Saddleback (Maine)

Infobox ski area
name= Saddleback Maine

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location= Rangeley, Maine, United States
nearest_city= Lewiston, Maine
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top_elevation= 4,120 ft
base_elevation= 2,120 ft
skiable_area= 440 acres
number_trails= 60
longest_run= 3.1 mi
liftsystem= 5
snowfall= 200 inches/year
external_link= [http://www.saddlebackmaine.com/ Saddleback, Maine] |

Saddleback Maine is a ski resort located in Dallas Plantation, near Rangeley, Maine, on the northern slopes of Saddleback Mountain. It is one of the larger ski resorts in Maine, with over 60 trails and a network of 5 lifts (4 chairlifts and a t-bar). It is noted as an inexpensive alternative to Maine's largest ski resorts, Sugarloaf/USA and Sunday River.

Through the 1990s, the ski resort's prior owner, Donald Breen, engaged in a protracted dispute with conservation advocates over the Appalachian Trail corridor, which runs across the ridge at the top of the ski resort. Breen settled the dispute with the National Park Service, which manages the trail, in 2000, and in the fall of 2003, Breen sold most of the resort to its current owners, the Berry family, for $7.5 million.

tatistics

*Important facts [Saddleback Maine Mountain Facts [http://www.saddlebackmaine.com/html/facts.php?s=269] ]
**Number of Lifts: 5
**Quad Chairs: 2
**Double Chairs: 2
**Surface Lifts: 1

*Elevation
**Top: 4120 ft.
**Bottom: 2120 ft.
**Vertical Drop: 2000 ft.
**Longest Run: 3.1 miles
**Snowmaking: 85%

*Types of Runs
**Beginner: 33%
**Intermediate: 32%
**Advanced: 25%
**Expert: 10%

Terrain

*60 trails and glades
*Halfpipe
*Terrain Park

Family-Friendly Services

*On-site day care.
*South Branch Quad Chairlift and network of gentle terrain is separate from the other trails (except for top section).

Development

The Berry family built a new base lodge, six new trails, and a new quad chairlift (the resort's first new chairlift in 30 years) in 2004.

In 2007, the Maine Land Use Regulation Commission approved Saddleback's 10-year development plan, which calls fora major expansion of lifts, trails, vacation homes, and other facilities. ["Saddleback's 10-Year Plan Approved." [http://www.sunjournal.com/index.php?t=8&storyid=224588&subpub=61&PHPSESSID=dfb592127b8551a] Sunjournal.com. August 10, 2007.]

In the summer of 2008, a second quad chairlift is under construction to replace the Kennebago t-bar at the top of the ski area, along with new trails. The 10-year plan also calls for three new chairlifts and trail networks to the east of the existing ski area, plus two new chairlifts and trail networks to the west.

External links

* [http://www.saddlebackmaine.com/ Saddleback Maine Official Website]
* Maine [http://www.maine.gov/doc/lurc/ Land Use Regulation Commission]

References

* [http://www.meepi.org/files04/pa040204.htm/ "LURC Approves New Development of Saddleback Mountain Ski Resort," by Phyllis Austin, Maine Environmental News]