A local guide · 271 Route 100
A small Green Mountain town on Route 100, five miles from Mount Snow. Here's what's actually here, and what it's like through the year.
West Dover is a village in the town of Dover, Windham County, in southern Vermont's Deerfield Valley, along Route 100 between the Green Mountain National Forest and Mount Snow. Roughly three hours from Boston and four and a half from New York City, with no highway exit and no train — you drive in.
The Mount Snow base area is about five miles north of the village — ten minutes in normal conditions. Most lodging, restaurants, and rentals in the valley sit along that stretch of Route 100.
Ski season runs from late November into April. Mount Snow is the main draw, with Carinthia's terrain parks, plus cross-country skiing, snowshoeing in the national forest, and VAST snowmobile trails.
Lift-served mountain biking at the Mount Snow Bike Park, hiking on the Long Trail and Haystack, swimming and paddling at Lake Whitingham and Somerset Reservoir, and one of New England's better foliage drives along Route 100 through Dover.
Dining in the valley is mostly independent inns, taverns, and restaurants. Trail 87 at 271 Route 100 is the closest full kitchen and serious bar to the Mount Snow access road — creative comfort food with global flavors, craft cocktails, Vermont beer, and live local music most weekends.
Cell service is patchy along Route 100, kitchens stop serving earlier than you'd expect, winter weekends fill up, and there's no real public transit beyond the seasonal mountain shuttle — bring a car.
Ski houses and rentals are the default way people stay in Dover. For family-style takeout, ski-house catering, or a private dinner, call (802) 780-2120 or email Contact@trail87.com.