The Wilmington Inn Blog: April Blog: Part 2 of 5 Series

Part 2 of 5: History of Mount Snow & Haystack Mountain

Greetings!

Hope everyone has managed to stay happy and healthy throughout April. We have stayed busy at the Inn doing little improvements here and there and a lot of great clean out.

Please enjoy this blog about the history of two mountains that are a huge part of Southern Vermont!

Please also see the bottom of the newsletter with a great way to support the Inn and local business!!

See you all soon,

Megan and Charlie

Part 2 of 5: History of Mount Snow & Haystack Mountain

Mount Snow

The original name for Mount Snow was Mt. Pisgah. which is a 3,556 peak located in the town of West Dover, Vermont. The mountain was originally purchased by Walt Schoenknecht in 1953. Schoenknect purchased 500 acres of land on Mt. Pisgah for $15,000. The name of the mountain was changed to Mt. Snow after the family & become the new federally recognized name.

The mountain opened in 1954 with 2 chairlifts & a rope tow serving 5 trails and 2 slopes. After a great first year, Mt. Snow added its longest chairlift at the time; a 3,800 foot chain double lift which helped push the vertical drop of Mt. Snow over 1,700 foot mark making it one of the largest ski areas in the Northeast.

Within 4 years of opening, Mt Snow boasted 32 trails, a summit lodge & a large base lodge. In 1959 after opening the North Face for skiers, the Boston Globe called Mt. Snow the "World's Largest Ski Area."

Schoenknecht was just getting started on his expansion plans for Mt. Snow. In 1960, he opened Snow Lake Lodge at the base of the mountain with a large man made lake. In 1964, Mt. Snow took another step into the future of the ski industry & installed a gondola. By 1970, Mt. Snow had over 44 trails over 3 parts of the mountain.

Due to energy issues & multiple bad winters, Mt Snow was forced into bankruptcy in 1975. The mountain was eventually purchased in 1977. In 1986, Carinthia Ski Area was purchased & combined with Mt. Snow. In 1992, the first snowboard park in the East was established at Mount Snow, named Un Blanco Gulch . The park featured jumps, a half-pipe, quarter hits, spines, wedges, banked turns, and a buried van. "

In 2000, Mount Snow hosted the 4th Annual Winter X-Games. The Games shattered previous attendance records and drew in athletes from around the world. The Games returned to Mount Snow the following year. Then in 2002, Kelly Clark, a snowboarder raised on the slopes of Mount Snow, won the first American gold medal of the XIX Olympic Games in women’s half-pipe. The Gulch" remained a staple of Mount Snow's freestyle terrain until the 2008-2009 season when all terrain parks were moved to the Carinthia area of the mountain. A new lodge was built at the base of Carinthia in 2018.

Mt. Snow is currently owned by Vail Resorts & has 86 trails with over 600 acres. In the summertime, Mt. Snow offer hiking trails, mountain biking & chairlift rides to the summit.

Haystack Mountain

Haystack Mountain is located on the same ridge as Mt. Snow. Haystack is 3,445 tall with a vertical drop of 1,400 feet. In 1964, the US Forest Service issued permits for a 30 year agreement for the 307 acres to be operated as a ski area on Haystack Mountain.

Using a slogan of "Ski Haystack Before Everyone Else Does," the Everett Lord-Wood designed area likely debuted on Christmas of 1964. The initial rollout included a three story lodge atop the beginner area, three T-Bars, and a double chairlift on the lower part of the main mountain, serving some 75 acres of terrain. A shuttle bus service carried folks throughout the fragmented base area.

Haystack expanded upward for the 1965-66 season with the installation of the Oh No double chairlift and the addition of 50 acres of terrain. In 1966, a chairlift was built connecting the lower base lodge to the upper base area eliminating the need for a shuttle bus between the base areas. In 1971, Haystack built a golf course and a sewage treatment plant with plans to add snowmaking & more lifts. From 1974 to 1978, Haystack had financial problems & finally closed in 1980; the mountain sat idle till 1984.

In 1984, a group was formed to reopen Haystack. Money was invested & new chairlifts were installed which reached the top of the mountain. In 1987, an expert area on the mountain was opened called "The Witches" served by a new triple chairlift. Around the same time an upper base lodge was constructed.

In 1991, Haystack experienced more financial problems & went bankrupt. Mount Snow's parent company leased the mountain for 3 seasons & ended up purchasing in 1994. In 2005 the mountain was sold & was converted to a private ski area for two seasons until it sat idle again.

In 2011, the mountain was sold to the Hermitage Club which operated the mountain as a private ski club. Multiple modern chairlifts were installed as well a brand new base lodge. In 2018, after years of financial woes, the club was foreclosed upon. Most recently in 2020, after a long battle in court, a group of members purchased the mountain in auction. We are excited to see what the future holds for the mountain!

(excerpts from New England Ski History)