Hidden Valley, Laurel Mountain resorts set to open Saturday, 1 week after Seven Springs

Hidden Valley and Laurel Mountain ski resorts will open Saturday, one week after Seven Springs Mountain Resort.

Somerset County’s Hidden Valley Resort and Westmoreland County’s Laurel Mountain Ski Resort will open at 9 a.m. An opening day celebration — featuring a DJ, complimentary cookies, prizes and givewaways — are slated for both locations.

Hidden Valley’s Imperial, Cobra, Model T, Upper and Lower Contintental, Rambler, Riviera, Thunderbird and Bobcat slopes are expected to be open Saturday.

At Laurel Mountain, Ski Top, Tame Cat, Upper and Lower Broadway, Deer Path, Upper and Lower Wildcat, Lynx Trail, Woodland Trail and Last Chance Trail slopes are expected to be open.

Hidden Valley will debut this season a night ski promotion every Thursday from Jan. 8 to Feb. 26, where skiers and snowboarders will be offered $39 lift tickets and $12 equipment rentals. The resort also will host a family friendly New Year’s Eve celebration and a Kid’s Pond Skim, which has yet to be scheduled.

In the offseason, Laurel Mountain upgraded its snowmaking water recovery system, purchased a specialized snowcat vehicle to assist with grooming and terrain reliability and continued its glade clearing efforts to improve trail access.

Seven Springs Mountain Resort, located in Somerset County, opened for the season on Dec. 6. Denver-based Vail Resorts acquired the three area ski resorts near the end of 2021 from Pittsburgh Pirates owner Bob Nutting.

The openings follow Western Pennsylvania’s first significant snowfall of the season, which dropped between 2 and five inches throughout the region on Dec. 2.

The National Weather Service’s Pittsburgh office in Moon is forecasting a 50% to 70% chance of snowfall on Saturday. Temperatures are expected to range from 14 to 31 degrees.