Featuring in-your-face vistas of the Franconia Range, the views from the summit of Cannon Mountain ski area rank among the finest in New England.

The same can be said for the Sunset Hill House, where I stayed a couple of days on a midweek ski getaway.

Cannon Mountain and the Sunset Hill House make a perfect combo: They're only a few minutes apart.

And they complement each other nicely: When you've burned up a few muscles on the mountain, you can restore them in the jacuzzi.

Mine had a picture window overlooking the ski slopes at Cannon! New for this Ski Bum!

Skiing on the Vista Way trail near the summit of Cannon Mountain in New Hampshire's Western Slope region
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

Situated at a high point of Sugar Hill, every room at the Sunset Hill House boasts an incredible view. Innkeepers Lon and Nancy Henderson are a personable and energetic couple who own the historic hotel, which dates from 1880.

With the Franconia Range and Cannon Mountain in the background, the Sunset Hill House offers the finest views of any New Hampshire resort
COURTESY PHOTO

Socially, culturally and economically, Franconia and Sugar Hill offer a different perspective too.

Life revolves around skiing in these two towns. Skiing dominates the physical landscape and suffuses the local culture and economy.

The first ski school in America was located at Sugar Hill in 1929.

This historical marker recalls the first ski school in America, located at Sugar Hill, New Hampshire
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

The New England Ski Museum is located in Franconia at the base of Cannon Mountain.

The New England Ski Museum is located next to the Valley Station on the aerial tramway at Cannon Mountain
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

The New England Ski Museum is the finest of its kind in the region
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

America's first racing trail -- Taft Slalom -- was opened in 1933 on Cannon. In 1938, the state of New Hampshire built the aerial tramway; the idea was to spur the local economy by creating a mass market for skiing.

Bode Miller hails from here, and every local can relate a Bode story.

Bode Miller, who learned to ski at Cannon Mountain, hoists the World Cup in 2005
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO

Lon and Nancy, avid skiers themselves, have become pillars of the local social scene. And their inn caters to the schussing crowd with an onsite cross-country touring center, topnotch food, accommodations plus play-and-stay specials.

That's a viewpoint that appeals to this Ski Bum. Expect him to return soon.

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