MANCHESTER — Blessed by natural snow statewide and unusually cold temperatures the past few weeks, New Hampshire ski area operators said they are off to a great start for the 2025-26 season and held a winter kick off party at McIntyre Ski Area this week attended by both Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte and Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H.
The two elected leaders, both “Nashua girls” as Goodlander noted, who love to ski and were both former ski racers, pledged a bipartisan front of support for the industry and perhaps even a friendly race as the important state industry moves toward the new year.
Speaking separately, they both said they hoped this would be prosperous and fun on the slopes of the Granite State and noted the importance of skiing to the culture and identity of the state.
New Hampshire has more than 20 ski areas open already or about to open, many with top to bottom skiing and mid-winter conditions thanks to snowmaking, grooming and a big help from Mother Nature.
An important period of time for the industry is to be open and operational during the lucrative Christmas week and going into the Martin Luther King-Civil Rights long weekend in mid-January.
The sound of hissing snow cannons outside the base lodge at McIntyre and single digit cold set the hopeful tone for the evening as members of the industry entered the lodge. Many of the ski areas had set up booths around the room as attendees mingled and enjoyed refreshments.
They heard from state officials and meteorologist Mike Carmon for the Mount Washington Observatory on weather predictions for the winter. At least the first month looks to be cold with more precipitation than normal while the rest of the winter looks to be about average.
Gunstock Mountain General Manager Robert Blake, who took the helm in August 2024 of the Belknap County-owned recreation area, said the past weekend had great attendance.
“We are off to a good start. We feel so good,” he said. “I can’t help but be so incredibly proud of what our team pulled off. Because on Monday, a week ago I was pretty nervous. I was looking outside my office at green grass in the base area and said, ‘I don’t know how we are going to do this,’” he said.
He noted the summer drought also had him concerned as the snowmaking pond for the area was very low, but fall rains cooperated and now that is no longer a concern.
“We are a regional employer,” he said, noting those who work in the Lakes Region and summer facilities often shift to the Gilford ski area in the winter which helps with job retention.
“We are kind of unique,” Blake said. “We have 860 employees right now, so we are an important economic driver,” for the region.
“If we didn’t have that water we wouldn’t have those employees,” he said.
The ski area has permitted access to draw from the massive Lake Winnipesaukee but as of yet, has not been able to tap into it with a lack of infrastructure. But that is a future goal, Drake said.
New Hampshire’s ski industry is part of the state’s important tourist economy and a 2023 report outlines the importance of it providing both direct and indirect jobs, and money for the state’s rooms and meals tax.
Last year, as a budget discussion began, Ayotte pledged to not allow lawmakers to cut promotional funding by the state, noting that it has a heavy return on investment and she stuck to her guns.
Michelle Cruz, director of the state division of Travel and Tourism, said if the toll numbers for Thanksgiving are any indication the season should be great. She said these were the highest toll numbers since 2019.
The state will have a “Live Free” message out there to consider the possibilities in New Hampshire and the focus will be on the Massachusetts market. They will be launching a weather alert system to draw more people when there is new snowfall.
Tim Smith, president and general manager of Waterville Valley who is also on the board of directors for Ski NH, said for the state to kick off this strong effort is outstanding. He went over improvements at ski areas in terms of new lifts, trails, snowmaking.
