The Ledgewood Yurt: Back & Better Than Ever

Here at Killington, we're always on the hunt for ways to improve our guest experience. Sometimes, it’s hard to tell exactly when something could change for the better. Regarding the Ledgewood Yurt, a wintertime lunch staple at Killington for over a decade, the opportunity for improvement came knocking very suddenly. During an overnight ice storm late last spring, a nearby tree fell right through the roof of our Yurt, damaging it beyond repair shortly after it had closed for the season. Fast forward to just over 9 months later, the Ledgewood Yurt opens for the first time this winter on Thursday, January 9th, featuring a number of upgrades to highlight.

First, The Yurt is still an exclusively ski-in, ski-out culinary experience, but there is a new route for skiers & riders to explore this season. In addition to the existing entrance from the Northbrook Trail via Snowshed Slope, you can also access the Yurt from the newest addition to our trail map: the Ledgewood Yurt trail, a short blue route that our Patrol team helped cut this past summer. Located on skier’s left of High Road, check it out for yourself once the rope is dropped. Plus, if you and your crew are uphill enthusiasts, try out our newly opened uphill route on looker’s right of Snowshed Slope to get to the Yurt without any lifts.

Ski/snowboard routes to the Ledgewood Yurt are highlighted above in pink.

Next up is the building itself, which is entirely new for this season, including an improved food preparation area for our staff. Herein lies another benefit of our independent ownership—you can’t really predict when a fallen tree will damage a building, but you can be prepared to act fast after it happens. Additional funding was quickly approved to start construction on the new Yurt, part of the $38 million in capital improvements completed this past summer.

Capacity in the Yurt remains unchanged, but guest feedback led us to introduce smaller tables this season, creating a more intimate overall experience. This new Yurt was built by our Resort Maintenance team without the need for a structural column in the center of the room, giving us more options to re-configure the new 2- and 4-top tables if needed. Nearly everything you'll see inside is new, from the 30 chairs to the décor throughout the space. You’ll also notice a new Ledgewood Yurt logo on menus and signage, designed by our in-house creative team.

Perhaps most important in all this is the menu, which brings back some best sellers from years past while adding on a number of new items. Executive Chef Will Klinkenberger has dubbed this year’s menu options as “French cuisine mixed with alpine comfort.” Overall, the aim is to have a mixture of a five-course concept with a more straightforward family lunch. Most of the dairy and greens are sourced locally, with all of the remaining ingredients brought in from select local purveyors like Black River Produce and Upper Valley Produce.

Returning to the menu are many of last year’s most popular items like the Turkey Croissant, featuring McKenzie Farms turkey, a spreadable brie, a sour cherry jam, and arugula on a baked croissant. For more of the French influence, you can try out the new Truffle Croque Monsieur, similar to a traditional croque monsieur but with a distinct black truffle taste from the bechamel and the mustard. For a fresh vegetarian option, the new Wild Mushroom Bolognese brings forest mushrooms into the traditional pasta bolognese. The winter 25/26 menu also features a new cheese fondue starter, plus more soup options, including a new French Onion Soup, to warm you up on those cold winter days.

If you’re an aspiring sommelier, this year’s menu gives you brief descriptions of each of the 23 total wines offered, with some served by the glass and some just by the bottle. The Alpine Maple Toddy, last year’s best-selling specialty cocktail, returns to the menu for a second year, as well as the Yurt Maple Milkshake, a longtime favorite of Yurt guests. New for this season is the Snow Wine, a mulled wine made from a blend of 2-4 different darker red wines each day, meaning the taste of each day’s Snow Wine will be unique.

Finally, we may have saved two of the biggest changes for last. First off, the Yurt will keep its previous hours of operation (10:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.) but will now be open every Thursday through Monday beginning this Friday, January 9th through our late March/early April closing date. Lastly, the Ledgewood Yurt is now accepting reservations! Reservations can now be made online through this link to secure your table starting on our opening day this Friday. Please note that we can only accept reservations of up to 12 people at this time, and though we recommend reserving your table, walk-ins are still welcome.

Our team is excited to have this culinary staple of Killington back into the fold, and we hope you are as well. Nothing left to do now besides gathering your friends & family and planning your own trip to the Yurt!