| Vertical drop: | 935 feet |
| Base elevation: | 865 feet |
| Peak elevation: | 1,800 feet |
| Skiable acres: | 117 |
| Longest run: | 1 mile |
| Trails: | 23 |
Located in south-central Pennsylvania, Whitetail is a comfortable 90-minute jog down I-70 from D.C. and Baltimore. Skiers and boarders will find 23 trails, a 935-foot vertical, and a high-speed quad. Whitetail’s convenient location to D.C. also means skiers and boarders will often find crowds — on weekends and holidays, Whitetail’s slopes can become as crowded as the Washington Beltway during rush hour. On non-holiday weekdays, the crowds completely disappear and you’re likely to have the slopes to yourself.
Whitetail has a strong track record of continuous capital improvements. Over the past couple decades, it has added new trails, expanded its base lodge, added a snow tubing park, expanded lighting across the slopes, and made significant snowmaking improvements. Whitetail’s state-of-the-art snowmaking system can quickly take slopes from bare to skiable with just a few nights of snowmaking.
Whitetail is now part of the Vail Resorts family after a 2019 purchase. Previously, it was owned by Peak Resorts, and before that, Snow Time. Its new ownership means you can purchase a single Epic pass and ski at Whitetail, Liberty, Roundtop, Jack Frost, Big Boulder, and dozens of resorts across North America.
Skiers at Whitetail are pampered by a modern base lodge and amenities such as free ski check. Food is reasonable, with cafeteria-style food available in the Market Place. Other dining options include sit-down service at the Solstice, and brick oven pizzas at Mountain Hearth Pizzeria.
Whitetail developed a residential village that lines the Northern Lights beginner ski slope, but despite this lodging, Whitetail does not offer many year-round activities except for golf and is primarily a day resort in the winter. In 2019, Whitetail was granted its first liquor license.
For the 2020-2021 winter season, Whitetail will be following the COVID protocols of its parent company, Vail Resorts. Face coverings will be required at the resort, and on-mountain access will be managed via reservations, limiting how many visitors can visit per day. All transactions across the resort will be cashless this winter.
Photo by M. Scott Smith.
| Resort Name: | Whitetail Resort |
| Vertical Drop: | 935 feet |
| Base Altitude: | 865 feet |
| Peak Altitude: | 1,800 feet |
| Trails: | 23 Trails:
|
| Skiable Acres: | 117 |
| Longest Run: | 1 mile |
| Lifts: | 9 (1 high-speed quad, 3 quads, 2 doubles, 3 magic carpets) |
| Night Skiing: | Night skiing on all trails |
| Terrain Park: | Two terrain parks. |
| Tubing Park: | Serviced by an enclosed magic carpet and its own lodge. |
| Address: | 13805 Blairs Valley Road Mercersburg, PA 17236 |
| Phone: | (717) 328-9400 |
| Social Media: |    |
| Webcams: | View resort webcams |
| Web Site: | http://www.skiwhitetail.com/ |
| Directions: | Via Google Maps |
The following information summarizes COVID-19 protocols in effect at Whitetail as of Oct 12, 2020. Please note that this information is subject to change at any time; contact Whitetail directly before making a trip to verify current COVID-19 operating protocols. This information is provided by SnoCountry.
| Masks Required: | ✓ |
| Social Distancing Required: | ✓ |
| Sanitization Stations Available: | |
| Pass Protection: | ✓ |
| Reservations Required: | ✓ |
| Pre-Purchase Day Lift Tickets Recommended: | ✓ |
| Resort COVID-19 web page: | https://www.skiwhitetail.com/explore-the-resort/about-the-resort/winter-experience.aspx |
| Resort COVID-19 pass protection page: | |
| Resort COVID-19 reservations web page: |
| Humidity: | 57% | Visibility: | 10.00 |
| Wind Speed: | 0 mph | Sunrise: | 7:09 a.m. |
| Barometer: | 30.02 in | Sunset: | 4:49 p.m. |
| Dewpoint: | 38 °F |
Weather supplied by the National Weather Service. Errors or reporting delays may be possible.
Snow conditions supplied by SnoCountry, and may be inaccurate or delayed at times. Please check directly with Whitetail for the most up-to-date snow and operating conditions.
October 2, 2020 - The DCSki Interview Series continues with Jeff Lifgren, who is in charge of Pennsylvania resorts Liberty, Whitetail, Roundtop, Big Boulder, and Jack Frost. Jeff touches on lots of topics in this in-depth interview conducted by DCSki’s John Sherwood.
September 15, 2020 - The deadline to purchase an Epic Pass for the 2020-2021 winter season is September 17, 2020, and many Mid-Atlantic skiers still have some questions about how skiing will work this winter at Vail Resorts properties, including Pennsylvania’s Liberty Mountain, Roundtop Mountain, Whitetail, Big Boulder, and Jack Frost. Jamie Storrs, Senior Manager of Communications for Vail Resorts, Eastern Region recently fielded questions from DCSki readers.
August 28, 2020 - Things are going to work a little bit differently at Vail Resorts properties this winter, as the company recalibrates its operations to adjust to the continuing reality of the COVID pandemic.
March 3, 2020 - The ski industry has changed significantly in recent years: ski conglomerates Vail Resorts and the Alterra Mountain Company have gobbled up resorts across the country, and now offer competing “mega passes” that provide skiing and riding across dozens of properties for one historically low price. The proposition has been simple: commit to buying a mega pass in the spring, and you’ll receive countless ski days across North America the following winter. Epic and Ikon have now released pricing and details for their 2020-2021 winter season passes. In this story, DCSki takes a look at these passes from the perspective of a Mid-Atlantic skier.
February 22, 2020 - Have you ever walked out of a movie, once it became clear that it was terrible and not worth spending any more time watching? DCSki’s Editor did the skiing equivalent of that on the evening of February 22, 2020 at Pennsylvania’s Whitetail Resort.
January 28, 2020 - On Friday, January 24, DCSki’s John Sherwood took a snow day and traveled to Pennsylvania’s Whitetail Resort. Days prior to his visit, most of Whitetail had melted, but as he describes in this Firsthand Report, aggressive snowmaking allowed Whitetail to bring 16 trails on-line in a matter of days.
January 12, 2020 - Despite unusually warm January weather, Jim Kenney recently swung by Pennsylvania’s Whitetail Resort for his first ski day of the season. He provides this Firsthand Report.
December 21, 2019 - After a burst of cold weather in November allowed some Mid-Atlantic resorts to snag pre-Thanksgiving opening dates, the balance of resorts have now officially begun their season in recent days thanks to a stretch of snowmaking-friendly temperatures.
August 2, 2019 - There has been a changing of the guard at two Mid-Atlantic ski areas as two long-time General Managers have retired. Whitetail’s Don MacAskill is being succeeded by Brett Cook, while Wisp’s Jerry Geisler is being succeeded by Ron Hawkes.
July 22, 2019 - Vail Resorts announced on Monday, July 22, 2019 its intent to acquire Peak Resorts, setting in motion another seismic shift in the ski industry — and a further round of consolidation that leaves few players in charge of an ever-widening set of ski areas across the United States.
