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Ascutney Outdoors, Vermont: a nonprofit that reopened a closed resort's T-bar

West Windsor, VT

Part of Skiing New England

For over 80 years Mount Ascutney's trail network and alpine terrain served as the centerpiece of local recreation, until the ski area, then Ascutney Mountain Resort, closed in 2010, according to Ascutney Outdoors' own history page. In 2015 the former ski area's 470 acres were purchased by the Trust for Public Land, working with the town of West Windsor and the Upper Valley Land Trust, and a conservation and recreation easement was conveyed to the Upper Valley Land Trust. Ascutney Outdoors, a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit, was established to manage recreation, education, and conservation on the land, and now runs a public T-bar where the old resort once operated chairlifts.

  1. A nonprofit-run T-bar and tubing hill on the site of the former Ascutney Mountain Resort.

  2. An 1889 laminated-arch covered bridge listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

  3. A 1919 covered bridge rebuilt after Hurricane Irene swept it from its foundation in 2011.

From resort to nonprofit

The Ascutney Outdoors Center, a community gathering space, opened in 2018, according to the organization's own history page. An 1,800-foot Doppelmayr T-bar lift was completed in 2019 after community fundraising. An earlier handlebar tubing lift, installed with support from Holiday Inn Club Vacations, preceded the T-bar sometime in the 2010s.

Skiing and riding today

Ascutney Outdoors welcomes both skiers and snowboarders on the terrain served by its T-bar, per the organization's own Winter page. Beyond lift-served alpine skiing, Ascutney Outdoors offers backcountry skiing on Mount Ascutney's terrain and cross-country skiing access to the privately-owned Mile Long Field, made available by the landowners.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ascutney Outdoors the same as the old Ascutney Mountain Resort?
No. Ascutney Mountain Resort closed in 2010 after serving as the centerpiece of local recreation for over 80 years, per Ascutney Outdoors' own history page. In 2015 the town, the Trust for Public Land, and the Upper Valley Land Trust acquired the former resort's 470 acres, and the nonprofit Ascutney Outdoors was formed to run recreation on the land, including a T-bar completed in 2019.
Can you cross-country ski at Ascutney Outdoors?
Yes. Beyond its lift-served T-bar terrain, Ascutney Outdoors offers backcountry skiing on Mount Ascutney and cross-country skiing access to the privately-owned Mile Long Field, made available by the landowners, according to the organization's own Winter page.