Ethos

Ski Sundown: From Satan's Ridge to Channing Murdock, and a Near-Miss with Powder Ridge

Town of New Hartford, CT

Part of Skiing New England

Per New England Ski History, the idea for what became Ski Sundown reportedly dated back to 1960, when engineer Russell Smith conceived it; the land, in the New Hartford and Canton region known as Satan's Kingdom, was owned by Lyman B. Bunnell, minister of music at Immanuel Congregational Church in West Hartford, and Smith purchased tracts of it from the now-retired Bunnell in the summer of 1962. By 1963, Smith had been joined by fellow Simsbury, Connecticut residents Frank Linnell and Harold Law, Jr., and the group began publicizing plans for a year-round recreational facility that spring; Smith's land was transferred to Satan's Kingdom Inc. in August 1963. The ski area, originally named Satan's Ridge, finally opened on January 11, 1964, with a Mueller double chairlift and a rope tow serving three slopes and one trail. New England Ski History's own account of the opening states that the double chairlift was installed after the slope proved "too steep for the planned T-Bar" — the T-Bar was abandoned for that reason, not for weather — while a separate mid-December snowstorm delayed the chairlift's own construction and, with it, the opening date. The Hartford Courant described the new area as "a little bit of Vermont in your backyard."

  1. A New Hartford ski area opened in 1964 as Satan's Ridge, later bought and renamed by Channing Murdock.

Foreclosure, and Channing Murdock takes over

New England Ski History states that following the 1967-68 season, United Bank & Trust Company foreclosed on Satan's Ridge; owner Russell Smith told the Hartford Courant the business failed because "it needed both money and management. We never got enough capital." The area then sat idle for the entire 1968-69 season, unable to find a buyer. It was then sold by Harold Law, Russell Smith, and Frank Linnell to Channing Murdock of nearby Butternut Basin and his brother Robert Murdock in mid-1969; in September 1969 the business was incorporated as Ski Sundown, Inc., "shedding its satanic name." The Murdocks invested over $100,000 in the area for its debut season, including $45,000 in snowmaking improvements. The Berkshire Edge, in a January 8, 2024 article on Ski Butternut, independently identifies the same Channing Murdock as "a former employee of Mount Snow in Vt., and former manager of Mohawk Mountain in Cornwall, Conn.," who purchased the Warner Mountain property in Great Barrington, Massachusetts in 1962 with his wife Jane Murdock and reopened it as Butternut Basin — corroborating New England Ski History's account that the same Channing Murdock later, "a few years" after leaving Mohawk, acquired the defunct Satan's Ridge and reopened it as Ski Sundown.

Ownership after Murdock, and a near-miss with Powder Ridge

Circa 1978, per New England Ski History, Channing Murdock transferred ownership of Ski Sundown to general manager Rick (Richard) Carter, who had earlier been made a part owner of the area by Murdock around 1973-74. After owning Ski Sundown "for nearly quarter of century" — that source's own phrasing, quoted here exactly, without inserting the word "a" — Carter sold the area to general manager and longtime employee Robert Switzgable in 2002. In a press release quoted by New England Ski History, Carter explained that the small business, given its unique characteristics, was better run by an individual owner than sold on the open market, and that he cared too much about Ski Sundown to simply list it for sale. "Half a decade later, Ski Sundown nearly took over the operations of Powder Ridge," per the same source — placing that near-acquisition roughly half a decade after the 2002 sale.

The state's first triple chairlift, and Satan's Stairway

Following a successful 1976-77 season in which revenue increased by 40%, per New England Ski History, Ski Sundown "announced it would be installing the state's first triple chairlift as part of a $250,000 expansion" — a Borvig lift installed next to the original double chairlift, replacing the T-Bar, for the 1977-78 season. Satan's Ridge co-founder Harold Law Jr. passed away on May 12, 2013, at age 82, and a new expert trail named "Satan's Stairway" — evoking the ski area's original name — was added for the 2014-15 season, equipped with snowmaking and lighting.

Frequently asked questions

What was Ski Sundown before it was Ski Sundown?
Satan's Ridge, which opened January 11, 1964, foreclosed after the 1967-68 season, sat idle for a year, and was bought and reopened as Ski Sundown by Channing Murdock and his brother Robert in 1969, per New England Ski History.
Why was the planned T-Bar abandoned before opening?
New England Ski History states the slope proved too steep for the planned T-Bar, which was abandoned for that reason; a Mueller double chairlift was installed in its place for the 1964 opening, not because of weather.
How long did Richard Carter own Ski Sundown?
New England Ski History states Carter owned the area "for nearly quarter of century" before selling to Robert Switzgable in 2002 — quoted here exactly as the source's own slightly ungrammatical phrasing, without adding the word "a."
Where can I find New Hartford's other attractions?
This guide covers only Ski Sundown itself. New Hartford's other places — Satan's Kingdom State Recreation Area, Brewery Legitimus, Nepaug State Forest, and more — are on the town's own travel guide, linked below.

Foliage

Still green this week · estimated peak Oct 14–20

On the Hartford West foliage driving route.

Derived from the Connecticut DEEP fall foliage map. DEEP's map is a climatological estimate last published in 2023; it describes a normal year, not this one. Stage names are ours. See the statewide forecast.

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