Millinocket Ski Slope

A portable rope tow for beginner skiers was first set up by the Millinocket Recreation Committee near the town athletic field and Hillcrest Golf Club circa the winter of 1951-52, per New England Ski History's Millinocket page, expanding by 1953 to include a toboggan run and lighting. In September 2022, Town Manager Peter Jamieson announced intentions to "bring the ski tow back to life," beginning a multi-year revival effort. Per Maine WinterKids' "Town of Millinocket Parks & Rec" community-highlights page (published July 5, 2024; last modified September 4, 2025), a $10,000 Downhill 24 Outdoor Fund grant was used by the Millinocket Parks and Recreation department to "purchase a rope tow, revitalize the Millinocket Ski Tow," covering trail cleanup, an electrical installation, and a heated warming hut. By September 2023, per New England Ski History, the project had also secured $22,500 each from the American Rescue Plan Act and from Katahdin Area Trails, with construction accelerating in August 2024. The rebuilt rope tow debuted Friday, February 27, 2026, per New England Ski History's year-by-year table, corroborated by Unofficial Networks, which reported "On Friday, the Town of Millinocket opened up its new rope tow" — framing the debut as "Maine's first new ski area opening since 2022." For its opening weekend, the rope tow ran Friday 3:00-5:00 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday 1:00-5:30 p.m. The Town of Millinocket's own Recreation Department page describes "a sliding hill with a rope tow all in the Recreation complex," adjacent to Stearns High School. Whether the rope tow runs again for the 2026-27 season is undetermined: as of this writing, no source among the town's own website, its Recreation Department page, Recreation Advisory Committee minutes, Katahdin Area Trails, and New England Ski History's year-by-year table carries a 2026-27 schedule, price, or announcement.