FRANCONIA NOTCH, N.H. — Skiers and snowboarders have been dreaming about it for years: having the true backcountry skiing experience on an eastern mountain. A place where the powder is ungroomed, partially overgrown trails snake through glades, and snowsports enthusiasts can discover the unvarnished truth about just how good they really are.

Now they can stop dreaming: Mittersill at Cannon Mountain is now open with 86 acres of lift-assisted backcountry skiing on terrain that received nearly three feet of new snow over the New Year’s holiday weekend.

From Cannon in New Hampshire’s Franconia Notch State Park, skiers and riders can take the Tramway or the Cannonball Quad to the top and head for Mittersill, the once-swank ski area adjacent to Cannon Mountain that’s been closed since the mid-1980s. There, in an area that, for the next season or two, will be managed as one large gladed area, expert skiers and riders will find terrain that’s steep, narrow, 100% natural … and legendary.

Truth be told, fresh powder has never stayed untouched on Mittersill. For years, daring skiers have been slipping under the ropes and skiing down partially overgrown trails. Cannon doesn’t plan to do anything to change the culture or the skiing and riding experience there. The trail crew has done some thinning and brush-cutting for ease of access, but with no snowmaking or grooming, very limited patrolling and extensive rescue time, the area will carry a designation of “Extra Hazardous.”

A shuttle will run weekends and holidays between Mittersill’s base and Cannon’s Peabody and Notchview lodges, making multiple runs in a day a possibility for those with strong legs, top-rate skills and a love of the type of skiing and riding found only in the backcountry. Guided two-and-a-half-hour tours of Mittersill will be offered Saturdays and Sundays at 9:30 a.m. by Cannon’s Snowsport School. Led by a skilled backcountry professional, tours will be available to intermediate- or advance-level skiers and riders whose skill will be assessed prior to proceeding to Mittersill.

Mittersill’s History
Mittersill was opened as a ski resort in 1945 by an Austrian émigré, Baron Hubert von Pantz, who purchased 550 acres on the north slope of Mount Jackson, including a section of Cannon’s Taft Trail, in 1941. The baron came from a distinguished family, who were first awarded their title prior to 1450, and who for more than 500 years had a monopoly on the iron mines in central Europe. The baron named the resort after Schloss Mittersill, a castle in the Austrian Tyrol that he’d made a base for hunting and skiing until it was confiscated by the Nazis in 1938.

The American Mittersill Club Ski Area became a glamorous place, with a slopeside lodge and Tyrolean-style village, and a clientele that included Patti Page, Bob Hope and many of the country’s elite. The ski school was headed by Swiss Olympic Ski Team member, Paul Valar, and his wife, Paula Kann, the Austrian-born member of the U.S. National Ski Team. Valar was one of the original seven incorporators of the Professional Ski Instructors of America and the founding president of the New England Ski Museum, which now resides at Cannon Mountain’s base.

The baron sold the resort in 1969, but after heavy losses in the early 1980s, the ski area closed in 1984. Five years later, the Special Use Permit from the U.S. Forest Service, which enabled the resort to use federal lands, was terminated. The privately held lands on which most of the ski area was located were transferred to the State of New Hampshire for one dollar, an effort spearheaded by the Valar family.

Fast-forward 20 years to 2009. By this time, the ski trails in the Mittersill area were partially overgrown, although some had been kept clear by individuals, despite state and federal restrictions. The area is home to several federally listed sensitive species, including the Bicknell’s thrush, peregrine falcon, and possibly, the Canada lynx.

On March 25, a long-anticipated exchange of federal and state lands took place. After extended contemplation and study, 100 acres of the upper portion of the dormant Mittersill Ski Area became part of Cannon Mountain Ski Area; and the 244-acre Sentinel Mountain Forest, including approximately one-quarter mile of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, became federal land to be administered by the White Mountain National Forest. Three days later, Paul Valar and Paula Kann’s daughter, Christina Valar Breen, and her son, Cannon Breen, cut the rope between Cannon and Mittersill, officially reopening the Mittersill ski area as part of Cannon Mountain. Many of the 500 people in attendance completed the hike and skied Mittersill “legally” for the first time in 20 years.

The Future
Plans for Mittersill are still evolving. With no grooming or snowmaking, skiing Mittersill will continue to be a natural experience for the immediate future. Also, during the land exchange process, an agreement was reached between the State of New Hampshire and the U.S. Forest Service that limits any cutting on Mittersill above the 2,500-foot elevation to match, but not exceed, the 1989 trail and lift-line footprint. This agreement was reached in an effort to ensure the viability of the Bicknell’s thrush and other species on Mount Jackson. Because of this agreement, and the width of the lift line, any lift accessing the upper elevations at Mittersill will be a double chair. Higher-capacity lifts require a wider lift line, which does not exist in the old footprint. The addition of a double chairlift is planned for 2010–2011.

CANNON MOUNTAIN is located off I-93 in Franconia Notch State Park, New Hampshire. The Cannon Mountain Tramway (for advanced skiers/snowboarders) and New England Ski Museum are located at Exit 34B, while the Peabody Base Lodge and Tuckerbrook Family Area are located at Exit 34C: GPS N 44°10.367°¨ and W 071°41.536°¨. Cannon Mountain has 72 trails, 9 lifts and terrain for all ability levels. Cannon has the longest vertical drop and the highest lift-served terrain in New Hampshire, and boasts the state’s only aerial tramway.

For more information, contact Greg Keeler, director of sales & marketing, Cannon Mountain & Franconia Notch State Park, at (603) 823-7722 ext. 758. Online, visit www.cannonmt.com or www.iamcannon.com.