Mitchell Hill Ski Area

Thanks to Pauline Bonneau, we first heard this small area that operated in the town of Gonic. First run by the Gonic Recreation Department from the late 1960's until the early 1970's, it was subsequently run by the local YMCA. Bad weather and the untimely death of the operator caused it to close in the late 1970's. Here's what Pauline has to say about this area:

"Mitchell Hill in Gonic, NH. That was a popular area in the late 60's and early 70's and was located off Rte 125, across from the Rochester Country Club. It operated with a rope tow and racing was held for the area youths."

"My son won his 1st trophy at Mitchell and decided that he would "like to do that for a job", today he is a professional coach for a Liberal Arts College in Idaho."

"Small hills and races prove exciting results!"

To the right is a view of the area today from Terraserver. Notice how the slope is growing in in spots. Check out pictures below for a closer view.

Daniel Levesque remembers quite a deal about this area and took the following picture. Here's his info:

A view of the area from the base. Notice the tree growth.

Mitchell's Hill in Gonic , N.H. was a small hill that was located on Grove Street. Originally , the engine for it's rope tow was at the top of the hill . This proved to be a little unsafe, and the building was always the target of vandals. After the Gonic Recreation Department stopped operating the hill in the early 1970's , the local YMCA decided to make a go of it. A large V-8 engine was brought in and mounted inside a building at the base of the hill. The rope tow was repaired and and old Tucker Snow Cat was brought in to help keep the hill "groomed". The late Bob Hale was the man in charge of running the hill. He ran it for a few years , and put a lot of energy into keeping it open and enjoyed seeing the locals enjoying themselves on weekends.

After a couple snowless winters in the late 70's and Bob's untimely death a few years later, the hill once again went quiet. My friends and I ,"The Gonic Gang" were always there to help and would occasionally get to operate the engine that powered the tow and drive the snow cat or the snowmobiles. For our time and help we usually got to ski free and got first tracks. Those were the days.

The photo's do not show the hill that well because of the trees that have filled in the slope. The face was actually quite steep and Bob usually set up a few gates for the locals. The area to the right was the "valley" and a favorite for new skiers. In the summer the hill was used by the Mitchell's for their cows.