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M. Scott Smith, editor of the online publication DCSki, has been providing avid skiers and snowboarders with updated online information on the slopes since 1997 at dcski.com. DCSki provides year-round information for outdoor sports and recreation, but the message boards, columns, articles and bargain trackers are filled with information about the ski season for the winter.
Smith said that for students looking for day trips, Liberty, Roundtop and Whitetail resorts make ideal getaways for their Southern Pennsylvania location, a mere 90 minutes from the Beltway.
"My favorite nearby resort is Whitetail, because it's close by, has a good vertical (935-feet), and a high-speed lift," Smith wrote in an e-mail last week. "Whitetail is one of the newest ski resorts in the nation. All of the local resorts are open for night skiing, so it's possible to swing by a resort in the evening and ski under the stars."
The relatively short drive might be insurmountable to students living on campus without cars. But student organizations like GW Trails have already began organizing trips open for all students to Liberty and Whitetail.
Jeremiah Davis, a graduate student and director of TRAiLS, said the group is planning three trips - two downhill and one cross-country - this semester. The first will be Jan. 23 as part of winter welcome week at GW, and TRAiLS will provide a charter bus or vans to Liberty Mountain. Any students looking to ski or snowboard can sign up for the trip by contacting GW TRAiLS. The trip costs $67 to $95, depending on one's level and whether they need equipment.
Davis said a similar trip is planned to Whitetail Mountain on Feb. 12. For each trip, TRAiLS will take the first 40 to 50 students to sign up. Davis said TRAiLS plans to better market the trips, which the group has organized for the past two and three years, to graduate students and the Greek-letter community.
