Go figure.
Get there on 16N. It's 20 minutes from North Conway traveling north through Jackson past Pinkham Notch.
If you like cruiser runs powered with honking GS turns, get in line--if there is one. That's another bonus about the 47 trails on this 225 acre resort. And it's packed with history too.
Get there on 16N. It's 20 minutes from North Conway traveling north through Jackson past Pinkham Notch.
If you like cruiser runs powered with honking GS turns, get in line--if there is one. That's another bonus about the 47 trails on this 225 acre resort. And it's packed with history too.
Wildcat was the first ski area established in the White Mountain National Forest back in 1933 when CCC's cleared a trail. At that time the Wildcat Trail was considered the first ski racing trail in the U.S., and you can still clock some respectable speeds cranking through the "S" turns dropping from the 4,062 foot summit. Even better, you can get back up for the next run in a hurry. 6 minutes up 2112 vertical feet on the Express Quad is hardly enough time to catch your breath.
The area's been lift fed for over 50 years and in 1958 boasted New England's first gondola. Since then the original has been replaced and every summer the operations team swaps out the high-speed chairs for a 4-person gondola to get sight-seers to the summit.
Without a doubt, this is the place you can pack in the runs and in early March they have a 100K day where skiers try to loop the "Lynx" 50 times for 100,000 vertical feet. That's a thigh burner.
When I sailed off the lift at the top I felt like I was flying over the border into Maine. The view is spectacular. Then I made the 180 swing for an eye-level shot at the famed Tuckerman's Ravine, Mt. Washington's most famous back country playground. Don't forget your camera.
"The Cat's about the view," admits Brian Chamberlain, Wildcat's "Sales Guy." Ya think? What a wide angle shot into Tux, and then a chance to map out Lunch Rocks, Hillman's, the East Snowfield and Mt. Washington's access road to the weather observatory. There's no easier place to study New Hampshire's highest peak.
Brian took a few years off from the ski business to sell houses, but he's back and says, "It's so much more fun to sell skiing." Got that right, especially at Wildcat.
I liked the family-feel and friendly folks in the day lodge too. "We get a lot of school groups from the UK this time of year," says Brian. You can tell they are attracted by more than just exchange rate.
In fact, Wildcat is the kind of place where you can rack up major smile factor on beginner runs. They feel so good. "Polecat" is 2 3/4 miles of rolling dips and curves that remind your feet how much fun it is to play with the edges on shaped skis.
The area's been lift fed for over 50 years and in 1958 boasted New England's first gondola. Since then the original has been replaced and every summer the operations team swaps out the high-speed chairs for a 4-person gondola to get sight-seers to the summit.
Without a doubt, this is the place you can pack in the runs and in early March they have a 100K day where skiers try to loop the "Lynx" 50 times for 100,000 vertical feet. That's a thigh burner.
When I sailed off the lift at the top I felt like I was flying over the border into Maine. The view is spectacular. Then I made the 180 swing for an eye-level shot at the famed Tuckerman's Ravine, Mt. Washington's most famous back country playground. Don't forget your camera.
"The Cat's about the view," admits Brian Chamberlain, Wildcat's "Sales Guy." Ya think? What a wide angle shot into Tux, and then a chance to map out Lunch Rocks, Hillman's, the East Snowfield and Mt. Washington's access road to the weather observatory. There's no easier place to study New Hampshire's highest peak.
Brian took a few years off from the ski business to sell houses, but he's back and says, "It's so much more fun to sell skiing." Got that right, especially at Wildcat.
I liked the family-feel and friendly folks in the day lodge too. "We get a lot of school groups from the UK this time of year," says Brian. You can tell they are attracted by more than just exchange rate.
In fact, Wildcat is the kind of place where you can rack up major smile factor on beginner runs. They feel so good. "Polecat" is 2 3/4 miles of rolling dips and curves that remind your feet how much fun it is to play with the edges on shaped skis.
Don't expect a terrain park though. I didn't even see any jumps on the trail edge, although you can catch air over some of the toboggan turn drops.
I'll be back, and maybe in the summer to ride the ZipRider™. Last July the resort opened a Zip line, (actually two cables, so two people can ride side-by-side). You hook a harness into the cable suspended 70 feet in the air (gulp) and then drop 2100 feet--at 45 miles per hour--from the Cheetah Race Trail down to the Peabody River. No, you don't land in the water; you land on a platform on the far side of the parking lot, but STILL. Imagine flying that high that fast? My kids would be first in line.
If you are in New Hamster, head to Wildcat. You may even see extreme skier Dan Egan in the glades. We missed him but I hear he's a regular and teaches all-terrain seminars throughout the season. If a powder champ of the steep and deep picks Wildcat, you won't be disappointed.
I'll be back, and maybe in the summer to ride the ZipRider™. Last July the resort opened a Zip line, (actually two cables, so two people can ride side-by-side). You hook a harness into the cable suspended 70 feet in the air (gulp) and then drop 2100 feet--at 45 miles per hour--from the Cheetah Race Trail down to the Peabody River. No, you don't land in the water; you land on a platform on the far side of the parking lot, but STILL. Imagine flying that high that fast? My kids would be first in line.
If you are in New Hamster, head to Wildcat. You may even see extreme skier Dan Egan in the glades. We missed him but I hear he's a regular and teaches all-terrain seminars throughout the season. If a powder champ of the steep and deep picks Wildcat, you won't be disappointed.
Ron Thorley (MI), Brian Chamberlain (NH) and Mike Terrell (MI) are all smiles after a day at Wildcat.
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