By Marty Basch

Meghan McCarthy McPhaul’s book, “A History of Cannon Mountain: Trails, Tales and Skiing Legends’’ (History Press, $19.99, www.meghanmcphaul.com) takes skiers and snowboarders on a journey through time on the rugged Franconia Notch, N.H., state-owned ski area.

Cannon is in McPhaul’s blood; her parents first met on the Middle Hardscrabble Trail and she learned to ski there at age 3, later racing for the storied Franconia Ski Club through her mid-teens and at Ithaca College for two years. She and her husband had their first date there, got engaged at the top of Taft Slalom, and now their three children are third-generation Cannon skiers.

The mountain’s history was shaped by and helped mold many characters. The Taft Trail, finished in 1933 by the Civilian Conservation Corps, was named after local innkeeper Richard Taft. Under the guidance of Roland Peabody, the area materialized from a one lift hill with a handful of trails during the Great Depression to a Granite State player in the post-War World II era. Sel Hannah designed its early trails while Paul and Paula Valar were instrumental in developing Cannon and neighboring Mittersill ski schools. A kid named Bode Miller went from Cannon grommet to Olympic gold.

“The more I looked into it, the more I realized how important Cannon was to early American skiing,’’ said McPhaul.

The aerial tram, early ski patrol, and World Cup are also parts of Cannon’s past.

“I think the 1967 World Cup was the coolest,’’ said McPhaul. “ Jean-Claude Killy raced there. People talked about it for decades. My dad ( Red) was a gatekeeper for the women’s slalom. It was a week of big ski racing and big parties.’’