There are a lot of keen skiers and boarders found hanging around. There are resorts all over West Virginia and Ontario, but there are also some on the North and the South Islands of New Zealand. The main resort on the South Island is the Cadrona ski resort on the lakeside of Queenstown.

There are no slopes around Port Dover, but we will travel for hours just to get to a ski slope. The above photos are of our ski trip to a local slope . It isn't anything like what you can find in West Virginia or New Zealand. Although, we can appreciate the economic benefits of having a ski slope close by.  

The Canaan Valley Ski resort in West Virginia is a very good resort for all skier levels. The 34 slopes including 30% beginner 40% intermediate and 30% advanced runs. There is a vertical drop of 850 feet. Their longest run is 6,000 feet long. This would be one of the best experiences for the whole family and one of the best challenges for a good skier.

Snowboarding is very , very popular in West Virginia, Ontario and New Zealand. Most of the major resorts have good terrain parks with half-pipes and excellent conditions. Winterplace is one of West Virginia's best slopes.

One of the best New Zealand. resorts is Whakapapa. (pronounced Fukapapa) The slopes of Whakapapa are on a volcano called Ruapehu that erupts once an a while. Whakapapa ski field is in the middle of the North Island about two hours drive from Waitomo Caves. The slopes offer a top height of 2300 metres and a series of vertical drops of 657 metres. It is served by 14 runs and chair lifts including 1 fast quad. The terrain is mixed, including some challenging free tracks and some wide open runs. Happy Valley is a great place for beginners. All the runs cover most of the side of the mountain. There are some very nice restaurants on the mountainside. There is accommodation 7 kms away at Whakapapa village. Each year, some of the Waitomo families go on a trip to the mountain. The photo below shows Stacey-Lee and Christopher at Happy Valley.

Skiing is popular in all three countries. It seems to be more popular than many other tourist activities. It brings a lot of money into our economy as well as provides many jobs, both directly to the ski businesses and secondary ones to the many shops and restaurants in the areas.

Promoting skiing seems to be a good way to sustain our tourist industry.

Go skiing here

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Info - Riley - Canada, and Stace - New Zealand

Background - Kevin, Canada

Photos - West Virginia, Canada and New Zealand