Gunstock pilots discounted lift tickets for county residents

GILFORD — Belknap County residents of all ages will be able to purchase $45 day passes this winter, senior management said at Wednesday’s Gunstock Area Commission meeting. 

The pilot program is one that Gunstock Mountain Resort management and the commission have had in their sights for months — since long before the disruptions of the summer. 

“You heard from the public that there was interest in this, and I’m very excited that we’re able to sit here and respond to the public,” said GAC Chair Doug Lambert. He complimented the management team on their efforts to implement the discount and on its low cost. “It’s actually better than I actually thought you were going to come up with,” he said.

“It’s the best possible deal,” said Resort Services Director Robin Rowe. Day passes this season for adults are $99 on weekends and $87 on weekdays, and $75 and $63 at those times for youth and seniors.

There will be some restrictions: resident discounted passes will not be available on Saturdays or on blackout days, including school and Christmas vacation weeks and on Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend. There is also a cap on how many the mountain can afford to sell during the season at 1,981 tickets.

“I’m not too fearful that we’re going to worry about that number,” Rowe noted. “Most of our residents are passholders.”

For those who haven’t made the commitment to a pass or who are looking for an opportunity to get introduced or reintroduced into snowsports, the discounted resident rate offers a low-stakes opportunity to do so, Rowe continued. It could even become an on-ramp for future passholders.

Residents must come into the ticket office in-person with a driver's license proving their residence to receive the discount, and discounted tickets are non-transferable. Rowe emphasized that the mountain would be strict about this requirement. Because of this in-person requirement, these tickets will not be subject to sell-outs.

“Regardless of whether the mountain is sold out, we will see to it that there is an available ticket” for county residents, Rowe said. 

Last season, Gunstock reintroduced two-for-one Mondays, where residents could get a second ticket free. Whether that program might continue — the first ticket would be full price — this year hasn’t been decided yet.

A number of small but meaningful changes, from capital improvements to this new ticket policy, will greet skiers at the mountain this year.

Many of the mountain’s night skiing lights have been outfitted with LED bulbs, which will be much brighter yet also could reduce the mountain’s electricity costs related to night lighting by two-thirds, according to Facility Operations Director Patrick McGonagle.

A second magic carpet, formerly located near the tubing hill, has been relocated to the beginners slope at the mountain’s base to reduce lines and wait time in that area. A building for tubing staff and storage has been built, replacing the metal containers previously used there. The mountain completed snowmaking updates and repairs in the area around the Cannonball Trail, often used by the Gunstock Ski Club for training and races. Running water bathrooms will be available at the summit after the drilling of a new well.

Looking toward the future, plans for the parking lot paving likely will be presented at the GAC’s next meeting in January. Renovations to the Stockade Lodge were postponed one year.

Gunstock began blowing snow as temperatures dropped this week in anticipation of its Dec. 9 opening day.