Hi all - for the next couple of weeks, how would you rank Wisp vs. Whitetail or Canaan for the quality of the skiing/riding *alone* (not factoring in drive time or apre-ski, dining, etc.)

I've been to Canaan and Whitetail several times, never been to Wisp, and I generaly enjoy CVR's smaller crowds and efficient lift operations.   

I'd like to try Wisp, but I've heard from friends that their snowmaking hasn't been up to par, and there's been long lift lines without much organization. 

So......have you all had similiar, better, or worse experiences there? And are you optimistic that they'll take advantage of the coming cold weather to get more trails open? 

Heelside wrote:

Hi all - for the next couple of weeks, how would you rank Wisp vs. Whitetail or Canaan for the quality of the skiing/riding *alone* (not factoring in drive time or apre-ski, dining, etc.)

I've been to Canaan and Whitetail several times, never been to Wisp, and I generaly enjoy CVR's smaller crowds and efficient lift operations.   

I'd like to try Wisp, but I've heard from friends that their snowmaking hasn't been up to par, and there's been long lift lines without much organization. 

So......have you all had similiar, better, or worse experiences there? And are you optimistic that they'll take advantage of the coming cold weather to get more trails open? 

Are you only skiing on weekends?  When did your friends go?  Holiday crowds are . . . not fun . . . anywhere.

marzNC wrote:

Are you only skiing on weekends?  When did your friends go?  Holiday crowds are . . . not fun . . . anywhere.

Sure thing, I generally ride on weekends: since I'm in NoVa, I can only occassinally do a weeknight at Whitetail.  Anything further (like WV) i have to save for the weekend.   But I try to avoid holiday weekends - you're spot on that they're always going to be a zoo, no matter where you go. 

Heelside wrote:

marzNC wrote:

Are you only skiing on weekends?  When did your friends go?  Holiday crowds are . . . not fun . . . anywhere.

Sure thing, I generally ride on weekends: since I'm in NoVa, I can only occassinally do a weeknight at Whitetail.  Anything further (like WV) i have to save for the weekend.   But I try to avoid holiday weekends - you're spot on that they're always going to be a zoo, no matter where you go. 

Well then . . . of course I have to mention Massanutten.  The lift to the summit never has a lift line, not even on holiday weekends.  When DJ and Paradice are open, good fun to stay up there for hours.  On weekends the ski team parents open up the Mountain Grill for lunch out on the deck so don't even have to go down to the lodge at lunch time.  As long as using a porta-potty is okay. ;-)

Massanutten has more vertical than any ski area in PA, 1100 feet.  Lift 6 has about 825 vertical by itself.  There is also a big terrain park with a J-bar once there is enough snow, if that's of interest.  Once there is enough snow, there will be bumps on MakAttack and the side of Paradice.  Mnut has a groomer that can be used to get the bumps built to start with.

Wisp and CV are on my list to check out some day.  I've been to Whitetail and Roundtop.  Roundtop is not quite as crowded on weekends as Whitetail.  Has some fun blue/black terrain that is separate from the beginner area.

I'm also interested in perspective on Wisp skiing.  Never been there, I look at the trail map and think, drive 3 hours for that?  But maybe I'm missing something. 

Couldn't find any recent threads about Wisp that seemed helpful, but here is one from six years ago that has a few comments about how the terrain compares to Whitetail and CV.

http://www.dcski.com/forum/65966

I'd consider Canaan for sure! Looks like a few chances of real powder skiing in the next few weeks and all snowmaking temps. Wisp would have similar natural snow also based on their location. 

I've always had a great time at Wisp.  They are off to a slow start this season so I'd wait them out until they get more open.

Funny - this video is from Jan 7 last year on a Sunday.   What a difference a year makes  ......

Minimal lift lines and conditions were EXCELLENT.  

http://go2snowshoe.com/wisp-1-7-18/  

I would say Wisp has steeper (Face, Squirrel Cage, etc) trail options, CVR has better glades.  If you don't favor either of those then they're comparable.

I'm crazy about Canaan

http://www.skisoutheast.com/canaan-valley-resort-have-you-been-there-yet/

I like, but am less familiar with wisp.  If Wisp has most of their terrain open though it is a lot of fun.  The relatively low vertical is deceptive because trails and lifts interconnect in a way that allows you to zig zag and really milk the vertical.  Face and squirrel cage are genuine steep and the trees beside them are excellent when filled in (though short) --- Devils Drop I think.

Wisp is close enough that if I'm in the valley for a few days I'll some times make a daytrip up their to add alittle variety

Hi all - thanks for the tips!  marzNC - thanks for suggesting Massanutten, I've never been there, but folks seem to love it as an underrated gem.  

Blue Don 1982 - thanks for the video! Super helpful for getting a feel for the mountain - it looks much larger than the trail map would suggest. 

And kemperski, I hear ya! I'm a big fan of CVR too, super nice people, great wings at the bar, cool terrain especially with powder. It sounds like Wisp is a good option if conditions improve, they open more of the mountain, and we can enjoy more of the varied terrain. 

