Loon is our closest neighbor. 6 min east of the lodge, the Kancamagus Highway crosses the Pemigewasset River and runs up to the base of the mountain, and that is Loon Mountain Resort. It is a year-round operation on the Lincoln end of Route 112, owned and run by Boyne Resorts, on ground it has held since it opened in 1966. In winter it is the nearest place to click into skis. In the warm months it is the nearest place to ride a gondola to the top of a mountain without a boot on your foot.
That gondola is the whole reason to go up in summer. The same cabins that carry skiers in January carry sightseers the rest of the season, climbing to the summit of Loon Peak in about 12 min. Up top you get a short boardwalk along the ridge, a lookout tower, and a café. Just below the summit, in the trees, sit the glacial caves. Back at the base there is a zip line and an adventure park. None of it asks much of you, which is the point. This is the outing you can do on a slow morning and still be back on the porch by lunch.
The gondola and the summit
The lift is the White Mountain Express Gondola. Four people sit to a cabin, the ride runs about 12 min, and it lifts you roughly 1,738 feet to the summit of Loon Peak at about 2,733 feet. You ride enclosed, so weather at the base is not the same problem it is on an open chair. The cabins keep running in rain. They stop for thunder and lightning, which is worth knowing if the afternoon looks unsettled.
At the top there is a boardwalk that runs along the ridge and a lookout called Herbert's Observation Tower. On a clear day the view reaches from Mount Moosilauke in the south around to Mount Washington and the Presidentials in the north. There is a summit café for coffee and a sandwich, and, for the curious, the highest disc golf course in the state. The walk along the ridge is flat and short. This is a stroll, not a hike, which is exactly what makes it a good morning for guests who want the top of a mountain without the climb.
One piece of timing matters. The last cabin down leaves the summit about 30 min before the resort closes. Miss it and your only way off the mountain is on foot, down established trails, which is a longer and steeper afternoon than anyone planned on. Ride up early, keep an eye on the clock, and you will not have to think about it.
The glacial caves
The caves are the surprise of the trip. They sit in the forest just below the summit, a jumble of huge granite boulders dropped here by the ice sheet during the last Ice Age and left leaning on one another. You do not tour them from a railing. You scramble under, around, and through them, ducking through gaps and stepping over rock. It is more fun than the word cave suggests, and it is included with a gondola skyride ticket, so there is nothing extra to buy at the top.
Two cautions. Wear closed athletic shoes, not sandals. The footing is real rock and the passages are tight. And the caves are weather-dependent. After rain the granite turns slick, and the resort will close them for a while rather than let people slide around wet stone. If it has poured overnight, ask a staff member at the summit before you head down to them. When the rock is dry it is one of the better half hours you can spend up there.
The base: the zip line and the rest
Everything else is down at the bottom, run out of the Adventure Center. The headline is a zip line that carries you out high over the Pemigewasset River. Around it there is a climbing wall, a bungee trampoline, a wilderness-themed ninja obstacle course, and, for riders, a mountain bike park with more than fifteen miles of trail and about a thousand vertical feet, plus rentals and lessons if you did not bring a bike.
Plain talk for our crowd: the base area skews young in high summer, and on a hot Saturday it can feel like a field trip. That is not a knock, it is just the scene. If you are here for quiet, treat the base as an à la carte stop. Do the zip line, skip the trampoline, and spend your time on the gondola, the ridge, and the caves, which stay calmer than the parking-lot end of the mountain.
In winter, the skiing
When the snow comes, Loon is simply the closest hill. The terrain spreads across three connected peaks with a vertical drop of about 2,100 feet and more than sixty trails, from wide beginner runs to steeper pitches for people who know what they are doing. Snowmaking covers nearly the whole mountain, which is why Loon holds a season even in a thin winter. The same gondola runs, and the newer Kancamagus 8, an eight-seat chair, moves a lot of people uphill fast.
For an unhurried cold-weather stay, the short drive is the gift. You can sleep in, be first-tracks close, ski a half day, and be back at the lodge by the fire before the light goes. Our journal has a longer piece on doing a quiet ski weekend across Loon and nearby Cannon if that is the trip you are planning.
Access, tickets, and when to go
Summer and fall operations run, typically, from spring through the foliage season, but the schedule shifts year to year and week to week, so check the resort's official hours before you drive over. Skyride tickets are ticketed and seasonal. Buy them online the night before when you can, and in foliage season reserve ahead, because the good clear-weather weekends sell through and the base lot fills once leaf traffic reaches Lincoln.
The approach could not be simpler from here. Head east out of the lodge onto the Kancamagus and the resort entrance comes up on your right in a few minutes; there is no notch to cross and no long climb to reach it. Parking at the base is free and close. Ride the first or second gondola of the day and you will have the ridge and the caves to yourself for a while, and the last cabin down will be a non-issue.
Where to stay for it
Loon is the outing you can do on a slow morning without rearranging the day. 6 min east, no notch to cross, parking free and close to the base.
In foliage season, be on the road by seven. The skyride line and the base lot both fill once leaf traffic reaches Lincoln, and the ridge and the caves are better before the midday crowd.
For the caves-and-a-scramble plan, the Pemi suite is the easy match, with room to drop muddy shoes by the door. For a quieter summit-and-back morning, Hancock does the job.
Buy skyride tickets online the night before and check the resort's official hours first. Summer operations run, typically, spring through fall, but the schedule shifts.
Bring closed athletic shoes for the caves and a layer for the top. The summit runs cooler and windier than the porch you left, even in July.
Sources & official info: loonmtn.com · loonmtn.com · loonmtn.com · loonmtn.com · loonmtn.com · loonmtn.com
— Launchpoint Lodge, From the lodge
