Wachusett Mountain is an

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

in the

northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

, located on Mount Wachusett, in the towns of

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

and

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

, Worcester County,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. It has 25 trails, served by eight lifts, including three high-speed chairlifts and three magic-carpet lifts, a triple chairlift, and a Pony lift (rope tow). There is a weekend shuttle service to and from a MBTA commuter

stop Stop may refer to: Places * Stop, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the United States * Stop (Rogatica), a village in Rogatica, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina Facilities * Bus stop * Truck stop, a type of rest stop for truck d ...

in nearby Fitchburg. Wachusett Mountain has 100% snow-making capacity, and also has night skiing on most of its trails. The mountain is located in the Northeastern part of Massachusetts, with the closest major city being Worcester.

History

The first ski trails were cut into Mount Wachusett by the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

in 1934 and 1937. Those trails were called Pine Hill Trail and Balance Rock. Today, skiers can still ski down the upper and lower half of Balance rock. The middle section closed in the 1980s. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the

10th Mountain Division The 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) is a light infantry division in the United States Army based at Fort Drum, New York. Formerly designated as a mountain warfare unit, the division was the only one of its size in the US military to re ...

trained at Wachusett. There is now a plaque at the summit commemorating this. The first lifts installed were a

T-bar A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher-co ...

in 1960 (the Oxbow T-Bar) and in 1962 (the West T-Bar). . The Massachusetts State Downhill ski championships were run on the Pine Hill Trail until 1966. The race was called off that year after 3 racers were injured, and moved in the years following to the Balance Rock Trail until ski area expansion cut that trail in 1983. In 1969, Ralph Crowley was granted a lease for a parcel of land on Mount Wachusett by the state to operate the ski area. In 1982, a major expansion was completed which included the construction of the base lodge. Stands of old growth hardwood forest on Mount Wachusett became the object of a court ruling in favor of the

Commonwealth of Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

in joint contract with the ski area regarding plans for a ski slope expansion into an environmental buffer zone around the old growth stand. The

old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

contains trees over 350 years old; the buffer zone contained mature trees about half that age. The

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...

and other conservation organizations criticized the ruling and two members of

Earth First! Earth First! is a radical environmental advocacy group that originated in the Southwestern United States. It was founded in 1980 by Dave Foreman, Mike Roselle, Howie Wolke, Bart Koehler, and Ron Kezar. Today there are Earth First! groups around ...

staged a

sit-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to mo ...

protest by climbing into the crowns of several of the trees in the area slated to be clear cut. As of 2007 wording on the website of the Wachusett Mountain Ski Area included strong language prohibiting skiers and snow boarders from entering the old growth area: "Anyone found entering old growth areas will have their lift ticket revoked. Subsequent offenses will be subject to fines."

Mountain information

The resort features 27 trails, ranging in difficulty from easiest (green circle) to most difficult (black diamond). Amidst these trails is a

terrain park A terrain park or snow park is an outdoor recreation area containing terrain that allows skiers, snowboarders and snowbikers to perform tricks. Terrain parks have their roots in skateparks and many of the features are common to both. From their ...

and a racing venue. Two high-speed chairlifts (''Minuteman'' and ''Polar Express'') service the two main peaks as well as a newer high-speed lift for the beginner area (''Monadnock Express''). One additional 3-person chairlift (''Vickery Bowl'') services the mid-mountain area. Two magic carpets service the mountain's training slopes with a third open only during weekends and holiday periods for ski school lessons for young children. In 2006, the

National Ski Patrol The nonprofit National Ski Patrol (NSP) is the largest winter education organization in the world. The NSP provides education, outreach, and credentialing related to outdoor recreation and safety. It is currently composed of more than 31,000 memb ...

named Wachusett Mountain Ski Patrol as the best ''Large Alpine Patrol'' in the country. The base lodge has recently been expanded, and is now nearly . It contains public areas, a cafeteria, The Black Diamond restaurant, and private suites, that are available for daily rental. The resort used to include the nearby ''Wachusett Village Inn,'' which provided overnight accommodations. The Inn was sold in 2016 and is now a rehabilitation center owned and operated by Recovery Centers Of America.

Trails

Lifts

*Wachusett has 4

chairlifts An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. They ...

, and 4 surface lifts.

References

External links