Heelside wrote:

Hi all - thanks for the tips!  marzNC - thanks for suggesting Massanutten, I've never been there, but folks seem to love it as an underrated gem.  

 

The best thing I can say about Massanutten is that it exists and you can ski there. I'm suspicious of the official 1100' vertical foot claim unless you start on a ladder at the peak and end your run down on Rt33.

Having said that I have had a lot of fun at the 'Nut over the years.

dinozaur wrote:

Heelside wrote:

Hi all - thanks for the tips!  marzNC - thanks for suggesting Massanutten, I've never been there, but folks seem to love it as an underrated gem.  

 

The best thing I can say about Massanutten is that it exists and you can ski there. I'm suspicious of the official 1100' vertical foot claim unless you start on a ladder at the peak and end your run down on Rt33.

Having said that I have had a lot of fun at the 'Nut over the years.

I measured the vertical off Lift 6 by itself several years ago.  That's at least 800, probably 820 feet.  Adding a few hundred more from the base of Lift 6 to the lodge is not a stretch.  I've skied Plattekill and know what 1000 ft vertical looks like from top to bottom.

When was the last time you skied Massanutten?  They have spent at least $15 million in the last 5-6 years on major capital projects like a new ski school building, replacing two of the original lifts, adding automated snowguns, and building a 2 mile long pipeline to increase the water supply for snowmaking and watering the golf course.  Also renovated the lodge and added an umbrella bar.  Food is a lot better on resort these days too.

If I sound a bit biased, I am.  I became a Massanutten timeshare owner (husband bought first timeshare back in the 1980s) in 2003, just as the plans for the indoor/outdoor waterpark were finalized.  The ski school is steller for adults and children.  There is an Examiner and at least six Level 3 instructors on staff so ski instructors get very good training.  Not bad for a little mountain.  The terrain progression is far better than Wintergreen.  I started my daughter at age 4 and she was skiing Alta blues by age 7, based on spending about 10 days skiing at Mnut the first few years.  We experimented with other SE ski areas and Wintergreen when she could ski any SE black but ended up back at Mnut with season passes.  I started learning to ski bumps well (JH, Alta, Snowbird, Big Sky, etc.) taking lessons at Massanutten as an older low advanced skier.  Not having to wait in a lift line for 20 min on weekends makes a huge difference.

Once that debt was paid down on the waterpark around 2006, money started being spent on the Adventure Park and snowsports.  The ski slopes were part of the original resort back in the early 1970s, not an afterthought.  The senior managers for snowsports are all locals who have worked at Massanutten for decades.  It makes a difference in the long run.

You probably bought the same weekend I was there for a Massanutten free promotional weekend...skiing was good...band was excellent..next day the brownies in those model homes were yummy....but then after the weekend I went back to canaan...cant beat the real snowy powder and the postcard views in every direction.....thats why the place hasn't hardley evolved and actually in one area has disavolved?..word?....they are snowy picture postcard perfect..SPOILED!!!!...(Kinda fakeAngryfunnyface)

I’ve never been to Canaan, but can speak to whitetail and wisp. The runs going down to the lake at wisp, (I think Main Street is the big one) are a ton of fun, but I don’t think I would drive past whitetail unless I was spending a whole weekend at deep creek. I’ve been there on holiday weekends and don’t remember spending much time in lines. Slopes were busy, but people seemed more evenly spread out than most resorts in the area.

Snowmaking wise...whitetail will likely have all the terrain open sometime next week based on the forecast. I would imagine they have some of the best snowmaking per acre in North America...because they are southern facing and need to take advantage of whatever cold they get. At 935ft vertical drop with a high speed quad...if you are just looking to get on snow, imo whitetail is a great bet and convenient location. One caveat is they get freeze/thaw cycles worse than other areas because they are southern facing, but I feel like mountain ops there does what they can to provide a great surface

Snowmaking wise”¦whitetail will likely have all the terrain open sometime next week based on the forecast. I would imagine they have some of the best snowmaking per acre in North America”‹

been to Snowshoe lately?

kemperski wrote:

been to Snowshoe lately?

Yeah.. I’d honestly be interested in seeing a per acre comparison, snowshoe definitely has more equipment but they have more than double the acreage and a much better location. I suspect the numbers needed to do the gallons/hour aren’t available, but either way they both have very impressive systems. 

Watch this weekend as whitetail starts opening more terrrain though, it usually happens at an impressive rate

rbrtlav wrote:

I would imagine they have some of the best snowmaking per acre in North America...because they are southern facing and need to take advantage of whatever cold they get. At 935ft vertical drop with a high speed quad...if you are just looking to get on snow, imo whitetail is a great bet and convenient location. One caveat is they get freeze/thaw cycles worse than other areas because they are southern facing, but I feel like mountain ops there does what they can to provide a great surface

What they have gotten out that location and exposure is pretty impressive. I may never make it to Seven Springs or Wisp (again) because why drive that much further for less vertical drop. I hope Peak keeps it going as well as Snowtime did.