Ascutney Mountain Resort
Ascutney Mountain | ||
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Terrain parks 1 | | |
Snowfall | 16.7 ft (5.1 m) | |
Website | Ascutney Mountain |
Ascutney Mountain Resort was a downhill ski area on the western side of Mount Ascutney in Brownsville, Vermont that operated from 1946 until 2010. It was purchased by local communities and the Trust for Public Land in 2015, with plans to reopen a smaller version of a ski area, and keep the rest of the mountain preserved.
History
The Mt. Ascutney Ski Club cut the first trail at Ascutney in 1938. Skiers initially had to hike up the mountain to be able to ski down the trail, now known as Screaming Eagle. In 1946, Catharine Cushman, with the help of others, began to develop real estate on the mountain, in essence opening Ascutney as a ski area. It wasn't until the second year, 1947, that two rope tows were installed to take skiers up the mountain. The first
When Summit Ventures owned Ascutney, they invested $80 million into operating the resort, but had to file for bankruptcy in 1990. After three years of closure, Steven and Susan Plausteiner from New York City bought Ascutney for over one million dollars. Improvements under the Plausteiners include snowmaking coverage being expanded to 95% of the skiable area and installation of a high-speed detachable quad chairlift in 2000 from the bottom of the mountain to a new, higher peak.
2010 closure
In 2010, rumors spread of severe debt and financial troubles on the part of the owners, the Plausteiners. In October 2010, the
Despite the closure of the ski operations, the resort hotel at the base of the mountain, a Holiday Inn affiliate, continued to operate. Holiday Inn Club Vacations had no ownership ties to the ski operation.[2]
Following a protracted legal battle, Dan Purjes of MFW and Mark Blundell of UTVT, the principal lien holders on the property, assumed ownership as the only bidder at an auction of the resort's assets in November, 2013.[3] The high speed quad, known as the "North Peak Express," was sold to Crotched Mountain, which installed it in 2012. The Triple Chairs were removed in 2014 and sold to Pats Peak ski area in Henniker, N.H. On January 8, 2015, the ski lodge burnt down,[4]
In late 2015, a group of local residents with help from the Trust for Public Land purchased the area, a total of 468 acres, with plans to reopen a smaller, community ski area, keeping much of it preserved as open space. It is now owned by the town of West Windsor, Vermont.[5]
In 2017, Pats Peak re-installed the Snowdance Triple Chair, a
Mountain statistics at 2010 closure
- Vertical drop: 1,800 ft
Trails
- Skiable area: 200 acres (0.81 km2)
- Glades: 50 acres (0.20 km2)
- 57 trails
- 14 novice - 24.5%
- 22 intermediate - 38.5%
- 21 advanced and expert - 37%
- Longest trail - 2.5 miles (4 km)
Lifts
- 6 total
- 1 high-speed detachable quad chair
- 3 triple chairs
- 1 double chair
- 1 surface lift
Notes
- ^ "Local economy hit hard by Mt. Ascutney closure". WCAX-TV. November 4, 2010. Archived from the original on January 17, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
- ^ "Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Ascutney Mountain Resort". Orange Lake Resorts. December 2, 2010. Archived from the original on December 28, 2010. Retrieved December 2, 2010.
- ^ "Sale Ends Ski Era at Ascutney | Valley News". Archived from the original on March 1, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
- ^ "Fire at former Ascutney Mountain ski lodge". Archived from the original on February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
- ^ Woodstock; Pomfret; Hartford; Hartl (2016-06-01). "Back on Course: Despite a funding hurdle, Vermont's Mount Ascutney is successfully conserved". Backcountry Magazine. Retrieved 2022-02-02..