Mount Van Hoevenberg is a mountain summit located in the

Adirondack Mountains The Adirondack Mountains ( ) are a massif of mountains in Northeastern New York which form a circular dome approximately wide and covering about . The region contains more than 100 peaks, including Mount Marcy, which is the highest point in Ne ...

in the Town of North Elba,

Essex County, New York Essex County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 37,381. Its county seat is the hamlet of Elizabethtown (CDP), New York, Eliza ...

, about 9 miles (15 km) east-southeast of the village of Lake Placid. Named for Henry Van Hoevenberg (1849–1918; not to be confused with the American football player Henry Van Hoevenberg), the mountain is best known as the location of a winter sports complex containing

bobsleigh Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of 2 to 4 athletes make timed speed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobslei ...

luge A luge () is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds Supine position, supine (face-up) and feet-first. A luger begins seated, propelling themselves initially from handles on either side of the start ramp, then steers by using the Ca ...

, and

skeleton A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of most animals. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is a rigid outer shell that holds up an organism's shape; the endoskeleton, a rigid internal fra ...

tracks, plus a network of cross-country ski trails, which was used to host events during the

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

(

) and 1980 Winter Olympics (

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

, and

biathlon The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...

). Mount Van Hoevenberg stands within the watershed of the West Branch of the Ausable River, which drains into

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...

, thence into

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

's Richelieu River, the Saint Lawrence River, and into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The southwest slopes of Mt. Van Hoevenberg drain directly into the West Branch. The northern and southern slopes of Van Hoevenberg drain into the North and South Meadow Brooks, respectively —

tributaries A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream ('' main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which the ...

of the West Branch. The mountain is part of the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA). ORDA maintains the cross-country ski and biathlon trail system originally used in the 1980 Olympics. During the summer, the mountain is used for hiking and mountain biking.

References

External links

*
"The History of Mount van Hoevenberg Ski Area"
The New York State Ski Blog.
"Van Hoevenberg Trail"
Trails.com Van Hoevenberg Ski areas and resorts in New York (state) Tourist attractions in Essex County, New York Mountains of New York (state) {{EssexCountyNY-geo-stub