing at Silver Creek. Again nice snow at Silver Creek, very few people, especially towards closing – 9 pm.
Gotta figure out how to post pics, then will post them.
Sunday and Monday morning. Sunday was very nice. It was a bluebird day, with fresh manmade and natural snow, much less people. Skied all day at the main village area, mostly on the new blue run they opened that on Sunday instead of the icy one they had open on Saturday. Monday was really the best – very few people freshly groomed mostly manmade snow. I got to ski on corduroy on the blue run and took the first chair – loved it. Too bad I had to drive back home and skied for only about an hour. I’m really tired now, but very happy.
Loving my new skis K2 Superfree and boots Salmon Idol 8 CS. Will review them sometime later in gear review section.
iPhone pictures are too big to upload need to reduce resolution to upload I think. Will try to figure it out tomorrow.

 

[Olesya Chornoguz]

Ok, figured out how to resize pics

Snowmaking

The top of Skipjack - the blue square run.

Tree with snow:

 

[marzNC]

Thanks for sharing! Silver Creek is definitely the place to be on weekends.

 

[marzNC]

How did you drive to Snowshoe? Have seen this route recommended starting from the I-66/I-495 interchange.

I-66 West
I-81 South
Rt 55 West into Corridor H, US48?
get off at Patterson Creek Rd, County Rt 5 (heading south)
merge into 42 South
28 South
66 West
Turn right to Snowshoe

 

[Olesya Chornoguz]

How did you drive to Snowshoe? Have seen this route recommended starting from the I-66/I-495 interchange.

I-66 West
I-81 South
Rt 55 West into Corridor H, US48?
get off at Patterson Creek Rd, County Rt 5 (heading south)
merge into 42 South
28 South
66 West
Turn right to Snowshoe

I definitely took I-81 and then I-66 when driving back, I can't remember for sure if I drove on 55 and the roads after that. Will try the route you recommended next time we go there in February.

 

[marzNC]

From a brief look at a thread on DCSki about Corridor H, seems like there are a variety of options on where to get off and head south. Clearly depends on the weather. Taking WV93 avoids the mountains the longest.

 

[marzNC]

To Snowshoe starting from the I-66/I-495 interchange.

I-66 West
I-81 South
Rt 55 West into Corridor H, US48
get off at Patterson Creek Rd, County Rt 5 (heading south)
merge into 42 South
28 South
66 West
Turn right to Snowshoe

Apparently one advantage of going this way is that there is a Food Lion in Moorefield and a Sheetz in Petersburg that make good stopping points for supplies, gas, bathroom. What makes this route an insider's suggestion is that you stay on Corridor H longer instead of driving through Moorefield on US220/WV28. Also means you go around Petersburg. Probably worth checking it out in any case.

28 is all in the valley. So the only part that's really mountain driving is on 66. I went down that in snow conditions the first time I went to Snowshoe. Glad I got through it before dark. Now I go through Marlington before cutting back to 92.

That's one disadvantage to Snowshoe . . . hard to reach. Especially if there is a snowstorm, which isn't that uncommon. Of course, that's when the skiing is better than average.

 

[Celestron2000]

Thanks for the trip report and nice photos. Can't wait to hear your review of the Superfrees.

 

[tinymoose]

Oh, your pictures... making me anxious to get out and ski. Even though everything local is going to be a crowded WROD.

 

[Olesya Chornoguz]

Oh, your pictures... making me anxious to get out and ski. Even though everything local is going to be a crowded WROD.

I hear you, I'm glad I made the drive to Snowshoe. Now I'm not going crazy from desire to ski. I think 7 Springs is opening thus weekend and it sounds like they will have several top to bottom trails, not just WROD. Maybe you can check it out if it's not too far from you.

 

[littlestix]

Thanks for the trip report. I've never skied anywhere but Perfect North in Indiana. Would this be a good place for an advanced beginner? I would like to take my son somewhere this year that is within a 10 hour drive of Indianapolis.

