What a sleeper! Underdeveloped, uncrowded, untamed are the words most often used to describe this area located in prime snowmobiling territory, just 45 minutes south of Sugarloaf.

With a summit above 4,000 feet and the highest base lodge in New England, Saddleback gets plentiful snow. Even in a bad snow year, Saddleback is blessed with an abundance of white gold, an average of 200 inches each year. Thanks to the lack of crowds, you can find powder stashes here long after they’ve been exhausted at nearby Sugarloaf or Sunday River. The drawback to Saddleback is the lift system. The double chair serving the main core of the mountain is aged and slow, and the only way to the summit is a T-bar, with a steep, often-icy track with no escape hatches. Oh, and then there’s the wind…brrrr.

The joy of skiing and riding Saddleback is its edge-of-the-wilderness location and it’s down-home atmosphere. Saddleback remains an old-fashioned, family area, where it seems everyone knows just about everyone else. The base lodge is filled with brown-bags at lunch, and this isn’t discouraged. The lift, snowmaking and grooming crews are primarily locals who take pride in their jobs and know that if they don’t provide a good day’s skiing, their friends and neighbors will take them to task. Smiles are genuine; greetings warm.

Saddleback never took part in the rapid expansion, mega-resort-style growth of the 1990s, and that has been to its benefit. Since purchasing the resort in 2003, the Berry family, longtime Saddlebackers and area residents, have been infusing much-needed cash into improvements, upgrades and expansion, all honoring the mountain’s wilderness environment. In the past few seasons, Saddleback’s added a new quad servicing a new beginner area, new trails, glades, a halfpipe and a winchcat anchor to permit grooming of the steep upper-mountain slopes. It’s also increased capacity on the main double chairlift, expanded snowmaking, completed a much-needed renovation and expansion of the base lodge (now with espresso bar and humongous stone fireplace) and it’s paved the last section of the access road (yippee!).

But just wait! To call Saddleback’s expansion plans, now awaiting state approval, impressive is an understatement. The 10-year, $150-million plan will create an on-mountain village and add about three trails every year and a new lift every other year. Expansion will begin with the gentler terrain on the eastern edge and progress to the serious steeps on the west.

Summit elevation: 4,116 feet
Vertical drop: 2,000 feet
Base elevation: 2,116 feet

Expert: +++
Advanced: +++
Intermediate: ++++
Beginner: ++++
First-timer: ++

Dining: +++
Apres-ski/nightlife: +
Other activities: +++

Address: 976 Saddleback Rd., P.O. Box 490, Rangeley, ME 04970
Area code: 207
Ski area phone: (866) 918-2225 or 864-5671
Reservations: 866-918-2225 or (800) MT-LAKES (Rangeley Chamber of Commerce)
Information: (866) 918-2225 or 864-5671
E-mail:
info@saddlebackmaine.com
Internet: www.saddlebackmaine.com

Number of lifts: 5—1 fixed quad, 2 doubles, 2 T-bars
Snowmaking: 85 percent
Skiable acreage: 440 acres
Uphill capacity: 4,266 per hour
Parks & pipes: 1 park, 1 pipe
Bed base: 400 trailside condos
Resort child care: 8 months —8 years
Nearest lodging: Slopeside
Adult ticket, per day: $40 (06/07)