A quick plug for Canaan Valley Resort...

[SWriverstone]

[Another post in my annual "Where do I want to go this season?" thought process...]

Don't know how many people have been there, but I thought I'd post a quick plug for Canaan Valley Resort near Davis, West Virginia.

My S.O. and I spent a long weekend in CV last winter. We went to Canaan Valley one day and Timberline the next. I was really surprised at how nice of a time we had at Canaan Valley!

It's not a big resort...but the natural beauty is off the scale, with beautiful views from the lifts and slopes. The day we were there in February it snowed pretty hard, which of course made it even better. And though it was a weekend, the place was practically empty—we almost never had a wait for the lifts.

Canaan Valley slopes are wide and long enough to keep you entertained for a day, and the layout was conducive to many variations (lots of cut-throughs between slopes) which helps at such a relatively small resort.

We just weren't as impressed by Timberline, even though it has a reputation for being better than Canaan. My biggest complaints with Timberline were the crowds, the "lodge," and the views.

There were substantial lift lines everywhere at Timberline...and I put quotation marks around "lodge" because it's a joke—tiny, crowded, and ZERO place to spread out and store your gear bags, etc. (That resort DESPERATELY needs a new lodge!) I also didn't think the views at Timberline were nearly as nice as Canaan.

Canaan Valley's lodge was gigantic compared to Timberline—ditto for the dining hall. Plenty of room to spread out (especially with the nonexistent crowds).

So I'd definitely recommend checking out Canaan Valley if anyone decides to head that way this winter!

Scott