Ohio's Snow Trails One Of Heartlands Oldest Ski Areas
Ohio's oldest ski area Snow Trails opened in 1961. It has continued making improvements over the last 63 years that have made it one of the Midwest's premier destination for skiers in the lower Heartland. Located in central Ohio about an hour north of the state's capital city Columbus, and about the same distance from the Cleveland/Akron metroplex to the north it has served a large population of Heartland skiers during that time span.
In 2021 they added a beautiful 3,000-square-foot lodge at the base of Competition Slope adding much needed indoor additional seating and restrooms, accommodations for carry-in-food and more space for their popular racing program activities. It's included a popular heated outdoor patio seating area. They've added state-of-the-art lighting upgrades, including LED tower lights for the Alpine lift and beginner's area. They added a new triple chairlift for the Competition and Mt. Mansfield slopes, and a new rope tow was added to The Woods terrain park. Restrooms were redone and improvements have been made to the Last Run Deli Kitchen. They've added new windows and radiant heaters for the ski lodge deck.
The parking has also been paved, which made a great improvement for late season conditions when the ground would start to thaw and on the west end of the parking area. They also added a concrete lot with marked parking spaces and additional handicapped spots for the Adaptive Snowsports Center. More LED lighting have been installed in special areas of the slopes and parking lots for additional safety and efficiency.
Two new trails, Ridgeline and DC Drop were added off the double chairlift last year creating additional access to other trails. It expanded the unloading area on top allowing access to the right for the first time and connecting two other trails. An expanded snowmaking system has helped improve the additional terrain as well as the rest of the ski area.
Snow Trails, which will be enjoying its 63th season, offers 19 trails, four terrain parks and lift served tubing runs. They have five chairlifts and two surface tows. Throughout the season they often offer live music on weekends. Their season normally runs from mid-December into early March. Their kick-off party with the Thirsty Travelers is happening December 16. They are hosting an Alpine Ski Racing Camp on December 27, which you need to sign up for.
