Wildcat Mountain
225 acres, 48 runs in Pinkham Notch. Epic Pass access, spectacular Mount Washington views.
Season 2026 - 2027
Opens
28 Nov 2026
Closes
11 Apr 2027
Days open
134
Annual snow
9ft
The Overview
Michael Fulton
Melbourne-based skier and snowboarder with 50+ resorts across 5 continents. Specialises in Australian resorts and international resort comparisons.
Wildcat Mountain's summit reaches 4,059 feet, dropping 2,112 vertical feet to a base at 1,949 feet across 48 runs spread over 225 acres in Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire. Terrain splits 46 per cent intermediate, 33 per cent advanced and 21 per cent beginner, with no expert-rated runs, and average annual snowfall of roughly 103 inches. The resort carries Epic Pass affiliation. Five lifts, including one quad chair and three double chairs, serve the mountain alongside one surface lift.
Wildcat Mountain is renowned for offering some of the most spectacular views in the Northeast, with the summit looking directly across Pinkham Notch to Mount Washington, the highest peak in the northeastern United States. This dramatic outlook, combined with the resort's considerable 2,112-foot vertical drop, gives Wildcat a genuinely scenic and challenging character among White Mountains resorts.
The resort's founders, George Macomber, Brooks Dodge, Malcolm McLane and William 'Mack' Beal Jr, first envisioned Wildcat while sitting on Lunch Rocks in nearby Tuckerman Ravine during the 1950s, looking across Route 16 at a trail originally cut by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933. Macomber and Dodge had each raced on two US Olympic teams, McLane brought legal expertise, and Beal contributed experience in forestry, development and banking, a genuinely well-rounded founding team that opened Wildcat Mountain Ski Area in 1957.
On 25 January 1958, Wildcat became the first ski area in North America to install a gondola lift, a landmark achievement in American lift technology. In 2019, Wildcat and its sister resort Attitash were purchased by Vail Resorts, bringing both mountains into the Epic Pass network. Adult daily tickets run from 89 to 139 US dollars.
2,113ft
Vertical
48
Runs
225 acres
Skiable
9ft
Annual snow
Epic
Pass
The Terrain
48 runs across 225 acres skiable
Wildcat Mountain spreads 48 runs across 225 acres skiable of terrain. It leans intermediate at 46%, with 10 beginner runs to find your feet and 16 advanced or expert runs when you want to push.
Terrain split
48
runs
48 runs across 4 grades
Beginner10 runs · 21%
Intermediate22 runs · 46%
Advanced16 runs · 33%
Expert0 runs · 0%
Time it right
When to visit Wildcat Mountain
The 2025-26 season at Wildcat Mountain ran from 6 December 2025 to 5 April 2026, a roughly seventeen-week season supported by average annual snowfall of around 103 inches. Wildcat markets itself as offering one of the longest ski seasons in New Hampshire, aided by its considerable elevation and reliable natural snow.
Midwinter, from December through February, typically brings the most consistent conditions to Wildcat's intermediate-and-advanced-weighted terrain, with spectacular views across Pinkham Notch to Mount Washington throughout. As an Epic Pass resort within the Vail Resorts network, Wildcat draws substantial visitation from Epic Pass holders alongside visitors specifically seeking its dramatic mountain scenery.
The resort's genuinely challenging terrain profile, with no beginner-only easy option beyond its 21 per cent beginner share, tends to draw a more experienced skier base relative to some White Mountains competitors. School holiday periods bring some family visitation, though the mountain's character skews toward intermediate and advanced skiers seeking Mount Washington views. Weekend crowds draw heavily from the greater Boston and southern New England region.
Specific event programming beyond standard operations is not confirmed in available resort information. Since Vail Resorts' 2019 acquisition alongside sister resort Attitash, Wildcat has continued operating as part of the Epic Pass network, building on nearly seven decades of history dating to its 1957 founding. The mountain's dramatic Pinkham Notch setting remains central to its seasonal appeal.
Season 2026 - 2027
28 Nov 2026
Opens
11 Apr 2027
Closes
134
Days open
9 ft
Annual snow
Getting there
Getting to Wildcat Mountain, and where to stay
Wildcat Mountain sits in Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire, directly across from Mount Washington, with a base elevation of 1,949 feet and a summit at 4,059 feet across a 2,112-foot vertical drop over 225 acres. This dramatic setting gives Wildcat some of the most spectacular mountain views in the Northeast.
Jackson and North Conway, both within a reasonable drive, offer the nearest substantial lodging, dining and services, with the broader Mount Washington Valley region surrounding the resort. Pinkham Notch itself, part of the White Mountain National Forest, offers extensive additional hiking and outdoor recreation immediately adjacent to the ski area.
New Hampshire State Route 16 runs directly past the resort through Pinkham Notch, providing straightforward access from both the north and south. Winter driving conditions through the notch can include snow and ice, particularly given the area's elevation and exposure, though the well-travelled route is regularly maintained. There is no direct public transport service to the mountain.
Specific nearest commercial airport details are not confirmed in available resort information, though Wildcat's White Mountains location keeps it within a reasonable drive of the greater Boston metropolitan area's major airports for visitors travelling from further afield.
Where to stay
Search all stays →Hotels and lodges near Wildcat Mountain, powered by Stay22.
