Ready for snow — and snowmaking

NH ski industry kicks off season with hope after dodging a drought

Representatives from ski resorts from around the state gather inside at McIntyre Ski Area on Dec. 8 while outdoor picnic tables and fire pits go unused. (Photo by Mike Cote)

Going into this year’s ski season, resort operators had a more pressing concern than whether they’d get their upgrades and expansions completed in time — whether they’d have a season at all.

The summer of 2025 was the driest in New Hampshire in more than 130 years, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

It was enough for Tim Smith, the president and general manager at Waterville Valley Resort, to start doing snow dances.

“It was a scary sight looking at the Mad River, where we pull our snowmaking from, and seeing just a trickle going down the Mad River and thinking about the impacts that that will have on our snowmaking system. It was absolutely terrifying for me,” Smith recalled during Ski NH’s season kickoff event Dec. 8.

Smith credited state environmental officials for talks about how to address the drought, but ultimately, “Mother Nature stepped up,” he told resort operators from around the state gathered at McIntyre Ski Area in Manchester.

By the time of the gathering, nearly two dozen ski resorts had already opened, thanks to some November snowfall and the promise of colder than normal temperatures in December that favor snowmaking.

Even McIntyre, which Smith noted was a grassy hill at last year’s meeting, already looked ready for action and had several snow guns operating that night producing a fresh blanket of snow.

Now the scene is set for skiers and snowboarders to head north from Massachusetts, the state’s biggest source of ski traffic. Waterville Valley was among the resorts that operated a booth at the Snowbound Expo in November, aiming to generate excitement about the upcoming season to the Boston crowd.

“I stood in the booth for about two hours and talked to a lot of people that were just intrigued about what’s happening in the ski industry and what’s happening in New Hampshire,” Smith said. “It was a great showing, and it was awesome to see all the excitement.”

Next year, the expo moves to Mohegan Sun in Connecticut.

“Unfortunately, the show is not coming back to Boston next year, and we’re keeping eyes on exactly what we’re going to do. We’ve got some other options, and we’re looking forward to just making sure that we’re known in the Boston area,” he said. “That’s our main demographic, and we want to make sure that they don’t go towards, you know, Maine and Vermont.

We want them to stay in New Hampshire.”

Ski NH represents more than 30 alpine and Nordic ski areas. The Dec. 8 kickoff featured appearances from Gov. Kelly Ayotte, a Republican, and Rep. Maggie Goodlander, a Democrat.

Both grew up in Nashua and are lifelong skiers.

“I see Congresswoman Goodlander today, and I didn’t realize she grew up ski racing too,” Ayotte told the group. “I think we could have some fun going pretty fast, and we can have some bipartisan skiing around here.”

Bretton Woods, the state’s largest ski area, was the second resort in the state to open this year, beat by Black Mountain on Nov. 17 by a mere 90 minutes.

Known as a family resort that offers scenic mountain views, well-groomed trails and lots of terrain for beginners and intermediate skiers, Bretton Woods added a new double diamond glade run this year to lure expert skiers.

“The trail is called ‘Mom Said No,’” so that’s a fun one, said Libby Ouellette, recreation and membership sales manager at Omni Hotels & Resorts, which owns Bretton Woods and the Omni Mount Washington Resort and Spa.

Bretton Woods also debuted its new BEQII lift, an advanced four-person lift that replaces the Bethlehem Express Quad. The detachable high-speed lift can carry 1,800 people an hour and promises smoother rides.

Tim Smith, board chair of Ski NH, talks about upgrades that New Hampshire ski resorts have completed in time for this year’s season at the group’s annual kickoff Dec. 8. (Photo by Mike Cote)

Cannon Mountain opened Nov. 22, one of its earliest openings ever, said Jace Wirth, general manager at Cannon Mountain and Franconia Notch State Park.

“Snowmaking is just absolutely killing it right now. It’s top tier conditions,” said Wirth, who signed on as GM in February 2024. “We’ve had over $5 million in capital improvements in the last 18 months. We’re really focused on addressing deferred maintenance to our snowmaking infrastructure, our lift infrastructure, our lodges.

Much of it is under the hood right now.”

The state-owned ski resort, which has been in operation since 1938, boasts the highest peak at 4,080 feet and the longest vertical drop, at 2,180 feet. It offers a mix of terrain for both beginners, intermediate and advanced skiers.

“It is very much the people’s mountain,” Wirth said. “Many of the people that ski at Cannon or work at Cannon have had it passed down to them over the generations.”