Waterville Valley is one of the first ski resorts one finds coming from the Boston area. Despite its location and popularity, and the fact that lines are sometimes tedious, it is not as crowded as some of the other nearby ski resorts like Loon, Attitash, and Wildcat, perhaps due to its isolated location, surrounded by 770,000 acres of protected US National Forest land. Waterville is one of the four-season gems of New Hampshire’s White Mountains.

To go to Waterville Valley, you must want to go to Waterville Valley as a destination. It is on a 12-mile cul-de-sac from Interstate I-93, and all other roads leading to it are closed in the Winter.

View of the White Mountains from the top of Mount Tecumseh with Mount Washington in the horizon. Photo by Lou Botta.

Waterville Valley isn’t just a ski area, but a town with all the infrastructure, governmental structures, and facilities of a chartered municipality of over 500 people, existentially dependent on the resort operations. The town is a beautiful, upscale and high quality-of-life community, supporting good restaurants, a shopping plaza, ski shops, ice arena, hotels and numerous housing units.

The entire area has a unique New England feel and the architecture resonates with the ethos. The Town of Waterville Valley is located to the side of the resort before the resort parking area. Walking through the village, which is totally pedestrian friendly, is a pleasure.

Waterville Valley has a long and distinguished history, being a resort town since its establishment in 1829. The resort was founded by Tom Corcoran of US Olympic fame, whose idea was a four-season destination resort. It has worked well.

Although a fairly large resort, it has the feel of a family resort. Waterville Valley has over 2,000 feet of vertical, with a topside elevation of 4,000 feet. Its 62 trails have something for everyone. It has 14% novice, 64% intermediate, and 22% advanced. It has 5 glades and 6 mogul fields. The resort has 100% snowmaking coverage on its Mount Tecumseh terrain.

Lift-wise, Waterville has a high-speed six-pack bubble, one high-speed quad, two fixed triples, two doubles and five surface lifts that include the T-bar to the summit.

Driving into Waterville Valley, the first thing the driver finds is a fork in the road. One has the choice of taking the right turn and driving into town, or turning left and proceeding towards the resort.

Atop Waterville Valley’s main lift. Photo provided by Lou Botta.

The main parking areas are arranged in a set of 9 rows arranged in a semi circle around the ski area. All of the rows are connected by both a circular road and three ski trails from the main base. One of the parking areas is designated as a priority paid area that allows direct access to the Meadows chairlift. There is also a large drop off line that is quite convenient.

Once skis are offloaded and the family is together, there are a few steps along a large plaza with shorter risers for ease of access to the lodge. The reception area of Waterville Valley is well designed and manageable.

At the lodge, the lower level serves as the main place to don boots and store bags. There are small and huge automated lockers on the side of the changing area. There is also a free bag check next to the customer service area. It is important to note that the resort does not allow unattended bags anywhere in the lodge. The upper level of the lodge next to the cafeteria can be used to don boots, and there is ample outdoor cubicle space to store bags if one chooses not to use the paid lockers.

Waterville Valley is one of the few resorts in New England that offers child care for children 1-3 years old. The child care facility is located at the base lodge and is available by reservation only. In addition, it is a nut free facility.

Downstairs at the lodge, there is a large indoor ticketing area and a reception desk, not unlike in a hotel. There are also outdoor ticket sale windows and kiosks with automated ticket dispensers.

To the left of the lodge, a retail store is located in its own building, with a full line of accessories and clothing. Further left, another large building houses the rental shop on the lower level and a full service restaurant on top, T-Bars.

Once changed and ready to hit the slopes, a gentle climb on the snow leads to the lift access, where two choices are available: The six-pack Tecumseh Express or the slower Valley Run Quad. A bit of a trek past the Valley Run Quad is the Green Peak Triple, and further afield is the Meadows Double, the one that serves the priority parking lot.

The Tecumseh Express leads up the mountain. Photo by Lou Botta.

