Trip Report: Skiing Opening Day At New Hampshire's Largest Ski Area

New Hampshire – The Northeast’s ski season officially kicked off last week.

After a warm start to the month, a cold stretch last week across the Northeast allowed various ski areas to open up for the season or temporarily. This included Killington, Sunday River, Sommet Saint Sauveur, Belleayre, Gore, Whiteface, and Bretton Woods. Situated across the street from the famous Omni Mt. Washington Resort, the New Hampshire ski area opened on Saturday with two trails and two lifts operating.

I decided to head up to Bretton Woods to experience their opening day. I decided over Killington because while its my favorite ski resort in New England, it can be a crowded experience during those first couple of days.

Lift tickets at Bretton Woods this past weekend were $72. This is a bit pricey for opening day, but they offered a $10 discount if you brought a non-perishable food item as part of their “Say Goodbye to Hunger” Food Drive.

One of the lifts that was open was the Learning Center Quad. This lift services Rosebrook Meadow, a mellow beginner trail. It’s nice to get your sea legs back on this run, but it kind of gets boring for more tenured skiers and riders after a few turns.

The main trail that was open was Range View, which was serviced by the Zephyr High-Speed Quad. It has two small steep sections, but its relative mellowness makes it a beginner piste. The snow was soft and buttery. Crowds were minimal across the ski area, so it allowed for peace of mind.

As the photos show, there was a small snowpack. However, there wasn’t any indication of a thin base (e.g., grass and rocks) on the slopes.

Overall, I was impressed by the snow quality for opening day. These early-season days are typically icy endeavors, but this wasn’t close to that. The above-average temperatures helped with the snowpack’s quality, but the conditions also showed the strength of Bretton Woods’ snowmaking and grooming team.

Bretton Woods will be closed for the next several days. Conditions permitting, the New Hampshire ski area aims to reopen this weekend.

Image/Video Credits: Ian Wood, Bretton Woods

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