Lecht Ski Centre
Encyclopedia
The Lecht Ski Centre is situated on the A939 road
between Cockbridge
and Tomintoul
, on the eastern side of the Cairngorms
in Strathdon
.
The ski centre has been operating since the mid 1970s. Starting with 1 Poma
ski tow
, it has grown to a year-round highland activity centre with 20 maintained ski runs, 15 lifts and some snowmaking coverage.
The infamy of the A939 road stems from its traditional heralding in of the Scottish
winter by becoming blocked with snow
drifts. Local folklore and legend has it that this road blocks from October to June each year. This is highly exaggerated; however, a search of local traffic reports will produce several road closures each year.
Prior to the acquisition of snow blower
s in the late 1970s a small portable ski tow
was often set up in the field across from the Allargue Arms Hotel near Corgarff
just below the snow gates giving approximately 200 ft of ski run.
A939 road
The A939 'Lecht Road' connects the A96 at Nairn on the Moray Coast with the A95 Grantown on Spey, then it continues to the A93 at Ballater by way of the Grampian Mountains, passing Tomintoul and the Lecht Ski Centre.This road passes over four summits:...
between Cockbridge
Cockbridge
Cockbridge is a footbridge crossing the river Gradaščica in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia....
and Tomintoul
Tomintoul
Tomintoul is a village in the Moray council area of Scotland; until 1975 it was located in the county of Banffshire.It is said to be the highest village in the Scottish Highlands, but at is still significantly lower than the highest village in Scotland .The village was laid out on a grid pattern...
, on the eastern side of the Cairngorms
Cairngorms
The Cairngorms are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain of the same name - Cairn Gorm.-Name:...
in Strathdon
Strathdon
Strathdon is an area in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is situated in the strath of the River Don, 45 miles west of Aberdeen in the Highlands...
.
The ski centre has been operating since the mid 1970s. Starting with 1 Poma
Poma
Poma, also known as Pomagalski S.A. is a French company, specialising in construction of cable-driven lift systems, including fixed and detachable chairlifts, gondola lifts, funiculars, aerial tramways, people movers, and surface lifts. Poma has installed more than 7800 devices on five continents,...
ski tow
Ski tow
thumb|right|A rope tow or ski tow.A ski tow, also called rope tow or handle tow, is a mechanised system for pulling skiers and snowboarders uphill....
, it has grown to a year-round highland activity centre with 20 maintained ski runs, 15 lifts and some snowmaking coverage.
The infamy of the A939 road stems from its traditional heralding in of the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
winter by becoming blocked with snow
Snow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
drifts. Local folklore and legend has it that this road blocks from October to June each year. This is highly exaggerated; however, a search of local traffic reports will produce several road closures each year.
Prior to the acquisition of snow blower
Snow blower
A snow blower or snow thrower is a machine for removing snow from an area where it is not wanted, such as a driveway, sidewalk, roadway, railroad track, rink, runway, or houses...
s in the late 1970s a small portable ski tow
Ski tow
thumb|right|A rope tow or ski tow.A ski tow, also called rope tow or handle tow, is a mechanised system for pulling skiers and snowboarders uphill....
was often set up in the field across from the Allargue Arms Hotel near Corgarff
Corgarff
Corgarff is a hamlet in Aberdeenshire, Scotland in the Grampian Mountains. The nearby Corgarff Castle was used as a military barracks in the 18th century. The hamlet's primary school closed in 1998.-Footnotes:...
just below the snow gates giving approximately 200 ft of ski run.