Instead of celebrating the grand opening of its new bike park this weekend, Idaho’s Soldier Mountain is assessing damage from a wildland fire which tore through the area. An August 5th lightning strike ignited the Phillips Fire, which has burned 1,600 acres as of this morning with only 5 percent containment. “We are heartbroken to inform you that the Phillips Fire passed directly through the heart of our beautiful mountain,” the ski area posted on its social media accounts this afternoon. “The lodge and lifts are still intact, but the bridge that gives access to the resort was destroyed. Since the fire is still an active threat, we will have to wait to further assess the extent of the damage.”
Soldier Mountain operates within the Sawtooth National Forest near Fairfield, not far from the more widely-known Sun Valley Resort. The mountain operates two 1970s Stadeli doubles in addition to a carpet lift and cat skiing operation. Soldier has been for sale since early last year.
Lift Blog 
Bummer
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Would the heat from a fire like this damage the haul rope on that lift?
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Absolutely. Depending on the amount of heat and the time length of exposure. The haul ropes will need to be inspected to determine the extent of damage.
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Well at least the lodge didn’t burn down again. Fun little pace that seems to always be hanging on by a thread. Hope they make it through this one.
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