Major Lift Upgrades Proposed at Loon, Waterville Valley
The White Mountains region's first 6-person and 8-person chairlifts could be installed.
Friday, October 4, 2019, NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
Major chairlift projects could be coming in New Hampshire according to the latest White Mountain National Forest Schedule of Proposed Actions.
A high speed detachable eight person chairlift is proposed for the Governor Adams base area at Loon, replacing the existing Kancamagus Quad. The Kancamagus Quad was installed by Doppelmayr in 1995.
Meanwhile, a high speed detachable quad (possibly a relocated Kancamagus Quad) is proposed to replace the Seven Brothers lift. The triple chairlift was installed by CTEC in 1985 and was more recently upgraded with a loading carpet.
Loon was been operated by Boyne Resorts since 2007. The company acquired the resort's assets in 2018.
Major upgrades are also proposed one ridge over at Waterville Valley, continuing a series of lift projects at the resort. Most notably, a high speed detachable six person chairlift is proposed to replace the White Peaks Quad. The Poma lift was originally installed top to bottom in 1988 and was truncated to its current configuration in 1996 to reduce wind holds.
In addition to the main lift replacement, two Stadeli chairlifts could be removed. The Sunnyside Triple was installed in 1979, while its double chair predecessor was rebuilt as the Northside Double in 1982. Taking their place would be a fixed grip quad chairlift on Sunnyside.
Waterville Valley has been owned and operated by a group led by the Sununu family since 2010. The group recently acquired much of the remaining Waterville Company holdings in the valley, restoring the ski area and the resort development to common ownership for the first time in decades.
The projects are currently listed with expected Forest Service decision dates of December 2019.
