Hiking in Poley Mountain: trails, map and practical info

Poley Mountain is located 10 km outside of Sussex, New Brunswick, Canada. Poley Mountain is well known as the premier ski resort in southern New Brunswick. The town is centrally located between New Brunswick's three major cities, Moncton, Saint John, and the capital city of Fredericton. Poley Mountain is a popular destination for skiers from the southern portion of New Brunswick and also attracts visitors from Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, particularly over the Christmas and March school breaks. The Poley Mountain Lodge, a New Brunswick icon burnt to the ground Tuesday December 9, 2014. Many were saddened by the news. The mountain has had extensive upgrades over the last decade under the direction of a group of local shareholders who prevented the sale of the mountain's lift system by purchasing the assets of the mountain in the late 1990s. The mountain has been operational every season since the purchase and averages about 100 operating days every season. In the summer–fall of 2008 the Alpine Lift (fixed grip triple) was installed which gives access to six new beginner and intermediate trails on the west side of the mountain including a new gladed run, Sous-Bois Shediac, created in the fall of 2009. The t-bar lift which used to run parallel to the Chute has been removed and will now become a mogul run for advanced skiers. The addition of the Alpine Lift resulted in Poley becoming the mountain with the greatest uphill capacity in the Maritimes. Poley is often compared to Ski Wentworth near Truro, NS and Crabbe Mountain north of Fredericton, NB as these are the two mountains closest in proximity to Poley. All three ski areas share similar characteristics in terms of skiable terrain and elevation. Currently Poley is exploring the possibility of expanding into summer operations by way of a lift accessed mountain bike park. A feasibility study has been conducted by Gravity Logic of Whistler British Columbia (creators of the Whistler Blackcomb Bike Park) and the board of directors is currently discussing the possibility at length. On December 9, 2014, the iconic main lodge of Poley was burnt to the ground, as fire crews responded to a call at 6:40pm, local time, and were finally able to control the blaze at roughly 10pm local time. Early estimates of the damage reports in the $17 million plus range. Brian Gallant, New Brunswick Premier, made a Tweet about the incident, "Saddened to see the loss of the iconic Poley Mountain lodge this evening, a true loss to N.B.,"