Catamount Ski Area is a ski resort located on Mount Fray of the Taconic Mountains in Hillsdale, New York and South Egremont, Massachusetts. Catamount is one of three ski areas in the southern Berkshires; the others are Butternut in Great Barrington, and Otis Ridge in Otis. It is one of the few remaining family-owned ski areas in New England. In addition, Catamount is home to one of the largest youth ski race programs in the Northeast.
History Fray Mountain was discovered as a potential ski area by John (Jack) Falconer Fisher in 1937/38. After earning his pilot’s license at the age of 16, Fisher flew over mountains in the region, imagining where he might create either a golf course or a ski area. Jack was from nearby Salisbury, CT, and had helped bring Lime Rock Race Track and the Salisbury Ski Jump to fruition. He had many Scandinavian friends who were ski jumpers and skiers. After talking with his friends he decided to buy a farm (Fray), and called it Catamount. In 1937/38 Jack and his friends camped out for the summer at the base of the mountain, creating trails and deciding on a vision for what would become one of the first ski areas in the country.
Catamount opened for business in 1939, with three rope tows, run by a car engine with a bull wheel attached and a rope around it, pulling skiers up the hill.
Many skiers came up from New York City on the train that then ran to Hillsdale, New York. When the skiers arrived, trucks with hay bales in them for seating met the arriving skiers and delivered them to Catamount.
In 1953 Jack married Florence (Flukie) Kendall from New York City and they had two children, Katherine and Barrie. In 1958 Florence started the ski shop.
The lodge was decorated with two large fireplaces, a gravel floor, and picnic bench tables. Additions over the next 20 years included the Ski Cat Club (modeled after "Club 10" at Sugarbush Ski Area), a racing trail with a race shed for the racers, snowmaking, four chairlifts, one T-Bar, and one J-Bar.
Brothers Bill Gilbert, Sandy Gilbert, and business partner Don Edwards purchased Catamount in 1974 and took over management, adding more trails and increasing snowmaking by 25 to 98 percent. After they retired, their sons, Tom Gilbert and Rich Edwards took over management. In 2006, the summit double chairlift was replaced with a fixed-grip quad chairlift from Belleayre Mountain Ski Center.
In May 2018 the Schaefer family of Charlemont MA, longtime owners/managers of Berkshire East Mountain Resort, purchased Catamount Ski Area. During the 2018-19 season, the main Berkshire Lodge was renovated and a new triple chair was installed on the Massachusetts side. In the summer of 2018, Catamount introduced the Zip Tour on its Catamonster, the longest zipline in America.
In the 2019-20 ski season, the new Catamount Lodge opened, with additional seating, a store, and ticketing operations. Four new trails (with snowmaking) also opened with varying difficulty.
During the 2020-21 season, the new Catamount Lodge began offering food services, with additional seating in its second floor. The old Glade double chair was removed, making way for a used triple chair in its place. Construction of this new chairlift began construction in the summer of 2021. A new trail called "Lookout" rated as a blue square/intermediate also opened.
In addition to the new Glade triple, a new quad chair called the Catamount Quad replaces the old "Catamount Double" during the 2021/2022 season. Other additions include more snowmaking, a new snow tubing park, a redesigned learning area, and more dining options.
Ticketing and Season Passes In 2018, RFID gates from Axess were installed and the Catamount Direct card was introduced. Catamount is one of the first smaller ski areas in the northeast to install this technology.
Catamount Season Passes Type Description AIM High Season Pass Unlimited access to both Catamount and Berkshire East with no blackout dates Two days at Burke Mountain and two days at Smugglers' Notch, plus 50% off additional days at both Unlimited mid-week skiing at Burke during March. 25% off non-holiday lodging at Burke Mountain Hotel and 25% off non-holiday lodging at Smugglers' Notch Midweek Season Pass Monday through Friday - day and night - at both Catamount and Berkshire East. Not valid on Saturdays or Sundays Two (2) Midweek days at Burke, plus 50% off additional days Two (2) Midweek days at Smugglers' Notch, plus 50% off additional days 25% off non-holiday lodging stays at Burke Mountain Hotel 25% off non-holiday lodging stays at Smugglers' Notch Night Wednesday and Thursday nights from 3pm to 8pm and Friday and Saturday nights from 3pm until 9pm. Access to Catamount and Berkshire East. Night skiing is typically available in late December and ends in early March.College Same privileges as the AIM High Season Pass, only for college students.
Catamount is also part of the Indy Pass which is an affordable multi-mountain pass that promotes visitation to smaller resorts around the U.S.
Summer Catamount offers three summer activities: an aerial adventure park, zipline tour, and scenic chairlift rides.
The Catamount aerial adventure park is one of the largest aerial parks in New England. It features 9 courses of varying difficulty with over 150 elements ranging from bridges, ladders, ziplines, and more. Tickets are valid for 3 hours.
The Catamount "Catamonster" zipline tour is one of the longest dual span ziplines in the United States, at just over 1 mile long. The tour includes three dual-zipline spans and a chairlift ride up the mountain. The zipline features a braking system to control the speed of the zipline, which can reach up to 55+ mph. The speed record for the Catamonster is 93.6 mph set by a staff member.
Catamount also sells 3 packs of aerial adventure park tickets and combo tickets for the aerial adventure park and zipline tour.
Scenic chairlift rides take the Ridge Quad up to the summit, which has views of the Berkshires and Hudson Valley.
Trails Skiable area: 44 trails Longest trail – Ridge Run to Upper Promenade to Lower Promenade
36 of the 44 trails have snowmaking. EasierMore DifficultMost DifficultExpertAli's Alley (n)Upper Alley Cat (n)Expressway (ns)Catapult (m)Birch Cathedral (ns)Bobcat (n, tp)Lower Alley Cat (n, rs)Christopher's LeapCat's Meow (n) Birch Glade (ns)Lower Glade (m)Lynx (m, ns) Colonel's Caper (n, night skiing only on the upper part)Catamount (n)Marty's RunRipper Echo's RunChute (n)Off Stage (m)Esplanade (n)Fisher's FlukeUpper GladeHoliday (n)Lookout (ns)Homeward Bound (n)Lower SidewinderKelli's Run (n)Mountain View (n)Lauren's RunOn Stage (n) Lower Promenade (n)Pop-Up Park (n, tp)Ridge Run (n)Toni Matt (n, rs)Ridge Run Ext. (n)ShawenonSnow Sports Learning Area (n)Sunrise (ns)Spencer's Way (ns)Turnpike (ns)Upper Promenade (n)Upper Bobcat (n)Upper Sidewinder (n) Walter's Way (n) (n) – Night skiing (on Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, and some holidays) (ns) – No snowmaking (tp) – Terrain park (m) – Normally has moguls when open (rs) - Race slope
History of trails