We’re excited to report that the new bridge at the resort’s main entrance is nearing completion – several months ahead of schedule!
Way back in the summer of 2011, if you’ll recall, Tropical Storm Irene dumped 5-10” of rain across New England, causing some pretty serious flooding – particularly in the White Mountains. Here at Loon, the rain-swollen east branch of the Pemigewasset River washed away a portion of the main bridge that connects Loon Mountain with the Kancamagus Highway. In the years since, a temporary two-lane bridge has provided access to the resort.
Over the last few weeks, workers have been busy wrapping up construction on the brand-new three-lane bridge, a 290-foot-long structure built to withstand severe flooding events like Tropical Storm Irene. This new, publicly-owned bridge was funded 75 percent by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 20 percent by the state of New Hampshire, and 5 percent by the town of Lincoln.
The new bridge should open to traffic by the end of July. Once that happens, crews will start to dismantle the old bridge and complete remaining work on the riverbed. The project should be completely finished before the end of the year.
To put our own stamp on the project, we erected a new Loon Mountain Resort sign along the Kancamagus Highway at the foot of the new bridge. We’re pretty stoked with how it looks, and we hope you will be, too. Come check it out when you can.
Fun fact: The new entrance sign – and the new bridge – are located 100 feet downstream from the old bridge, so you’ll now be closer to Loon than ever.
