I want to go for a hike!

Despite storm damage, ski resorts ready for business

Published: Wednesday, December 07, 2011, 9:01 AM

 By Jeanette DeForge, The Republican 

This Oct. 29, 2011 photo courtesy of Chandler Burgess for Killington Resort shows a skier on the slopes during opening day at Killington Resort, Vt. (AP photo)

Ski area operators want people to know they can still get to the mountains, despite severe road washouts and other damage caused in August by Tropical Storm Irene. 


Ski areas suffered trail washouts as gallons of water streamed down mountains, snowmaking ponds were damaged, parking lots washed out and roads collapsed mostly in Vermont and Massachusetts.

Killington, in central Vermont, was hardest hit. It lost the entire Superstar pub, had water and silt damage to all five of its base lodges, and water damage eroded parking lots. But all that is behind them.

“We have been open for one and a half weeks,” Sarah Thorson, communications manager for the resort, said of the area’s Oct. 31 opening, “We were so excited to open up the lifts two months after the storm hit us.”

The huge volume of water swelled the small Roaring Brook at Killington and destroyed the foundation of the Superstar pub that was built above it. The middle of the structure then collapsed, she said.

The pub was attached to the lodge at the main base, but it was on a separate foundation. The structure of the lodge was not damaged but had to be enclosed on that side, she said.

Now Killington is planning to take the misfortune and use it to make what was an infrequently used pub better. It is creating a new bar with an outside area with glass walls that is covered by a retractable roof, Thorson said.

Despite the severe damage, all the resorts in Vermont managed to recover quickly and roads, some of which were destroyed, have been repaired so skiers will still be able to easily reach any of the areas, said Jen Butson, director of public affairs for Ski Vermont.... MORE

New buyer for NH resort where 1st ballots are cast

By Kathy McCormack

Associated Press / December 7, 2011

CONCORD, N.H.—After two failed deals this year, the stately resort where New Hampshire's the first-in-the-nation presidential primary ballots have been cast for 50 years has been sold to two businessmen for $2.3 million.

The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel in Dixville Notch, a remote, Victorian- and Alpine-style complex about 20 miles from Canada, has been sold to Dan Hebert and Dan Dagesse. The sale was announced Wednesday by the Tillotson Corporation, which owned the nearly 150-year-old resort and surrounding property.

Dagesse, who owned auto dealerships in the Northeast, including some in northern New Hampshire, and Hebert, who owns a construction business in Colebrook, have been interested in preserving the hotel for more than a year.

"We care deeply about restoring the Balsams Grand Resort Hotel to its full glory as a world-class destination resort and seeing it thrive for decades to come," Hebert said. "We want to provide a stable operation that we can all be proud of."

The hotel is known for its wood-paneled Ballot Room, where residents of the tiny community are the first to cast their votes for president at midnight on New Hampshire's primary day and on the nation's Election Day. The owners say the Balsams will be closed for renovations for up to 18 months, but the Ballot Room, filled with a time capsule of political articles and cartoons from presidential campaigns and a special glass-encased ballot box, will be open for the Jan. 10, 2012 presidential primary.

"We will make that happen," said Scott Tranchemontagne, a spokesman for the buyers.

The Tillotson family, whose patriarch ran a rubber factory and is credited with inventing the latex balloon, bought the resort in 1954. Before he died in 2001 at age 102, Neil Tillotson specified that the resort and other assets be sold or given away and the proceeds given to charities. But the hotel has been operating at a loss for years, and the money has been coming out of the assets of a family trust.... MORE

PHOTO CREDIT: http://bobdonpaul.com

Put some zip into your December at Gunstock

Put some zip into your December at Gunstock  Posted by Heather Burke  December 7, 2011 01:52 PM

Tired of waiting for serious snow to go skiing? I got my vertical fix without the snow last weekend. I felt the wind zip by me as I descended Gunstock Mountain, with stunning views of the White Mountains, and the sensation of flying downhill. Ziplining at Gunstock satisfies that craving to soar down the mountain, providing that multi sensory adrenaline rush rivaling any ski descent...... MORE

Judge denies Occupy Boston's bid to bar eviction

BOSTON -- A judge rejected a request by Occupy Boston for an injunction barring the city from removing protesters from their encampment in Dewey Square.

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