Eighth year in a row that the Mount Sunapee Duck Drop has transformed peak foliage season into an equally spectacular experience while helping children. The event has been made possible through the cooperation of Vail Corporation, the resort operator, the Boys and Girls Club of Kearsarge/Sunapee, and many other sponsors and organizations. Northcape Designs was the main coordinator this year.
The event is normally celebrated close to Indigenous Peoples Day but this year it was a week early and they lucked out with both, magnificent weather and the height of the foliage season. Besides the fun event, the views from atop Mount Sunapee were jaw dropping.
So many people attended that they had to stop duck sales by noon. From speaking to a person in the know, the event nets close to six figures for the very worthy non-profit.
The Duck Drop functions like this: you buy one or many packages of ten mini rubber ducks, each of them serialized and numbered. You then take the main Sunapee Express lift to the top. Along the route, participants businesses have placed signs or another contraption or design on the ground with a center target or a container. These are placed directly below the lift line at different intervals. You ride the chair to the top, then aim and drop the rubber ducks onto the target. Something quite difficult to do as the lift line is a good twenty feet above the target, the lift line is moving at a fast clip, and the Autumn breeze can be quite strong. The ducks often bounce out of the target, but one or two make it to the target area. At the end of the event, the duck closest to the center is declared the winner.
The day is not only a wonderful activity with the duck drops, but it is also a true Autumn festival at Mount Sunapee. Children bouncing features, games, corn hole bag games, food stalls at the main lodge and atop the summit lodge terrace, and sales at the Mount Sunapee store.
The many volunteers for the Boys and Girls Club, as well as the Vail Resorts staff, were at their best. One wonderful activity for the whole family. read more