Timberline Mountain

Located in the Canaan Valley in West Virginia, Timberline Mountain is one of the more serious ski resorts in this part of the United States. This is Appalachian skiing with a little more height and length than many other "Mid-Atlantic" slopes, and the facility has been built to work for both families and skiers who want a little more challenge.

The lift system is surprisingly modern for the region, with a six-chair lift, a four-chair lift and two simpler lifts. The ski area also has two parks and a couple of marked forest skiing trails, which provides a little more variety than pure piste wear. The longest run, Salamander Run, is about 2 miles and is considered the longest in the Mid-Atlantic, which means that you can actually get long runs in an area where many slopes are otherwise quite short.

Off-road, Timberline is clearly divided. There are plenty of gentler slopes to learn and cruise, a good set of intermediate slopes to grind turns in, and a bunch of steeper options where it starts to feel more "real". For those who want to push on, there are also a couple of slopes that are marked as only for experts.

Timberline also has a bit of a shaky history behind it. The facility opened in 1987, but after years of worn systems and problems with both lifts and snow production, it fell into a slump and closed in 2019. Later that year, the resort was purchased by Perfect North Slopes, which embarked on a major renovation effort with new lifts, upgraded snow production and remodeled facilities. As a result, Timberline is back today as one of the more attractive ski resorts in the Appalachian ski world.