Top 3 things to do near Snowshoe Mountain Resort, WV: Our travel tips and notes

 

Beautiful Snowshoe, WV

My wife and I (and our Pomeranian Toby) were very lucky to have spent a month in the beautiful state of West Virginia during the month of October.  When we planned our month long trip to the Mountain State, we were just hoping it would be during the fall foliage.  

We had heard from our friends and acquaintances that October is the best month for fall foliage in the Mountain State.  Armed with this knowledge, we set about exploring and experiencing all that West Virginia has to offer!

The drive down from our parent’s home in New York City was epic.  Every country road we took was beautiful, accentuated by colors of the rainbow.  Thanks to gorgeous weather on October 1st, we got to see  fall foliage in its perfect splendor.  

Every country road on our way to Snowshoe Mountain Resort has curves and you’d be hard pressed to find a straight road for even a mile.  If you know me at all, I love driving all these undulating roads that reveal new vistas at every turn.

I love looking at new scenery as I cut a tight turn around a road that was cut out from a huge boulder, and I love releasing the accelerator on these tight turns so my SUV can tuck into a corner to make perfect turns.  I love the sensation of the car as I accelerate out of the turn when the road straightens out.  

What can I say, I’m a car guy…Of course, I wished I had a Mustang convertible for the task at hand, but oh well…You can’t have everything…

We arrived at Snowshoe Mountain Resort absolutely thrilled to be driving up the Snowshoe Dr, which is a 4 mile long road to the top of the mountain.  Along the way, we saw changing colors of the fall everywhere, as well as incredible views of the mountains.  

Once we checked in to our condo, we walked around the mountain to get acclimated.  We saw that the resort was much bigger than we had anticipated.  There are lodgings of all sorts sprawled on and near the mountain, as well as restaurants and shops.

The views are incredible as the resort sits on top of the mountain.  Views of the mountains/valleys are possible from either the east or the west side, meaning sunrises and sunsets are epic!

Snowshoe Mountain Resort is located in the Pocahontas County (West Virginia), and it is the largest winter East Coast ski resort in the mid-Atlantic.  There are three different areas to ski (Snowshoe Basin, Silver Creek, Western Territories) with over 60 trails.  The summit elevation is at over 4,800 feet and has  over 244 skiable acres.  

Without further ado, these are our top 3 things to do near Snowshoe:

• Snowshoe Mountain Resort

The day after we arrived at our condo, we started to explore the resort.  There are beautifully maintained walkways for either walking or biking that extends from one end of the resort to the other end.  Our pack walked both ways and enjoyed the incredible beauty of the mountains.  

The walkway heading north will be towards a more residential area, and quieter.  It features tree lined walkways with nice views facing west.  We went all the way to the end of the walkway, then kept going until we came upon a overlook/turnaround that features one of our favorite views on the resort.

At sunset!

View at the overlook at the end of the walkway going north

We also walked the other way (southerly direction) which feature restaurants and shops, and therefore not as quiet.  We crossed the road to check out the views near the lifts at the Western Territories.

Lift at the Western Territories 

Western Territories ski map

Toby checking out the lift area!

We continued on our southerly journey using the walkway and passed several restaurants across the road from the lift at the Western Territories.  We continued on, but this time, we took the gravel pathway towards the Snowshoe Village.  

Snowshoe Village is a beautiful resort village that feature many hotels/restaurants/shops and a plaza to walk around in.  It reminded us of Stratton Mountain in Vermont, which we used to go to ski during our years living in New York City.

We walked around the entire village crisscrossing few times to make sure we didn’t miss anything.  Toby enjoyed his walk around the village as well!

Found this cute statue of a trout in the Snowshoe Village

Beautiful paved walkway leading to the plaza 

As we walked around the village, we couldn’t help but be immersed in the beauty of the mountains and the fall foliage.  Anywhere we looked, beauty abounded.  

From the parking area facing west

View on a cloudy day

View of Shaver’s Lake below

Plenty of activities are available right at the resort including winter sports (skiing/snowboarding, snowmobiling, etc.), and during off-season, mountain biking/biking, golfing, and hiking.

If you like nature, then you’ll have plenty of things to do right at the resort.  We really enjoyed watching the mountains and the changing scenery every day.  The crisp mountain alpine air would bring joy when taking walks with Toby, and the awesome night sky with its beautiful stars/moon would bring a smile.

We spent rainy days inside of our condo enjoying the rain falling and listening to the sound of raindrops as they hit leaves that had fallen.  We spent cloudy days going outside our condo enjoying the clouds forming then breaking, briefly revealing the sun, then going away just as fast as it came.

Spent many hours looking out the sliding door

View out the back where we saw deers, groundhogs, and moles

Bavarian village feel of our condo

We went outside during sunrises (thanks to Toby) to watch a ball of red slowly coming up on the eastern horizon faraway, and we went outside during sunsets to watch the same ball of red setting against the western skies.

