 |
Loon Mountain Ski Resort, Lincoln NH |
|
|
Something for everyone, especially kids, youth and families, from its old steam train to its mountaintop gondola. |
||
|
|
|
A few miles east of Lincoln NH at the western end of the Kancamagus Highway, Loon Mountain rises above the torrents of the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River. Summer or winter, Loon has an elaborate program of entertainments for the family. I just love the old narrow-gauge steam locomotive that hauls a few open passenger cars between the base lodge and the Kancamagus Quad. You could walk the distance in two minutes, but who wouldn't want to ride with the huffing old locomotive? It symbolizes the spirit of Loon: fun for all ages. Fifty ski trails (10 novice, 32 intermediate, 8 expert) served by 10 lifts (including a 4-passenger gondola and two high-speed quads) make their way down the 2100-foot (640-meter) vertical drop. Snowmaking covers 99% of the slopes, so you're assured of good coverage whether Mother Nature cooperates or not. Snowboarders get their own terrain park with superpipe, 16-foot wall ride and roller coaster rail. There's also a tubing run served by a lift. Kids' programs serve every age, from newborns to teens. Lodging includes condominiums just outside the ski area, and motels and inns in the neighboring towns of Lincoln and North Woodstock. Loon Mountain is operated by Booth Creek Ski Resorts, the same company that operates Cranmore and Waterville Valley ski resorts not far away, as well as ski resorts in California and Washington state. Cannon Mountain Ski Resort is also just a short, scenic drive away, north through Franconia Notch. By the way, railroading has a long history in this valley. A historic locomotive from the East Branch and Lincoln Railroad stands at the town side of the Loon bridge over the Pemi, testifying to the fact that logging railroads carried a billion feet of logs out of this valley between 1893 and 1947. Loon Mountain
|
|
Above, the old steam
locomotive.
| ||
|
|
||||||
|
|
