Friends of Mount Sunapee

Mount Sunapee, the summit rises to the left, extends south along the Pillsbury-Sunapee Highlands, as seen from Goshen, NH.

Mount Sunapee—Sunapee Mountain, as charted on federal maps—is located in western New Hampshire and rises to its highest point at 2,726 feet above sea level. Along the five-mile ridge, there are secondary peaks—White Ledges (2,716 feet), North Peak (2,290 feet) and South Peak (2,608 feet). At the northern end of the ridge is the summit, located within Mount Sunapee State Park in Newbury, NH. The state park extends west into Goshen, east to Newbury Harbor, and south along the Pillsbury-Sunapee Highlands to Pillsbury State Park.

Mount Sunapee is an iconic mountain—beloved for its natural, cultural, recreational and historical resources. On and around the mountain there are diverse ecosystems, varied forestland and important water resources; vast acreage of protected land provides habitat for wildlife and open space for public outdoor enjoyment, discovery and recreation.

In our state today many of our water bodies as well as mountains and towns recall through their names the age of Indian ancestry. Such words as Connecticut meaning "the long river"; Kearsarge, "the high place"; and Monadnock, "at the silver mountain" are derived from Algonquin words. In addition, Sunapee is said to be an adaptation of two Algonquin words which roughly translated mean "wild goose water.

-  The opening passage to "Mt. Sunapee State Park, A Comprehensive History" by Don MacAskill

Download the History in two files. (Note the file sizes.)

Check out this website for more information about Mount Sunapee:

http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Mount_Sunapee#encyclopedia 

Area Inventory of State Lands: Mount Sunapee State Park

The NH Natural Heritage Bureau produced the 2003 Natural Heritage Inventory of the East Bowl at Mount Sunapee State Park (2003).  It includes:

"A comprehensive assessment of the ecological context, land-use history and present status of the East Bowl of Mount Sunapee. An analysis of historical land use and vegetation information is combined with field survey results to (1) describe the locations of exemplary natural communities in the East Bowl with an emphasis on old forests, (2) describe the state and regional ecological significance of Mount Sunapee’s forest communities, and (3) recommend Natural Area designations. 51 pages, maps, figures, 8 color plates."

Note file size. Download the Natural Heritage Inventory of the East Bowl at Mount Sunapee State Park - 2003 (3 MB)

In 1965, Mount Sunapee State Park added the Province double chair lift and new slopes for novice skiing. It was affectionately known for more than three decades as the Province Area. In doing so, it drew attention to the historic road that once cut through the park and was traveled by native Americans and early settlers centuries before. However, after the state leased the ski area to Okemo in 1998, the Province area lost its identity. It was remapped “South Bowl Learning Center” and the lift changed to “Clipper Ship Quad.” Now many of the old Province slopes sound like south-sea resort names -- Flip Flop, Coconut Grove, Calypso, Lemon and Lime -- rather than using names that reflect the area’s unique place in New Hampshire history.

Alone, at the edge of a traffic island blanketed with frozen snow, sits a rock bearing a plaque. Situated opposite the entrance to the Mount Sunapee Ski Area it has long witnessed the change of seasons. It has stood for more than thirty years, unnoticed by most motorists who hastened by, preoccupied with their own destinations. If one were to find a convenient place to stop and walk close enough to the marker to read the inscription, one would discover a memorial to The Province Road placed by the Daughters of Colonial Wars in 1960. It reads: "The Province Road 1769 - Military Road 1754 - Scout Path 1743 - Penacook Trail.”

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