Latest News
From the SnowStash desk
Colorado Ski Resort Opening Dates 2026-27: A-Basin and Keystone Race to Be First
Arapahoe Basin, Keystone and Winter Park are all chasing an October start, though none has a firm date yet. The first dated openers are Breckenridge and Copper on Friday 6 November, then Vail on 13 November, with most of the rest bunched around US Thanksgiving. Hesperus did not open at all last season. A super El Niño offers hope but no guarantee, and forecasters say the southern mountains have the better odds.
5 Oct 2026
Dolomiti Superski 2026-27: Four New Gondolas, New Reservoirs and an €89 Peak Day Pass
Dolomiti Superski is spending around €100 million across its 12 areas before winter. Kronplatz gets a new 10-passenger gondola with a middle station, 3 Zinnen gets Helmissimo, and Val di Fassa swaps a chairlift for a gondola above Col Valvacin. New water-storage basins and upgraded snowmaking follow, and construction has started on the San Martino to Passo Rolle link. A peak adult day pass is €89.
4 Oct 2026
Utah Ski Resort Opening Dates 2026-27: Brian Head First, Eagle Point Out
Brian Head is targeting 6 November, though last year it aimed for 7 November and did not open until the 25th. Park City, Alta and Solitude are pencilled in for 20 November, Snowbird and Snowbasin for 27 November, and Deer Valley for 5 December. Eagle Point will stay closed after the Cottonwood Fire. A super El Niño is forecast, but the big snow is not expected until January.
4 Oct 2026
Hintertux Glacier Opens for 2026-27 With 12 Kilometres of Piste
Hintertux became Austria's second glacier to open for 2026-27 on Friday 2 October, after the Pitztal Glacier. Twelve kilometres of piste are running around the Olperer and Gefrorene Wand, served by one gondola and two drag lifts, with the Betterpark also open. Lifts officially run 8:15 am to 4:30 pm, but skiing stops at 2 pm for now.
4 Oct 2026
Vail Resorts Counts the Cost of a Thin Winter as Pass Sales Slide Further
A historically poor western winter cut Vail Resorts' annual net income from $280 million to $147.5 million and skier visits by 13.4 per cent. Now 2026-27 pass units are down 12 per cent as of 18 September, worse than the 10 per cent flagged in spring. Vail blames the weather and thinks some buyers are simply waiting, and it forecasts a rebound if the snow behaves.
3 Oct 2026
Arizona Snowbowl's $1 Lift Tickets Are Hard to Find, but $9 Days Are Not
Arizona Snowbowl advertised eight $1 lift ticket days this winter. Go looking and only three are showing - 10 March, 1 April and 10 April - so the rest may already have gone. The consolation is a calendar full of $9 days, including all but one day in April. Opening day is 20 November, weather permitting, and opening weekend is $19.
2 Oct 2026
Whitewater Brings Its Short Side Inbounds, With Six New Runs for 2026-27
For years, Whitewater's Short Side was where you ducked a rope and hoped for the best: unmapped, ungroomed and unpatrolled. This winter it's inbounds. Six new runs of glades and fall-line skiing add 190 acres (about 77 hectares), taking the resort past 1,400 acres in total. F2 Logging spent a month in the trees to make it happen, and opening day is pencilled in for 4 December. Bonanza now needs less snow to groom, too.
1 Oct 2026
September Dusting Hits Mammoth Mountain Six Weeks Before Opening Day
Mammoth got its first snow of 2026-27 on Monday 28 September - and promptly lost it by Tuesday morning. Barely an inch fell at McCoy Station, but with opening day pencilled in for Friday 13 November, it's the first sign the Sierra is waking up. Last year's date slipped from 14 November to 20 November, so nobody's booking flights on a dusting just yet. Here's where California's early openers stand.
1 Oct 2026
Wildcat Mountain Lift System
Wildcat Mountain runs five lifts: three double chairs and one quad chair, serving 48 runs across 225 acres in Pinkham Notch, alongside one surface lift. This network traces back to a landmark moment in American ski lift history at the resort's 1958 opening season.
On 25 January 1958, Wildcat became the first ski area in North America to install a gondola lift, a genuinely significant technological milestone that distinguished the young resort from its White Mountains contemporaries. This pioneering gondola has since given way to the double chairs and quad chair that now form the backbone of Wildcat's current lift network.
The quad chair carries the bulk of skier traffic toward the summit, unlocking views across Pinkham Notch to Mount Washington and access to the mountain's intermediate-and-advanced-weighted terrain. The double chairs and single surface lift provide additional capacity across the lower mountain and beginner areas.
Since Vail Resorts' 2019 acquisition of Wildcat alongside sister resort Attitash, continued investment has supported this five-lift network as part of the Epic Pass system. Specific recent individual lift replacement projects beyond this ownership transition are not confirmed in available resort information. Wildcat's pioneering gondola history remains a notable point of pride even as the current lift configuration has evolved considerably since 1958.
5lifts across 3 types
1
Quad Chair
3
Double Chairs
1
Surface Lift
Wildcat Mountain lift system
Wildcat Mountain is served by 5 lifts, listed here by type. Check which lifts are turning against the live conditions before you plan your first laps - early lifts and high-speed chairs get you to the best snow fastest.
More Wildcat Mountain intelligence: trail map, snow report, webcams, resort overview.