Working at Sunday River/Sugarloaf (Gorham, Farmington: college, live in, restaurant)

[The Gringo]

Restaurant worker here, might be heading to the mountains for seasonal work.

Any tips/advice/suggestions/warnings?

Thanks!

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Get an economical full time 4WD vehicle and real winter tires. Subarus are preferred.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by The Gringo

Restaurant worker here, might be heading to the mountains for seasonal work.

Any tips/advice/suggestions/warnings?

Thanks!

You'd have to be more specific about what you want to know.

I'd only offer that the two mountains are very different in terms of atmosphere and surroundings. Sunday River is within weekend (or ambitious day trip) distance to Boston. Therefore your clientele tends to be more transient, whereas Sugarloaf is more of a "locals" mountain. Now, Sunday River isn't nearly as much of a Boston Mountain as a place like Loon, and Sugarloaf isn't nearly as much of a locals mountain as a place like Saddleback- both have mixed crowds- but as a rule, Sugarloaf is more "local" than Sunday River.

Moreover, there's a lot more in the immediate area around Sunday River. Lodging, dining and nightlife for Sunday River are divided between the base area/Sunday River Road and Bethel. It's also only 40 minutes or so from Norway/S.Paris, 30 from Rumford, and 40 from Gorham NH. It's a little more developed and spread out. Most of the shopping, dining and nightlife at Sugarloaf is in the village at Sugarloaf's base. Kingfield is the closest sizeable town and there's a good deal less to Kingfield than there is to Bethel, Bridgeton, Rumford or Gorham. Farmington is 50 minutes to an hour away. Many Sugarloaf workers live in Farmington (and Kingfield) where they attend college and commute to the mountain. I actually worked a season at Sugarloaf while studying at UMF.

So there are likely more options for a restaurant worker near Sunday River than Sugarloaf. I'd also suggest an economical AWD/4WD vehicle. Especially for Sugarloaf as the likelihood is that you'll be driving further to get to Sugarloaf and Route 27 isn't quite as well kept as Route 2/26 to Sunday River. My Impreza gets 30ish mpg and is a dream in the snow. The mpgs are important as Sugarloaf is 40 miles each way from Farmington and close to 20 from Kingfield. Bethel is 12 miles from Sunday River (and in my experience, the road is much more passable even in adverse conditions).

[The Gringo]

Would you guys recommend tire chains?

Getting another vehicle now is not feasible...

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Chains are to get you out of a mess, not to travel or commute with. Most small cars do not have enough fender well clearance for chains. Older cars and pickups have enough clearance for chains.

[The Gringo]

Thanks, looks like winter tires will have to cut it