AUBURN, Maine — We may have just entered October, but ski season is fast approaching.
It's been a busy off-season at Lost Valley in Auburn as crews have been working all summer on a major investment project that will include the debut of the ski area's third chair lift, and the first lift built since 1971.
The new chairlift will be on the left side of the hill, with the loading zone located next to the ski school area. General Manager John Herrick said the lift will shorten the distance skiers will have to travel to the lift before getting back up top. There will be less seats on this chair lift compared to the other two at Lost Valley, but it will make for a shorter ride to the top.
That's not the only work being done on the hill. Lost Valley is also improving its snowmaking capabilities on the left side of the hill, which previously relied on natural snow. New lights are also being built and raised along the trails for night skiing.
That area, Herrick said, features some of the most difficult terrain at Lost Valley, and investing into those trails will give skiers more options to explore and help spread people out during busy winter days.
“This is huge for us, for this little ski area," co-owner Scott Shanaman said. “We make snow more days than we did 40 years ago, so you've got to keep up or you fall behind. And you’re constantly trying to provide a better product for your customers".
Shanaman is not new to these major chairlift projects. He has worked on getting new lifts built at other local mountains. However, he said this is the biggest project he's taken on during his near ten years at Lost Valley.
His crews were hard at work on Tuesday building the forms for the eight chairlift towers. A lot of progress has already been made, and the new lift is expected to open at some point this season.
“We’re community-based, so we’re expanding the capabilities to make sure the kids have fun when they’re outside," Herrick said. “All the profits have been reinvested back into the ski area, and it’s evident everywhere with the snowmaking, with the inside of the lodge, now adding a new lift".
The mission of Lost Valley, Herrick said, is to teach kids how to ski and provide families in the central Maine community access to outdoor fun.
Proving family fun is also the goal of the ski area's upcoming Fall Festival which will be held on Oct. 27 and will feature family-friendly events like a 'Trunk-or-Treat'.