Killington

Killington is referred to as “The Beast of the East” because it is the biggest ski area in the east. A few years ago I went there and I would not disagree with the nickname. The mountain is huge. Most mountains only have one gondola, if any, but Killington has two. Most mountains top out at about 100 trails, but Killington goes beyond that with 140 trails. It is 3,050 feet from the base to the summit. Most mountains have about 10 lifts, but Killington has 22 lifts. Right now, there are 39 miles of skiing.

There are 78 trails open, about half. 12 lifts are open. You have to understand that it really hasn't been a good year anywhere in the country. Vermont has taken it especially hard. There are six peaks at Killington, and they are all open except sunrise mountain. Sunrise mountain is nothing special. It is just a small little mountain off on the side where you can ski back to your hotel or condo. On Skye Peak, there is a natural-element terrain park called The Stash. The Stash is a partially groomed, partially natural snow area. About halfway through, The Stash splits of into two trails that will meet back again. One trail is open with wooden rails and boxes, but the other trail goes off in the woods. If you go into the woods, you are skiing, or snowboarding, on a gladded terrain park.

The one thing I don't like about Killington is that there really is no town. There is a road that is a few miles long with hotels along the side. When you think of a great ski town, you think of a village that is right next to the mountain. The reason why there is no town is because there are so many people at Killington so they have a bunch of hotels for all the vacationers to stay.