It sits just north of the Mosquito Hill Nature Center, a few miles east of New London, where a ski jump one rested. The U.S. ski jumping championships were held at Mosquito Hill in the 1940s. The 36 acres where the View Ridge Ski Area once ran are now a state natural area. We should all be thankful for the preservation of lands like this one. It's a beautiful oasis in this part of the state.

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View Ridge opened in the 1961-1962 winter and was operated by the non-profit, Mo-Ski-Tow Inc. The club originally operated a small downhill area on Mosquito Hill, but then moved its equipment across the road after cutting the slopes of View Ridge. After years of disputes over improvements to the hill, like the additions of t-bars or chairlifts and snowmaking equipment, the area closed after the 1978-79 season. There was briefly hope for a resurrection in the early 1980s when a buyer seemed poised to purchase the land and reopen the ski hill, but it never happened.

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The hill was listed at 150 feet vertical throughout its run. The hill is heavily forested now, but it appears to be that height, with a sharp drop halfway down the ridgeline. The longest run was listed at 2500 feet, which seemed unlikely on this short of a hill. but after exploring it, the westernmost run wound around the top of the ridge and then curved back to the base. Skiers must have had to do quite a bit of double-poling towards the bottom.

 

The area had two side-by-side tows for the intermediate and expert runs and two side-by-side tows for the shorter novice runs. The novice tow equipment is still there and pictured below. For the first time, the rope itself was visible, sitting on the ground near the alley where the longer tows once stood. You can see it as well in the photos. The area also had lights and a phone system. Some of the phone equipment is also visible in the photos.

 

The hill faces north but the organizers fretted over some poor winters and even considered using "plastic snow" at one point. Fortunately for all of us, "plastic snow" never caught on and they simply relied on Mother Nature, for better or worse.

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Lost Wisconsin Ski Areas/Facebook