Bullock Lodge Cider House
A Regional Tourism Partnership between
Red Apple Farm and Wachusett Mountain Associates
by: Jen Shenk
If you’ve been skiing at Wachusett Mountain recently, you might have noticed something ‘new, yet old’ nestled between the trees on the lower part of the ski area, at the intersection of the Salamander Cutoff and Lower 10th Mountain Trails. Wachusett Mountain Associates and Red Apple Farm in Phillipston, which have both been working in support of regional tourism, have collaboratively reopened Bullock Lodge as a Cider House, offering skiers and snowboarders a cozy place to take a break from the cold, step back in time and have a little comfort food.
Bullock Lodge, the original base lodge at Wachusett Mountain Ski Area, is less than 1,000 square feet in size, illustrating how much the ski area has grown over the years. The Lodge was built in 1930 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the Great Depression as part of an economic stimulus package designed to get people back to work.
I've known Al Rose, owner of Red Apple Farm, for over 25 years. His sister and I were best friends growing up, working at ‘the stand’ on the farm in Phillipston when it was run by his father, Bill Rose. I’ve continued to see Al and his wife, Nancy, at the annual Apple Fest at the ski area over the years, so when I saw last year in a Worcester Telegram article that Wachusett Mountain Associates and Red Apple Farm were partnering to create something called a Cider House, I was thrilled.
Al and Nancy have done a wonderful job of turning their farm into a destination spot for families, especially in the fall. Each year when friends and I go to Red Apple Farm with kids to pick our bushels of apples, I marvel at the growth over the past 10 or so years. Al’s sister Liezel and I would see maybe 15 customers a day at the stand back in 1986 because at that time Red Apple Farm was predominantly a wholesale operation. Red Apple Farm is now a retail operation dependent on direct-marketing (and good weather to grow and sell the crop!) - a change that Al's father Bill started and one that has enabled their family farm to stay in business. Now they’ve got parking attendants, animals for petting and feeding, hay rides, wind power, and even a new facility for weddings and other events. They now see over 50,000 customers each year.
This joint effort between two local businesses creates a sort of destination within a destination. Al spoke of one coincidence after another, commenting that this venture seems to fit “just right” in so many ways. The Bullock Lodge was named for Augustus Bullock, a member of a prominent Princeton family who went on to be the Superintendent of the reservation. Although it has been vacant for over 50 years, the building needed surprisingly few repairs.
Bullock Lodge is made of fieldstone (including the floor) and has two large fireplaces, which have woodstoves in them. Al’s grandparents moved to Red Apple Farm in Phillipston right around the time when Bullock Lodge was built, which has helped Al and Nancy create a ‘back in time’ feel at the Cider House since they were able to decorate Bullock Lodge with ‘things from home’, from the era when Al’s grandparents first moved to Red Apple Farm. Al made the tables (which he converted to barstool height) out of carts made in 1928.
Many of the fixtures in Bullock Lodge came from Red Apple Farm, including the cider cooler. Al had several coolers, but sensitive to the fact that Wachusett Mountain Associates and Polar Beverages are both owned by the Crowley family, he only had one cooler he could use, because that one didn't say Coca-Cola on it. He had one he figured was neutral enough to use, which had ‘Royal Crown’ painted on the front, so that's the one he brought to Bullock Lodge to store the apple soda in. Chris Crowley, Executive Vice President of Polar Beverages, stepped into Bullock Lodge, immediately noticed the antique cooler, and pointed out that Royal Crown is known as RC Cola, which coincidentally is distributed by Polar Beverages.
The main counter at the Lodge was purchased from the Wheeler Brothers' General Store in Hubbardston. The counter, made in the 1800s, is beveled in the front. This unusual design enabled ladies of years past to get as close to the counter as possible with their hoop skirts. Although it's unlikely that any of the Bullock Lodge customers will approach the counter with hoop skirts on, since they can only reach the lodge on skis, it's sure likely that they will approach with ski boots on, making the beveled counter ideal.
