Waterville Valley

Waterville Valley's summit reaches 4,003 feet, dropping 2,020 vertical feet to a base at 1,985 feet across 62 runs spread over 255 acres near Campton, New Hampshire. Terrain splits 57 per cent intermediate, 24 per cent advanced, 16 per cent beginner and 3 per cent expert, with average annual snowfall of roughly 103 inches. The resort carries Indy Pass affiliation. Ten lifts, including two quad chairs and two triple chairs, serve the mountain alongside two double chairs, two surface lifts and two t-bars.

Waterville Valley holds a genuinely significant place in American skiing history as the birthplace of freestyle skiing, a distinction that reflects the resort's long-standing culture of innovation. Its complete resort village, featuring a charming pedestrian town square, gives Waterville a self-contained, destination-resort character among New Hampshire's ski areas.

Two-time Olympian Tom Corcoran, who placed fourth in the giant slalom at the 1960 Squaw Valley Games, took an interest in Mount Tecumseh and the Waterville Valley in 1965. With assistance from ski trail designer Sel Hannah, Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Ralph Bean, Corcoran developed the ski area through 1965 and 1966, clearing trails and erecting four double chairlifts that spring. Waterville Valley opened in December 1966 with 145 acres of skiable terrain, 18 runs and a 2,020-foot vertical drop.

Corcoran served as the resort's president and chief executive for 35 years, during which Waterville launched the first Freestyle Instruction Programme in the United States in 1969, cementing its status as the birthplace of the discipline, and hosted 10 Alpine World Cup events while drawing more than 300,000 skiers annually. Adult daily tickets run from 89 to 129 US dollars.