We opened the ski day by being one of the first chairs on the Tecumseh Express that day. The Tecumseh is just about new but we found it quite uncomfortable. Each lift chair is divided into six individual chairs, roughly like an amusement park ride. The chair seats tilt downward so you’re cocooned into the chair. Then the bar comes down and wraps around each person individually. We found it hard to hold the poles with this contraption. And if you have a bag, forget it. Then on downloading from the chair on top, you have to push yourself out, and if you’re short, you are more than a customary distance from the ground. The Tecumseh chair is a modern marvel with flawed ergonomic features.

From the top of the Tecumseh Six Pack, we continued our ascent by crossing an esplanade and taking the High country T-Bar. This additional ascent was originally a chairlift, more often than not closed down due to winds, so it’s one of the few times a chair has been replaced by a T-bar. The views from the top of Mount Tecumseh are magnificent. From the top, several blue trails make their way down to the area of the Tecumseh Chair top.

From the top of the Tecumseh six-pack, a world of runs is available. To skier’s left, a steep and enjoyable array of blues and black diamond runs beckon the skier and rider. One of our favorites is to start on the top-to-bottom run made by linking the Tippecanoe, Siegel, and Lower Tecumseh trails. Another variance is White Caps down the Liftline and then a choice of beautiful black diamonds: Sel’s Choice, The Chute, or Upper and Lower Abandon.

Just off the Tecumseh chair, the Schwendi Hutte is a favorite restaurant stop with a great breakfast, lunch, beer and wine selections, a wonderful ambiance, a quiet and welcoming downstairs, a lively and historic upstairs, and a great staff. It emanates shades of Austrian Alpine ambiance. It’s the best place to warm up after braving the chilly topside T-bar, and one of the best places in the White Mountains to sip hot chocolate and watch the spectacular scenery.

Top of True Grit with the Valley Run terrain in the foreground. Photo by Lou Botta.

Towards skier’s right, the terrain becomes more challenging and varied, with the Sunnyside terrain serving five amazing runs serviced by the Sunnyside triple. To the far right, the truly New England ski run Oblivion is narrow, windy, and beautiful, a true blue run pleasure. Then there is Ciao and Gema, single Black Diamonds. And then, the double-Black Diamonds True Grit and Bobby’s Run feature a vertiginous and steep descent back to the Sunnyside triple. All are amazing.

Descending from the Sunnyside terrain to the main base, the wide Green Valley run and Rock Island trails led us to the Valley Run Quad. Our relative dissatisfaction with the Tecumseh Chair’s ergonomics led us to spend much of our time in the Sunnyside terrain, which we found to be quite amenable.

And there is way more to Waterville Valley. Just near the Valley Run Quad, the Green Peak Triple provides access to even more terrain, with some superb Blues and Black Diamonds. The Governor’s Run was one our favorite blues, while Clean Shaven and Wayne Wong Way were two amazing Black Diamonds.

One part we have not been able to enjoy in several trips to Waterville has been the Northside Chair terrain. While these runs are accessible via the Tecumseh Six-pack, the Northside Chair has frequently not been running, even though the superb terrain on its faces make it one for the best areas in the resort.

Lunch time at Waterville Valley has many options. Our favorite is T-Bars Restaurant above the rental building. It is obvious this place has a history, with pictures of members of the Kennedy family on the walls. It opens at 11 a.m. and we are normally outside the door waiting.

With all its charm and terrain, Waterville Valley is also the site of one of New England’s best Nordic ski areas, possessing over 35 miles of groomed trails. Hiking in the area makes this a four-season attraction.

Overall, we love visiting this place. It stands as a non-corporate ski resort with an enviable infrastructure, superb facilities, and a family environment. Waterville Valley has its own ski pass system, although it is also part of the Indy Pass network and also the White Mountain Superpass. Yes, we thought the six-pack lift was uncomfortable, but that doesn’t keep the ski area from being a great experience.