King Ridge was one of the few closed ski areas I've actually skied while in operation. I had visited this area in 1991 for my birthday with some friends.
King Ridge opened in 1961 with at least a T-bar and a rope tow on about a 500 foot drop. It built its reputation on family and affordable skiing. All of the trail names had something to do with Alice in Wonderland.
In the late 1960's a double chairlift was installed to provide novice skiers with a decent vertical. But in the early 1970's King Ridge built a triple chair on the King Ridge hill. This triple was one of the first ones built in all of New England.
The ski area gradually added more trails and a few J-bars to replace the rope tows during the 1970's and early 1980's. In 1986 the area added a new triple to replace an aging T-bar.
During the early 1990's the area tried to hype its facilities as being very kid oriented. It was working, families did travel to King Ridge and had a great time. But the winter of 1994-1995 killed King Ridge, and it was sold on the auction block during the summer of 1995.
