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The FREE sledding hill in Beech Mtn.
What: Sledding Hill
Where: Beech Mtn., NC
When: November – March
Cost: Free
Photos: For photos, visit Field Trips with Sue on Facebook
For information on where to stay, shop and what to do in Beech Mtn., see our series of posts on Beech Mountain, North Carolina
The FREE Sledding Hill
Next to the Beech Mtn. visitor’s center, tucked behind a split rail fence is the Beech Mtn. community sledding hill. Sledding on the hill is free and open Nov. through mid-March, but BYOS – Bring your own sled. If you don’t have a sled, rent one from Beech Meadows Ski Rental (two doors down from the visitors center) rental sleds are $5 a day. If you’d prefer, you can purchase a sled for $10-$20. In addition, Fred’s General Mercantile (short walk) also sells sleds for $10-$20 (more on Fred’s later in this post).
There are two sides to the hill, one seemed to have more bumps, while the second was a bit smoother. There is a referee who monitors the hill to make sure visitors are adhering to the 12 and under rule and manage crowds if needed. Parents are allowed to go down with their pre-schooler, but otherwise, this is a kid’s domain. There are even clean, warm bathrooms located in the visitor’s center next door.
The sledding hill is a community affair. It is operated by the Beech Mountain Parks & Recreation Dept. The department staffs the hill with safety personnel and it’s not uncommon to see Jim Brooks, the chamber president, blowing snow. The story of how the sledding hill came about is interesting. When Fred Pfohl of Fred’s General Mercantile was mayor, a snow-gun salesman stopped into his store on the way to a sales call at the ski resort. He got to chatting with Fred, and Fred came up with the idea of buying a snow gun so the town could operate a sledding hill. Fred took the proposal to the Town Council, it was approved, the snow gun was purchased, and the rest is history.
Where to Stay
Archer’s Moutainside Inn is located about half-way up Beech Mtn. It’s the perfect central location, close to both Beech and Sugar ski resorts. The Inn offers rooms and 3, 4 and 5 bedroom vacation home rentals. During the ski season, rooms start at $80 weekday and $110 weekends and homes start at $300 for weekday and $450 for weekends. We stayed in one of the vacation homes. After full days of outside winter fun, it was nice to come home and just hang out by the fire and not worry about going out again. The boys enjoyed the novelty of swimming in the hot tub with snow all around and loved having a night time snowball fight while we cooked (ok heated up) dinner. The cabin itself was very nice and had three floors with the master on the main, two bedrooms downstairs and a loft on the third floor. A great set up to get away from the kids for a bit if you wanted. The bottom and middle floors have gas fireplaces that were a welcome site coming in from a day in the snow. I was amazed at how even the heat was in the house too. Even with the freezing temperatures outside, it was toasty inside on all levels. The only improvement I’d suggest is an upgrade to the linens and towels and a few extra blankets, although the house was warm enough that we didn’t really need the extra blankets. The next time we visit, I might consider getting two of the larger Inn rooms, especially if we’re only there for a night or two. The price is about the same (maybe even a bit cheaper) and you could just walk to Jackalope’s for breakfast – which is included with the Inn rooms – but then we’d lose the hot tub and the space to spread out.
Although we were provided a complimentary room and admissions for the purpose of reviewing (as is common in the travel industry), we only recommend places we would stay and products we would use.