I don’t think there’s anything better than to be able to enjoy the simple pleasures in life.  Snowshoe certainly makes this possible with one of the most stunning displays of natural beauty (and man made beauty) anywhere.

• Beartown State Park 

Beartown State Park is a 110 acre natural area located on the eastern summit of Droop Mountain in Greenbriar County and Pocahontas County.  Beartown is known for its unusual but beautiful rock formations, huge boulders, and deep crevices.  The highlight of Beartown State Park is the half mile long boardwalk that loops around these natural attractions.

We arrived on a Wednesday morning thinking we would be the only ones at the park.  As usual, we were wrong.  We found visitors taking photos deep inside the forest, bird watchers, and parking lot that was almost full.

We parked first, then asked another visitor if she knew how to get to the aforementioned boardwalk.  She was also visiting for the first time (from Illinois) so we decided to just take the trail that others took just few minutes prior to us having our conversation.  

Luckily, we had guessed right about the trail.  Just about 100 feet up on the trail, we saw the boardwalk!

Beautiful boardwalk!

At the entrance to the park 

Otherworldly place…

We made our way into the beginning of the boardwalk and took a minute to take in our surroundings.  It was an awesome collection of rocks, crevices, and of course the boardwalk!  The park reminded us of Rock City Park, near Ellicottville, NY, which we really enjoyed.

We continued our journey deep into the park, but we made sure we took our time experiencing the surroundings before us.  I stopped to touch the huge boulders, and to smell the surroundings.  It has a very earthy, root plant type of smell, as well as the normal woodsy smell of plant material decomposing.  In short, my kind of a place!

Toby begging for his treats!

Love the boardwalk!

One of many crevices found at the park

This park has so many otherworldly formations of rock, crevices and boulders that it wouldn’t be out of place in a fairy tale, where elves, unicorns, and wizards roam.  I lifted Toby so he can see many of these sights along the way.  He seemed to really gaze deep into these things with understanding that he is one lucky dog, to be able to see all these awesome places!

Well, count us in too!  We are ever so grateful to be experiencing and traveling to these places thanks to our early retirement.

Beauty everywhere!

More crevices

• Shaver’s Lake

Shaver’s Lake is part of Snowshoe Mountain Resort, and it’s at the bottom of the hill.  The lake provides the water for snowmaking, and during the summer, it transforms into an adventure park, offering hiking, boating, and swimming.  

There are three ways to get to the lake from the top of the resort.  One is by taking the scenic aerial lift, two is by hiking, and three is by driving.  We took option #3 on a beautiful Sunday morning to check out the lake.  

Lucky for us, the fall foliage was still in full swing, and we got to enjoy all the colors that only nature can create, on our drive down.  The drive down took us about 15 minutes as most of it was gravel/unpaved road.  

On our way down to the lake

Had to stop to take this photo 

We didn’t mind the unlaced/gravel road too much as we had driven on these type of roads elsewhere.  We were just happy we were out and enjoying nature again.

We found a small parking area near the entrance to the lake and parked.  After letting Toby do his business, we walked towards the shoreline via a path we found near the parking lot.  Even though it was a cloudy day, we could see the beauty of the lake.

View of the lake from the front of the kayak rental hut

Boat launch ramp

Serene view of the lake and the trees

We headed towards where the boating ramp (main area) was.  I had to lift Toby as the grounds were quite muddy from previous days rain.  On our way over, we found a hammock, which I had to try!

After frolicking for few minutes on the hammock, we all walked towards the boat rental/ramp area.  The boat launch ramp made for a perfect place to enjoy the scenery.  There were plenty of people visiting that day.  

We saw a group of around 15 people having fun at the lake, as well as a soon-to-be married couple taking wedding photos.  I stopped to congratulate them.

We took several minutes sitting down at the boat rental area just enjoying the lake, with its nice breeze, and awesome fall foliage.  Reluctantly, we started to head back to our condo as we were getting hungry…

In conclusion:

Even though I was a ski enthusiast in my twenties and thirties, I had no idea a ski resort of this size existed  in the mid-Atlantic.  I was impressed by the resort, but more so by its natural beauty.

We spent a month, which I thought flew by in a blink, at Snowshoe, enjoying the wonderful fall foliage, the incredible mountains, as well as the well maintained village.  

Our one month long rental also played a big part in us enjoying the resort, as it had everything we could possibly want in a ski resort condo.  It had a full kitchen, washer/dryer, updated bathroom, fireplace, and enough space (one bedroom unit) to be enjoyed together, but also had separation to provide solace from each other when needed. 

Snowshoe impressed us so much that we will definitely be returning in our not so distant future!  Thank you all for reading!

Jake

Wandering Money Pig 

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