I'm headed to Timberline this weekend for the 1st time with my family. My daughter and I normally mainly stick to greens and blues, (we've skied blacks, but are particular to nice wide ones that allow us plenty of room to traverse our way down ). A few questions . . Is the new trail (shown on the trail map to the far right) open yet? How are the blues at Tline . . any easier/harder than the rest? Any other info re the trails we should know?
We've skied Canaan before and looking forward this time to trying Timberline.

Well, first, Salamander is destined to be a family favorite. Very long and enjoyable beginner run with good views into the Sods at the summit.

The two blues I've skied- Dew Drop and Almost Heaven (heavenly?)- are very good too. Not as steep as the blues at Whitetail but a much more sustained fall line than your average blue run in the Mid-A. Don't know much about the new summit run. I've heard it starts off with a similar pitch to the other two blues but then settles into a nice novice run as you head down the hill.

If you're unsure of your tastes for blacks, start with Off the Wall. Just kidding. You could test yourself on Thunderstruck; if that doesn't go well it's best to stay away from the other blacks at T-line. You can work your way across the mountain- Thunderstruck to White Lightning to The Drop to OTW- but beware the last two as you really can't see what you're getting yourself into until you're standing on the top of the headwall. Thunderstruck and White Lightning can be scoped out from the lift.

Have fun!

RogerZ' on track with his assessment of Dew Drop and Almost Heaven. I'd say Almost Heaven is the steeper of the two. Twister is steepest up top - I think it's a little steeper than Almost Heaven for the first twist or so, but I could be wrong about that. It does level off into a very easy green for the bottom half of the run. Views off all the Blues are great. Twister is a favorite of my daughter, and I know the ski school usually moves the kids from Salamander to Twister when they're ready for their first blue. White lightning is the widest black but depending on crowds I wouldn't try and traverse it all the way down. It is really a great highspeed cruiser and plenty of folks (myself included) like to let 'em run on that slope.

Salamander is always a favorite green cruiser, just hope the winds are not out of the northwest (which makes the bottom flats VERY slow). Twister is a modest blue through the first two switchbacks then it tames down to a green/blue cruiser. Dew Drop has the most consistent fall line of any trail on the mountain and is a favorite of mine for just ripping early morning turns. White lightening is the resorts marquee trail and it runs fairly straight down to a gentle run out. The Drop isn't too awfully steep before and after the headwall, but..... it bumps up on warm days and gets skied off on colder days. OTW, leave it for advanced/experts. I see too many "explorers" who have ventured into the whale field and are like jonah as they get swallowed. You should really enjoy t-line, especially if he weather goes as predicted.