Winter 25/26 at Pico Mountain Highlighted by Infrastructure Upgrades

KILLINGTON, Vt. (March 30, 2026) – Pico Mountain, Vermont’s premier family ski resort since 1937, is completing its winter 25/26 season this upcoming Sunday, April 5th, a season that featured several brand-new programs, events, and infrastructure improvements.

On Friday, December 12th, the resort’s opening day of winter 25/26, a new ADA-compliant lift opened inside the Pico Base Lodge, allowing wheelchair access between the second and third floors of the building. Two weeks later, on Friday, December 26th, the Bonanza Carpet opened to the public, replacing the double chair that previously serviced the same beginner terrain. Both projects were completed in conjunction with Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports, as well as through a $50,000 grant from the Killington World Cup Foundation (KWCF).

Wheelchair access to the second floor of the Pico Base Lodge is achieved via the elevator in the Turtle Ridge Adaptive Center at the Andrea Mead Lawrence Lodge. From there, a clear passageway in one direction brings you to the Pico Ski Club, while the other direction will lead you through the Pico Sports Shop to the Pico Base Lodge deck. Entering the north side of the Pico Base Lodge leads you towards to the new lift, which now gives all our guests equitable access to the Last Run Lounge on the third floor.

The new Bonanza Carpet made a big impact on ski and snowboard lessons this season, for both first-timers and progressing beginners. It streamlined the learning process for lesson groups, allowing instructors to more easily and safely manage students while also removing the fear many beginners have when loading and unloading a chairlift. The regrading and addition of improved snowmaking to Bonanza 1 also paid dividends. With a less steep pitch at the top, guests were able to better control their speed, and the improved unload area at the top of the carpet made a noticeable difference compared to previous years. New snowmaking infrastructure and an added snowgun fan also kept trail conditions fresh all season long.

“The new magic carpet was magical, but we knew it would be,” said Erin Fernandez, Executive Director at Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports. “It offered another tool in the toolkit for our volunteer instructors to help get folks of all ages and types of abilities out enjoying the slopes in an easy and safe way. Reworking the pitch on the ‘Bonanza Headwall’ was a huge help as well. And now folks can also get to the third floor in the base lodge, enjoy a cocktail, live music, and all that the Last Run Lounge offers. We’re grateful to Pico Mountain for supporting access for everyBODY to these beautiful mountains and the amenities that come along with them.”

Outside of these construction projects, Pico Mountain also debuted a new program from our Upward & Outward initiative to get more local children into winter sports. Through our Vermont Youth Ski & Ride Free Lease Program, Vermont Student Pass holders from Rutland and Windsor counties (aged 11 & under) were able to receive a free seasonal equipment lease from one of six participating local retail stores. The program received great feedback from these gear shops in its inaugural season, and we look forward to continuing the program next year and garnering participation from even more families.

This season was also a particularly successful one for our Midweek School Program. This initiative invites students from local elementary and middle schools to the slopes and offers free midweek lift access and lessons. We welcomed over 660 Vermont students for ski & snowboard lessons each week from January through March, a tick up from around 515 students last season. We also added five new schools to the program ahead of this winter, with students from as close as Rutland Town and as far away as South Royalton participating. All participants received additional perks such as free rental packages for lessons, 50% off rentals for additional visits, 15% off food & beverage, and more.

Pico Mountain played host to a larger number of events this season than usual. Michelob ULTRA Race World, Pico’s weekly casual race series, drew record attendance of over 130 skiers & riders. For the first time, the Ninety-Pound Rucksack Challenge came to Pico, with close to 50 people taking on the nighttime challenge and skinning to Pico Peak. With the help of Mammut, Base Camp Outfitters, and Killington Search and Rescue, our Path to the Peak uphill program returned for a second season, featuring one course tailored for beginners and another teaching more advanced uphilling concepts. The first-ever New England Women’s Demo took place on Friday, March 20th, a sold-out affair where 80 women came together to both try out new gear and help shape the future of the outdoor gear industry. On Sunday, April 5th, this season’s closing day, we’ll be hosting an Easter Egg Hunt in our base area and a commemorative group lap from the summit at day’s end.

After we began snowmaking on Friday, November 28th, our earliest start date in years, we saw around 190” of snowfall during the season. Following this upcoming Sunday, Pico Mountain will have been open for 88 days this winter, including 19 straight operating days from February 12th through March 3rd. Over 70 people in total joined the Prospector Club this season after skiing & riding at least 40 days at Pico Mountain.

Season passes for winter 26/27 are now on sale, including a steeply discounted price on our Youth (7-18) K.A. All Seasons Pass. Guests can save over $200 versus last year’s rate when buying before June 18th, 2026.

View high-resolution images from this season here.

About Pico Mountain
In 1937 on Thanksgiving morning, a legend was born: Pico Mountain Ski Resort. Although it was humbly equipped with only a 1,200’ rope tow powered by a Hudson motor car engine, skiers – true skiers – loved it. Since then, a lot has changed, but the love for the mountain still lives today, and it’s as strong as ever. Families and skiing traditionalists now enjoy 58 trails and a terrain park serviced by six lifts, including two high-speed detachable quads. With more vertical drop than 80% of New England ski areas, Pico Mountain is your home for family mountain fun with big mountain terrain and small mountain charm. Pico Mountain, along with Killington Resort, is independently owned by a group of passionate local investors. Visit picomountain.com for more information and be social with #mypicomtn.

Contact: Josh Reed, Communications Manager
Cell: 802-770-9226
Email: communications@killington.com