What You Need to Know about Pennsylvania Ski Resorts
Pennsylvania ski resorts are a smorgasbord of both major ski areas and smaller resort destinations. They each serve a different type of ski enthusiast. You see, for a lot of people in the Keystone State, skiing is a lot like hunting, at least in one aspect. You don’t need to take an entire week of vacation or spend months saving and trip planning to hit the slopes. A spattering of smaller ski areas around the state ensure that you never have to go far to find a mountain to shred. Notable examples include Seven Springs in the west and Liberty Mountain in the east. Some resorts aren’t so much small as specialized. Crystal Lake Ski Center, for example, is known for its cross-country ski terrain.
An Overview of Pennsylvania Ski Resorts
On a different note, with the type of downhill slopes and numerous trails that you can find at major ski areas, several Pennsylvania ski resorts offer enough thrills to fill an entire week of shredding:
Blue Knob: Offers a great selection of more than 30 trails across numerous categories of skill levels, including several advanced-intermediate options for relatively new skiers who are trying to make the jump to the big leagues.
Montage Mountain: More than half the trails range from beginner to novice, but it’s still a large ski area with trails in every skill category. This makes Montage a great destination for families and large groups of relatively new skiers.
Shawnee Mountain: This is a something-for-everyone resort. Roughly half of the resort’s twenty-three trails are intermediate, the others are beginner and expert in equal parts. Six lifts and four magic carpets carry skiers to two separate terrain parks with a 700-ft vertical and one mile-long trail.
Elk Mountain: Seven lifts and 27 trails, including 7 lighted trails, and more than a 1000-ft vertical, this skews slightly more toward intermediate and advanced skiers. There are a still handful of beginner trails and no multiple-black diamonds, but this is also the kind of place where you can ski all-day and all-night and find new corners to explore.
Whitetail Resort: Twenty-three trails, nearly a 1,000 vertical drop, 2 terrain parks, night skiing, a double-black diamond, and a half pipe provide something for everyone. But it’s not just the size, it’s the crowd management. The resort’s 9 lifts delivers 15,000 skiers an hour, so there’s never a wait to get to the top of the next run.
Hidden Valley: Twenty-six slopes and trails, 2 terrain parks, and 11 lifts offer a good mix of beginner, intermediate, and advanced skill levels. Another great option for skiers who are looking to ski all-day as part of their jump to the next level of skiing.
Blue Mountain: This one has numbers that stand out for Pennsylvania ski resorts. It has the highest vertical with a 1,082-ft drop, 39 trails, and 164 ski-able acres along with 100% snow-coverage capability. Blue Mountain offers trails for all skill levels, but is best known for its four double-black diamond runs.
Camelback Mountain: Ten lifts and 6 carpets create reliable access to 30 trails and several terrain parks at Camelback. In nearly equal parts of A) beginner/novice, B) intermediate, and C) expert, plus one double-black diamond run, this resort can accommodate skiers of all skill levels.
Other Pennsylvania Ski Resorts