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Mini TR: Canaan/Whitegrass

This is the spot to post your trail and trip reports. Please notify [email protected] when you do so that we can feature the better ones on the front of the website.
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EastCoaster
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Left mid-morning yesterday to see what I could get into in WV. Arrived in Canaan Valley around 1:00 pm, basically just looking for terrain I could find that didn't involve spending $$. Drove up the road towards Canaan ski area, noticed some open meadows on the opposing ridge, and a road that went up towards the area. Sure enough, there was a parking lot for the trailhead (it had been cleared- they are definitely used to the XC/tele crowd). Threw the skins on the Tahoes/Dukes, starting skinning up.



EAST COAST SKINTRACK STOKE:







The conditions up there are unreal right now- at least 2-3 ft of settled base, with about 6 inches of fluff on top, even in the meadows. There is some amazing skiing to be had outside of the resort, if you are willing to work for it.



Here is the top of Baldy Knob- evidently this is the first time it's been filled in and skiable in a while:











The top 1/4 or so is crusty and a little rocky, but lower it was absolute money.



Finally, after coming down from Baldy, I meadowskipped about 3/4 of the way back to the parking lot, the turned around and headed back up. Meadowskipping stoke:







All of the above pics are from yesterday. I drove over to Whitegrass proper to drink beer and have dinner- no kidding, one of the best meals in recent memory. $20 for all-you-can eat spanish turkey breast, mashed potatoes, tempeh in mushroom sauce (AMAZING), ratatouille, and a Mountain State brewery IPA and Stout on tap. It was the perfect ending to a fantastic day.



No pics from today- I was trying to get a few quick laps in. I parked at Whitegrass and skinned up Roundtop, then over to Baldy. Two laps down Baldy and into the meadows below, where there were some really great turns to be had- a little steeper than the terrain yesterday. To finish it off, I took the main run back to the Whitegrass "lodge".



Here are my routes from the past two days. Blue is yesterday, from Canaan, dark is up, light is down. Once I got to the top I did 3 laps down-up, then a final lap top to bottom, back to the parking lot. Today is in red, light up/dark down. Up Roundtop, over to Baldy, 2 laps down Baldy and into the meadows, then back to the top of Roundtop and down:







Needless to say, I'll be back. Granted, there isn't very much steep terrain, but right now the snow is epic if you are willing to work for it. There is a great vibe from all the XC and tele guys there- though I did get a lot of suggestions to free my heel. BEWARE THE HIPPIES!! :D
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marzski
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Wow! Glad you got your powder fix.
2023-24: Wolf Creek in Dec, Massanutten in Jan, Feb; GT, Big Sky; Crested Butte; Alta/Snowbird in April.
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skipink
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Nice BC TR.
"Nothing changes if nothing changes."
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Ski Bunny
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Nice! Looks like you had a great time!
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teledave
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Ooooooooooh!





Very Nice.





PS: Thought about Tux later in the season yet?
Plans for 2015: To ski more than you
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dreamnofpow
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I was waiting for a EC TR, for a second I thought I saw you skiing moguls in the Olympics, but that was 6' 5" Jesper Bjoernlund.
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pagamony
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Verrry nice. that meadow doesn't look steep enough to ski but those tracks don't lie. it's a great year for that part of the country. so you didn't even pay the trail fee at whitegrass ?
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EastCoaster
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@teledave 208620 wrote:PS: Thought about Tux later in the season yet?



Def- only 10 hours from here. We gotta put together a trip this season, I was bummed that we didn't make it back last year.



@pagamony 208638 wrote:Verrry nice. that meadow doesn't look steep enough to ski but those tracks don't lie. it's a great year for that part of the country. so you didn't even pay the trail fee at whitegrass ?



First day no, because I started at Canaan. Second day I started at Whitegrass, so I paid the fee. They operate on the honor system, so you don't necessarily have to, but thats bad karma :) I started skinning this morning at 7 am, before anybody else had even shown up, then paid it on the way out.
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jbc28
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Hey, I saw this on buzz earlier today. ;-)
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skipanther
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That's a great area up there,real laid back.Ran into a lot of folks that ditched their responsibilities and moved up there.Never crossedcountry skied,but that place would be a start,of course when I go back up,there is too much powder to think about nordic skiing,I'll be on the alpine skis!How is Canaan V,I always go to TL?
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