Timberline Four Seasons - Davis, WV - Review

Who says it doesn't snow in the south? Timberline claims to get an average of 150 inches a year.

And while I've got no way of checking the accuracy of that claim, I can attest that a West Virginia whiteout is no easier to drive in than a New England whiteout -- and that this is a fun mountain after a snowstorm.

Of course, this IS the south, which means that on any given trip to Timberline you also might have to ski in slush, rain or even an occasional 75 degree mid-February day. (Been there, done that on all accounts.)

But enough nitpicking.

For snow enthusiasts anywhere in the mid-Atlantic or the Southeast, Timberline offers terrain and vertical that's nearly as good as it gets in this part of the world.

A pair of fairly slow lifts run up the middle of the mountain, straight from the bottom to the top, while a third lift to the side serves novice terrain.

Once at the top, skiiers and riders get treated to a classic New England style layout: The steep stuff runs straight down the middle of the mountain, under and just to either side of the chairlifts. Intermediate trails flank those expert runs, and then the beginner runs meander down the outside.

Back at the bottom of the mountain, all those trails join back up and deposit you back at the center of the mountain, right at the base of the lifts, which also is where you'll find a rambling, somewhat dilapidated (think rural New England) base lodge.

It's a nice layout, especially when you're skiing as a family or with a group of people with different abilities.

Timberline is also a nice ski hill. It has a nice mix of trails and, for this part of the world, a fair number of trails as well. Its layout uses the 1,000 feet of vertical nicely; those top-to-bottom runs are plenty long enough to give anyone a workout.

There are even some glades and a couple of steep, ungroomed natural snow trails when Mother Nature permits. And its operators take snowmaking seriously, stockpiling seriously deep layers of manmade fluff whenever temperatures permit.

Not bad for any part of the world. Mighty fine for an area as far south as Timberline.