Just kinda curious... I've skied most of the areas in the mid-atlantic and find very few that permit off piste skiing. I know that several areas don't encourage it, but won't pull passes/tickets if you do. A couple come to mind. Timberline, which has some of the better glade skiing and it's neighbor to the south at Canaan. Actually, on a pow-pow day,(weekend) you can usually find fresh at t-line only until 10 cuz the powder pigs get to it even before 1st chair . At Canaan, I have skiied fresh almost all day, weekends included especially if there is ample cover. Are there other mountains out there that I need to consider if wanting to jump into the trees?

I think I remember a thread about off-piste at Blue Knob...I seem to recall that it was JohnL and tromano who were sampling the goods.

I also think people have mentioned some possibilities at 7 springs - does this ring a bell with anyone?

BK and 7S have marked, controlled glades. I'm sure if you asked both places about out of bounds skiing you will be told it is not allowed. What you do far from their gaze is your responsibility unless you get caught.

Whitegrass

Good call.

When Tline is full on, it has some of the best off-piste skiing south of VT. (Disclaimer - I've never skied BK, hopefully this year.) You can get a lot more vertical of tree skiing at Tline (per run) than at 7S.

Wisp has some tree/glade skiing.

Inbounds: 7S has some nice pruned glades and a decent ammount of natural. At BK there is alot more brush that never really seems to get covered up. At tline and cannnan there are plenty of places to go between runs. They tend to get more snow.

Sidecountry: Blueknob has some nice terrain and is one of the areas in the mid-atlantic with actual side country. If they get enough snow you can ski OOB just fine. Many people seem to be into side country in Cannan Valley but don't really know alot about it. I expect it is usually in better condition and more accessible than at BK.

In thinking about where off piste is possible, not just allowed, it comes down to slope construction, and natural snow conditions. If, during construction, a lot of rock is disturbed, it would take a lot of natural snow to make off piste possible. An area which comes to mind where I wouldn't even consider it is Massanutten where they even fence off the fall-line side of Diamond Jim because of the rocks.

Laurel. I guess the whole mountain is OP now.

You liked what you saw there last weekend, eh?

You could say that.

Another world, entirely; I'm having one of those can't-believe-what-I-saw-and-it-was-only-yesterday moments.

Tried uploading some pics to Epic but the session kept getting hung up on me.

If you've got skin, there are natural gas pipelines all over NW WV. Follow the pipes. Laneville being the most famous, more easily spotted routes down near Senaca Rocks on North Mtn (though the snow options there are much more limited than west of the Divide).

Many a rumor once floated of a "Dark Side of the Moon" at CV that is not- repeat, *not*- the DSotM on the maps. I have no idea where it is, but I've heard it spoken of.

There are the not-really-out-of-bounds trees at Wisp that sit in-between Face and Devil's Drop (DD being one of my favorite advanced trails in the Mid-A).

Winterplace has an area that isn't OOB but is treated as such by groomers and skiers alike. Don't know why, but it is a powder stash on a snowy day.

I think the folks down in NC have lots of lines, too. I've heard a lot about the balds down there and some of the farm fields that folks will schuss in the good snow years.

I have off piste in the bushes and trees around 7S's great western/lost girl and the woods around WTs far side, cause its too much a bother to slog back to the bathrooms

Whitetail will pull your pass for skiing in the woods. The reason is that too many people try it and get hurt and it is hazardous to do rescues in the woods. However, occasional forays outside the edge of the trail onto "spillover" manmade is routinely overlooked. I have one favorite "off piste" stash for natural snowfall that is safe and won't get you in trouble, but that's secret reserved for special guests and it does not qualify as off piste per the original question.

If you've hiked WT in the summer time you've seen some places in the woods that should be safe with relatively minimal cover and some places with rocks and deadfall that would be seriously dangerous even with 18" of packed snow. The first problem is we rarely have enough snow to make any of the potential off piste runs (e.g. some of the mountain bike trails) worth it. The second problem is you'd need a map or a real good memory to avoid the hazardous spots. We've had many skiers get injured skiing/riding in the woods on snow that looked safe. We've had many skiers go into the woods on iffy snow without issues. But the ratio between those two numbers is high enough to be scary.

My recommendation is to stay on the trails at Whitetail. If you want to go off trail in the mid Atlantic, hit BK, CV or TL, but please go with someone who knows what the bare ground looks like. And always buddy up! Always!

I agree Rusty. If you choose to venture into unmarked territiory you should have company "just in case." I would never advocate doing off piste alone, even here in the East because of the hazards. Those trees come up quickly, especially on steep fall lines and sometimes, there are rocks which don't give a person much of a chance either. I enjoy the feel fresh deep snow under my skis. And to get that feeling, you usually have to leave the groomed trails, even if by only a dozen or so feet. Too bad most of the general paying public wants groomers. But that's another thread.

I was referring to off piste, not off peest.

Yeah yeah.. That cheap beer will get you oft pisst quickly too

#1: WhiteGrass/Canaan
#2: Ski Denton
#3: Blue Knob

Denton is very liberal about where you can go, it's state park/forest land, so they really can't keep you out...had a couple fun days there last season:

Blog report, first visit.
Blog report, second visit.

yeah baby, mountain bikers for WG! one of the sweet things about WG is the "think about where you would like to ski, and clear some cool lines" mentality. dont think many people even realize how big that place is. makes local resort off-piste seem so... well... its not even in the same league so can't really compare unless you want to compare gum-ball machine prizes to big lottery winnings

Schweet lookin line

Been seeing you on a lot of WG pics...You've become a regular local Whitegrass homeboy Crunchy...were you having fun on the 4 wheeler?