Believe it or not, Mount Kato's history dates back to the 1930s. Harvey Anderson, a local canoer and ski jumper began a search in the area for hills to develop a new ski jumping facility. This led Anderson to purchase the ski resorts the land in 1937, a time that downhill skiing was just getting started. The area would be known as Andersen’s Hill and offered five ski jumps, but hiking was still the only way to get to the top!
This would change in 1945 when they installed their first rope tow using a Buick engine and a hemp rope. They would also change the name to Ski-Haven around this same time. A few years later they would construct the first chalet using old telephone poles and would offer music and “secret recipe” barbecue.
The hill would continue to grow and brought in shareholders in the winter of 1966-1967. More capital meant the addition of snow-making, grooming, additional runs, & a host of other improvements.
In 1977 the hill was acquired by Afton Alps and renamed Mount Kato. They would continue to grow and develop Mount Kato, installing brand new Hall chairlifts.
Today Mount Kato offers 19 trails across 55 skiable acres, snow tubing, and mountain biking during the summer months.
If you want to learn more about Mount Kato's history click here to listen to a podcast highlighting it in more detail. We cannot wait to check this resort out this season, hope to see you out there!