Stowe Mountain Resort
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Stowe Mountain Resort | |
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Location: | |
Top elevation: | 3,719 feet (1,134 m) |
Base elevation: | 1,559 feet (475 m) |
Skiable area: | 485 acres (1.96 km²) |
Runs: | 116 total 16% beginner 59% intermediate 25% advanced/expert |
Longest run: | "Toll Road" - 4.3 miles (6.9 km) |
Lift system: | 13 1 Inter-Mountain Transfer Gondola |
Terrain parks: | 2 |
Snowfall: | 333 inches (850 cm) per year |
Web site: | http://www.stowe.com |
Stowe Mountain Resort is a ski resort in the town of Stowe, Vermont. It is comprised of Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak. Mount Mansfield, the location of the intermediate and advanced ski trails, is the tallest mountain in Vermont with its summit being 4,393 feet (1,339 m) above sea level. The sport came to Vermont when the Great Depression caused the government under Franklin Delano Roosevelt to form the CCC. The Vermont division of the CCC cut the first trails on Mount Mansfield in 1933.[1] From there 116 trails were cut on both Spruce Peak and Mount Mansfield to provide 39 miles (63 km) of trails and 485 acres (1.96 km²) of skiable terrain.[2] The resort is primarily owned by the insurance giant AIG which purchased it in 1988.[3]
[edit] Ski Area Information
The ski area is composed of two main areas. These are Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak. Mount Mansfield is the intermediate and expert terrain area and Spruce Peak is almost entirely composed of beginner terrain with some intermediate terrain on "Upper Spruce" which can only be accessed by the Sensation Lift. Stowe Mountain Resort is famous for the Front Four. The Front Four trails are Goat, Starr, National and Liftline. These are all ♦♦ runs, the most difficult rating at Stowe. These can be accessed by both the "Lookout Double" and the "Forerunner Quad" and fall on the southern part of the skiable terrain at Mount Mansfield. The next major area is the Gondola area. This features a high speed gondola that can hold 8 and services the runs Gondolier, Perry Merill (named after the father of Vermont skiing), Chin Clip as well as the Cliff Trail which transfers skiers from the Gondola area to the Front Four area. The final area is the Toll House Area which is the beginner portion of Mount Mansfield and can only be accessed from the main mountain via the trail Toll Road. The resort has two lodges and is undergoing an expansion project that will cost $400 Million.
[edit] References
- ^ Timeline of Important Ski History Dates. Retrieved on 2008-03-04.
- ^ The Mountain. Stowe Mountain Resort. Retrieved on 2008-03-04.
- ^ HAVENS; At Stoic Old Stowe, a New Era. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-03-04.