Al talked extensively about the sense of place felt at Bullock Lodge, and was appreciative that the people at Wachusett Mountain Associates have been very supportive, encouraging his efforts to connect with the heritage of the area and of Bullock Lodge. Plans are in the works to make an interpretive site of the building, teaching people about the Civilian Conservation Corps and about Bullock Lodge and its history.
He spoke of the challenges of creating an intimate area within the commercial setting, complete with music in the background, and felt strongly that this should be a place where memories could be made. On opening day, as Al stood with Jeff Crowley, President of Wachusett Mountain Associates, they noticed a father and daughter sharing homemade doughnuts. Al paraphrased a famous quote while we were talking. He said that people will forget what you said and what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Al is confident that stopping in at the Bullock Lodge Cider House will make you feel good.
I spoke with Tom Meyers, Director of Marketing at Wachusett Mountain, and he said he really appreciated Al putting the “Apple” back to the Apple Fest during Red Apple Farm's busiest season. Al, who has served on regional boards such as the Johnny Appleseed Trail Association, where he serves as tourism chairman, has worked with Tom Meyers on those boards and at the ski area during the annual Apple Fest, and they both felt that this collaborative effort would add value to each of the businesses.
According to Tom Meyers, Al approached him last spring about the potential for a collaborative effort during ski season. They talked about combining the family farm aspect with an historic approach—and at that point Al hadn't even considered the Lodge. The last time he had gone in the building was during high school when he was on the Mountain's racing team. One year they let the team go inside to select a pair of ski poles (from the collection of lost poles they had stored there at the time). Al remembers getting a pair with the American flag on them. Another 20-years-later story of good customer service remembered.
Tom said he could not stress enough how huge the team effort was in the opening of Bullock Lodge. Permitting was required through the Massachusetts Historic Commission and the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). Although there were delays, the Cider House opened for business on Saturday, January 16th, during a very busy ski weekend. The day after the Cider House opened the ski area was sold out, plus there was a ‘Scott Brown for U.S. Senate’ rally held at the base lodge. Both Al and Tom commented that State Representative Lew Evangelidis, State Representative Ann Gobi and State Senator Steve Brewer were very supportive of this revitalization. The project is not without its challenges, among them the logistics of hauling supplies halfway up a mountain, but one that is worth the effort.
On opening day at Bullock Lodge, Nancy Rose spoke to a customer who said that the previous weekend her daughter had filled out a comment card in the base lodge, wondering why they didn't do something with 'that cute little stone building halfway up the mountain'. Imagine her surprise when one week later, as she was skiing down the same trail, people were coming and going and the smell of hot apple cider doughnuts filled the air. She must have thought, “Now that’s customer service”, not knowing plans had been in the works for months.
The menu at Bullock Lodge is simple with “grab and go” type of items. Customers can choose between hot and cold cider, coffee, tea and red or green apple soda, a very popular item at Red Apple Farm. The big attraction at Bullock Lodge is the homemade hot apple cider doughnuts, which are made on-site. These doughnuts are also sold in the base lodge, sans the ambience. Al noted that it's very good for business that the smell of the hot apple cider donuts being made wafts straight up to the chair lift. There’s nothing like exercise, cold weather, and the smell of baking to whet the appetite. They also serve apple dumplings, baked on-site of course, as well as chocolate chip cookies and six varieties of homemade fudge sold by the piece. The menu is reasonably priced with items generally in the $1.50-$3.00 range. They accept cash, and COW (Card of Wachusett) cards, and the only thing that will seem out of place with the historic feel of the lodge is that there is now an ATM machine.
Feedback from customers has been fabulous. There's a wow factor, especially among people who have skied at Wachusett for years, who are finally seeing some action in the building after a 50 year hiatus. All involved with both revitalizating yet keeping the heritage of the building feel the partnership is a great fit. This regional tourism partnership, combined with the ‘buy local’ mindset is a success that I'm rooting for.
This partnership seems to be a win-win-win… two businesses and thousands of tourists will benefit from what I’ll bet will be a successful collaborative effort. The current hours of operation for the Bullock Lodge Cider House are Friday from 3 to 9 PM, Saturday and Sunday 8 AM to 9 PM and every day during February vacation.