Thanks to Wayne Silver who provided a copy of the World Ski Book by Frank Elkins, we first learned this area that operated in Bethlehem. According to that book, the area had a "A 1500 ft tow serves the Mt. Agassiz Development; two open slopes for beginners-intermediates; intermediate run on Auto Road trail, ski school, lighted rink."
Additional information from Donald Lavoie shed some more information:
All that is left of Mt
Agassiz today is an overgrown patch on the North slope of Mt Agassiz at the end
of Cottage Street in the middle of the village. A couple of new homes now sit
where the parking lot was. I believe the land was owned by the Churchill
family and Leased to the Town of Bethlehem. I think it is still owned
by Harold & Muriel (Churchill) Brown. The house to the right of the
slope in the photo was built by Harold and Muriel in the mid 1960's. The
Town of Bethlehem with the help Bethlehem Ski club operated the area with a paid
lift operator and volunteer ski patrol. There was a small gas powered
rope tow I think about 800' in length. The slope was lighted and
had a small warming hut with woodstove. The ski club had a lesson program
and rented skis by the season. Each year the ski club hosted the Varney Memorial
Race for local children and I believe the race is still held at Cannon or
Bretton Woods. The ski club is still active and runs a children's
lesson program with the elementary school each winter at one of the local Areas.
I grew up on Cottage St. 1/4 mile below the slope and started skiing there about 1963. My parents rented Northland wooden skis with cable bindings and screwed in metal edges and rubber lace up boots for my sister and I from the ski club. We both took lessons at night and would ski home on the snowbanks along Cottage St. I remember one of my instructors was Thelma Green, who also taught at Mittersill. I know the area was open regularly until the low snow years started in the early 70's because I volunteered as ski patrol while in High school. In the Late 80's I was a selectman in Bethlehem and we finally gave up on trying operate the slope due to only a few skiable days per year on natural snow. The lift was dismantled and scrapped and we burned the lift hut and warming hut about 1990.
| And here's the Terrasever picture of the slope, still fairly clear. Notice the straight lift line on the right hand side of the slope. |
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