Over the weekend the State of West Virginia broke ground on an $8 million gondola project at Hawks Nest State Park. Doppelmayr will build the fixed grip system, which will carry visitors down 465 vertical feet to the New River and be fully ADA accessible. The top drive, bottom tension design will feature three six passenger cabins in a pulse configuration. A fourth carrier will accommodate kayaks and other outdoor recreation equipment. The new gondola replaces a 1970 Hall jig-back which closed in 2021 due to safety concerns. “A whole lot of people who love Hawks Nest State Park have been waiting for the tram project,” said West Virginia Governor Jim Justice at the groundbreaking. “Hundreds of thousands of folks have created memories here on the tram over the last 50 years, and I’m excited for the next hundred thousand visitors to the park to be able to do just the same.”
This is the second gondola construction project underway in the Mountain State. A $12.4 million gondola is set to open at Pipestem State Park this fall. The Hawks Nest gondola is expected to follow in late spring 2025, completing the replacement of two iconic ropeways. Governor Justice said he expects to be among the first to ride each new gondola with his Bulldog named Babydog.
Lift Blog 
Fixed Grip Gondola? Does that mean it’s moving at the same speed as the haul rope while passengers are loading? I’m confused. 🫤
LikeLike
Yes. It will be a pulse gondola, which means it will slow to @150-200 feet per minute for loading and unloading and then speed up to @ 1000 fpm between cabin groups. Not a new concept…
LikeLike
It appears this fixed grip gondola will replace the original Hall gondola? I am happy to hear that this project has served the public true all these years. I worked on the original gondola structure fabrication while working at Hall Ski Lift Corp.
LikeLike
From the comments I have read previously, I believe the old Hall was removed or decommissioned a number of years back due to mechanical requirements and not able to get the parts needed or something like that. I really liked the look of that Hall Gondola! Kudos to you and your team at the time for the construction!
LikeLiked by 1 person