Canaan Valley Winter Weekend
The most reliable snow belt in the mid-Atlantic, with three downhill areas and a Nordic centre within twenty minutes of each other, and two small towns to come off the hill into.
Day by day
Arrive
- 4:00 pmArrive Davis or Thomas. Check conditions for the morning.
- 6:00 pmDinner and live music in Thomas, then an early night.
Downhill day
- 8:30 amFirst chair at Timberline or Canaan Valley Resort. Salamander at Timberline runs two miles top to bottom.
- 12:30 pmLunch on the mountain, then afternoon laps.
- 4:00 pmBlackwater Falls: the falls in ice, then Lindy Point at sunset, a short flat walk.
- EveningSledding at Blackwater Falls if you have kids; the run is lift-served.
Nordic and out
- 9:00 amWhite Grass Ski Touring Center. Groomed and ungroomed trails climbing Cabin Mountain.
- 12:30 pmSoup at the White Grass lodge, which is half the reason people come.
- 2:00 pmDrive out through Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge for wildlife on the refuge roads.
Before you go
Book ahead
- Lodging in Davis, Thomas or at Canaan Valley Resort, well ahead for holiday weeks
- Lift tickets online, which are cheaper than at the window
- Blackwater Falls sled run sessions, which are time-slotted and sell out
What to bring
- Proper cold-weather layers. The valley regularly runs 15–20°F below the surrounding lowlands
- Traction devices for icy boardwalks at Blackwater Falls
- Rentals available at all three areas and at White Grass
In a thin snow year, White Grass holds cover on the upper Cabin Mountain trails long after the valley floor is bare.
Outfitters and lodging on this route
Itinerary pages carry the highest booking intent on the site. Placement is sold per route.
List your business hereWhere you'll be
Canaan Valley
The highest large valley east of the Mississippi, at about 3,200 feet — a 14-mile-long bowl of wetland, bog, beaver meadow and northern hardwood that behaves climatically like central Canada.
Timberline Mountain
A Canaan Valley ski area with about 1,000 feet of vertical and Salamander, a two-mile top-to-bottom run that is the longest trail in the mid-Atlantic.
White Grass Ski Touring Center
The cultural heart of eastern backcountry Nordic skiing — a groomed and ungroomed network climbing the flank of Cabin Mountain from about 3,200 to over 4,000 feet, run out of a converted farmhouse with a soup-and-woodstove lodge culture that people drive four hours for.
Blackwater Falls State Park
A 57-foot falls where the Blackwater River drops into an eight-mile canyon, its water stained amber by hemlock and spruce tannins.
Snowshoe Mountain
The largest ski resort in the mid-Atlantic, built upside-down: the village sits at 4,848 feet on the summit ridge of Cheat Mountain and you ski down from it.