 

[marzNC]

littlestix:
From Indiana, I suggest you take a look at Wisp. I think it might be closer than Snowshoe. Definitely a lot less mountain driving, which can be quite an adventure in WV during or just after a snowstorm. Haven't been to Wisp, but have heard it's a good destination resort for families. There is a Mountain Coaster that's an unusual extra option, along with ice skating, snow tubing, and so on.

As with all places in the flatlands, SS and Wisp are pretty busy on the weekends but pretty empty mid-week. Wisp draws from Pittsburgh and DC. SS draws from all southeast states from FL to VA, plus KY and OH.

At Snowshoe, Silver Creek is good for an advanced beginner. Tends to be less crowded. Also has lights for night skiing. My daughter likes to stay there since the pool is inside the building. Can swim out to the outdoor section. The green runs at the main mountain are long, but seems like they aren't that wide.

 

[Olesya Chornoguz]

I agree with Marz. I really like Silver Creek area of Snowshoe as well. Last year my husband and I took a 1 week long ski vacation at Silver Creek lodge. It was in the beginning of December and we were both about the level of advanced beginners at that point. We had great time on the slopes, like Marz said the green runs are long and the Silver Creek area usually not crowded. The Silver Creek lodge has indoor pool like Marz mentioned, as well as big indoor hot tub and sauna.

 

[marzNC]

Note that there is no place to eat dinner at Silver Creek. The cafeteria closes mid-afternoon. Best to bring food supplies with you. Closest supermarket is in Marlington, perhaps a hour away. The free buses run regularly. Parking is scarce near the main village center where the restaurants are located.

 

[littlestix]

Sorry for hijacking the thread,I appreciate the helpful hints. I am slightly worried about driving in mountains,haven't done it for years. I looked up Wisp, it is slightly closer and seems cheaper than SS. Looks like SS would cost me a small fortune for 3 nights

 

[marzNC]

Sorry for hijacking the thread,I appreciate the helpful hints. I am slightly worried about driving in mountains,haven't done it for years. I looked up Wisp, it is slightly closer and seems cheaper than SS. Looks like SS would cost me a small fortune for 3 nights

No problem. Always happy to hear from someone else who lives in the flatlands relatively near WV. My husband grew up near Chicago. We meet up with friends in northern Indiana in the summer. So I've driven up your way a number of times from NC. We usually drive through WV.

SS is certainly not for people looking for a budget ski trip for two that includes a weekend. There just are very few lodging options besides a unit up on the mountain. Can be reasonable for groups of 4 or more since can get discounted lift tickets or check VRBO.

If you want to know more about Wisp, I suggest you create a thread in the Resorts section with Wisp in the title. Some of the mid-Atlantic Divas may have been there.

 

[littlestix]

Thanks again and I will make a thread as you suggested. Would like to learn more about Wisp. I could make a mid-week trip,I have no problem taking him out of school for a few days.

 

[marzNC]

Thanks again and I will make a thread as you suggested. Would like to learn more about Wisp. I could make a mid-week trip,I have no problem taking him out of school for a few days.

I'd invite you to check out Massanutten, but it's not worth the extra driving time from Indiana. Plus Wisp is bigger and farther north, so has better snow conditions in general.

You have the right priorities for a Ski Diva.

 

[Pandita]

I am a regular at 7 stings and it really has something for everyone. I have skied at Wisp just for something else to do at the end of the season. Depending on what you want out of the trip, 7 springs has some more to offer than Wisp though. - Sorry i posted about 7 springs.

Snowshoe looked beautiful. I was there this summer the day after the Derecho and unfortunately they lost power, we were planning on staying and doing some bike rides around that area

 

[marzNC]

BraveSkiMom wrote up Snowshoe recently: Snowshoe, West Virginia: A Southeast "Secret". A good overview in general. The only clarification I would add is that Silver Creek is not really a separate resort. Historically, it was developed separately and incorporated into Snowshoe afterwards. It's on a lower mountain that's about a 5 min drive away from the main area. While there is separate lodging at Silver Creek and night skiing, the restaurants for dinner are all around the Village Center. The free shuttle buses work well for getting around, with or without skis.