Waterville Valley Ski Area
Waterville Valley’s simple mountain layout features mostly intermediate terrain with some trees and steeps sprinkled in.A family resort at heart, the majority of Waterville Valley’s terrain caters to beginners and intermediates. Visitors should not come to Waterville looking for steeps nor tree skiing, but there is plenty in the line of fall line groomers and exhilarating short-but-sweet steeps may be found. The area may be divided into four main areas: High Country, Northside, Sunnyside, and the Lower Meadows.
The High Country portion of the mountain contains three wide intermediate runs located above the “summit” of the resort. These runs can be prone to wind, but offer fantastic views of the surrounding White Mountains as one of the few Eastern US mountains above 4000 feet. This extra boost in vertical also helps bring the vertical feet at Waterville over 2000, which keeps the mountain on another level again when competing with nearby resorts.
Northside is a section of north-facing intermediate slopes on the looker’s right portion of the resort. Tippecanoe, And Tyler Too, and Old Tecumseh are great runs on this part of the mountain, and they often hold snow longer due to the limited sun exposure of the north facing aspect. On the contrary, Sunnyside is the section of the resort located at looker’s left. Here, visitors may find a variety of terrain that is prone to corn conditions in the spring as the sun beats down. No Grit is an excellent intermediate run on this part of the mountain, and those looking for more advanced terrain will undoubtedly spend most of their time here. True Grit, the steepest run on the mountain, is located here, and runs like Ciao and Gema also offer fun tests for advanced skiers and riders.
Finally, the Lower Meadows section of Waterville Valley is a separate area dedicated to beginner guests. By keeping the area apart from the rest of the mountain, beginners are able to learn and progress their skills in peace, without worry of faster and more advanced resort guests speeding by. There is also a small beginner area know as The Pasture located on the other side of the mountain. Waterville is looking to expand into the ridge above the Lower Meadows in the coming years, further growing their intermediate and beginner terrain offerings.