The Balsams To Be LARGEST Ski Resort on East Coast:

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An enormous expansion in the works for The Balsams.  Looks like it's about to grow  6-fold, huh?
An enormous expansion in the works for The Balsams. Looks like it’s about to grow 6-fold, huh?

What ski resort is the biggest on the East Coast?  Soon, it’ll be The Balsams ski resort in New Hampshire.  Never heard of the Balsams?  Us either.  The Balsams has been closed 2011.  From closed to the biggest ski resort on the East Coast?  Not a bad comeback.

The Balsams plans on adding enough terrain to surpass Killington, VT as the largest ski resort on the East Coast with up to 2,200 skiable acres.  Check out the map above.  It looks like they are expanding the ski resort by about 6-fold.

“What we are building here is what we like to call a New Era resort. We are building a resort that will attract people from the world over. We will be open all season and create a resort that will appeal to a younger generation – the gen X generation and their families. One thing The Balsams has always had going for it is it is one of the most perfect places on earth for natural beauty. We are going to offer that and more.” – Balsams spokesperson Scott Tranchmontagne

Skiable acres on the East Coast with Balsam on top.
Skiable acres on the East Coast with Balsam on top.

Here’s what The Balsams has to say about their new project:

A UNIQUE ALPINE ENVIRONMENT JUST A CAR RIDE AWAY.

With a base camp at 2,350 feet above sea level, The Balsams has been called one of nature’s most glorious balconies. Due to its location in a true alpine climate zone, avid skiers and riders will experience more dependable snow and a longer winter season year in and year out. With 2,200 skiable acres of alpine terrain, the largest vertical drop, and 100 km of Nordic trails, The Balsams will be larger and more varied than any other resort in the east.

  • Longer ski season with earlier opening and later closing.
  • Better snow quality.
  • Twice the number of acres of skiable terrain than the closest Eastern competitor.

ACRES OF PRISTINE TERRAIN AS VARIED AS IT IS CHALLENGING.

With an epic annual snowfall and 2,200 acres of skiing across 3,800 acres of pristine forest, including a 500 acre Balsam Glade in Hodge Valley, skiing at The Balsams will offer a new challenge every day. Along with the expanded terrain, the new expansion will include the highest capacity gondola and the largest snowmaking water source in the East, assuring best-in-class quality snow.

WORLD CLASS DESIGN COMBINED WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART AMENITIES.

Upon finish, The Balsams will be the largest and most technically advanced ski resort on the East Coast.

  • Intelligently designed trails with limited intersections
  • Up-mountain dining and ski facilities
  • Next-generation snow making
  • Glades in a place where it snows
  • Most modern lift system with 22 lifts
  • Well-designed lift alignments
  • Only high-performance rentals

 


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8 thoughts on “The Balsams To Be LARGEST Ski Resort on East Coast:

  1. I’ll believe it when I ski it. This post fails to mention a key part of Les Otten’s scheme is state backing for a $28 million bond. Why should the state be on the hook for a loan to a private business? If a bank will not loan on the property, why should the state get involved?

  2. Hooray for pipe (water pipe?) dreams!!!

    A few questions:

    1 – where can I invest? (I’m kidding I’m a ski patroller)

    2- How much will they pay their ski patrollers?

    3 – I’d love to know more about the “next generation of snow making” why tie your hands….why not go for the next next generation?

    4 – Will the “high performance rentals” include hover skis and hover boards?

    Signed,

    Skeptical thats – S-K-E-P-T-I-C-A-L

  3. hmmm…. very intelligent placement of a ski resort from a climate change perspective. A mountain that far north will have a far better mid to late season snowpack than a place like Killington, especially in 50 years when things are considerably warmer.

    However, there are multiple things about this proposal that really bother me. First off, building something on this scale is going to require and consume a huge amount of natural resources. Unless the plan calls for a way to sustainably power the resort (i.e. wind and solar), I think this project will be a huge loss for the environment. Second, this mountain is going to be just another place that caters to the fraction of the 1% who can afford it. We already have enough ski areas like that in the world…

    1. I don’t know specifically how the expansion will be powered, but there is a wind farm already located on the peaks of the property, which might limit how much they can expand up hill.

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