- Powderhorn, Colorado formally proposes replacing West End.
- Off-the-grid Mt. Baker to construct a central generation facility to power numerous chairlifts once driven by diesel prime movers.
- The plan for Aspen Mountain’s Lift 1A replacement “continues to evolve.”
- The Forest Service releases a map of the proposed Nell Bell high speed quad on Ajax, which would span 8,300 feet and 2,650′ vertical.
- Over at Snowmass, crews work to build the new Elk Camp Express while the old lift continues spinning in nearly the same alignment for a few more weeks.
- The WestJet Skyride in downtown Calgary may be shortened or removed to make way for a hotel.
- Urban gondolas are catching on nearly everywhere. Why not the US and Canada?
- Repairs to Kicking Horse’s Golden Eagle Express, closed since early March, will take longer than expected due to supply chain issues.
- The Okanagan Gondola breaks ground in BC.
- Towers go in for the Mighty Argo Cable Car, set to open in March 2026.
- A soon-to-open 3S in Italy will feature automatic cabin washing, a heat recovery system and impressive 3,200 foot vertical rise.
- Doppelmayr updates its Ropeway Configurator to include new products like Stella.
- Analysis shows a new urban gondola in Norway will have lower lifecycle emissions per passenger kilometer than most other forms of transport.
- Deer Valley invites the public to watch tower flying for the upper East Village Gondola and Pinyon Express.
Author: Peter Landsman
Town of Nederland, Colorado to Buy Eldora
The Colorado town located closest to unincorporated Eldora Mountain Resort plans to purchase the mountain from Powdr Corporation by October. A signed term sheet comes after months of negotiation and work behind the scenes between Powdr and the Town of Nederland. Powdr will continue to operate the mountain for two years until a “coalition of Front-Range ski industry veterans” takes over. The town plans to quickly add summer activities, a first for the 63 year old mountain. “Nederland aims to turn Eldora into a year-round, community-driven asset– expanding recreation, sparking local jobs and outdoor industries, and weaving sustainability and social equity (i.e. workforce housing) into every run, trail, and event,” said an announcement from Nederland’s Board of Trustees. “These economic development opportunities will give the Town a long-needed, sustainable way to fund infrastructure.” Eldora will remain partnered with the Alterra-owned Ikon Pass as it has been since Ikon’s inception in 2018.
Eldora is one of five mountains Powdr placed on the market last summer. Killington and Pico in Vermont sold to a local ownership group while Mt. Bachelor, Oregon was eventually pulled off the market in April. SilverStar, British Columbia remains for sale. Powdr always planned to retain Boreal and Soda Springs in California; Woodward Park City and Snowbird in Utah as well as Copper Mountain, Colorado.
Once the Eldora acquisition is complete, Nederland plans to annex the ski area, which operates partially on private land and mostly in the Roosevelt National Forest. Annexation could add $1-2 million in annual tax revenue to the town’s general fund. Eldora’s 700 staff will eventually become municipal employees, offering new benefits to them. “To the Powdr team: Thank you for stewarding the mountain thus far,” wrote the town trustees. “We take our responsibility seriously and we are forever thankful for your belief in us to continue your legacy.”
The town plans to issue municipal revenue bonds backed by the resort’s earnings, not tax revenue for the purchase. The total sale price remains confidential. The mountain is profitable though and projections show the town could build a $10 million reserve in the first few years of ownership. “The Town will also be exploring opportunities for grants and private-sector dollars to help lower the total debt,” an FAQ noted. The sale is expected to close by the beginning of October if everything goes smoothly.
Instagram Tuesday: DirectDrive Retrofit
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Independence Day
- The owner of Cape Smokey, Nova Scotia to acquire Ski Martock, also in Nova Scotia.
- Titcomb Mountain, Maine seeks final funding to replace its second T-Bar.
- Keystone proposes replacing A51 with a detachable quad.
- Yet another excellent Deer Valley construction update.
- Mantis Ropeway Technologies to install Assistance software on five lifts in Austria to detect misloads using AI.
- The BC Okanagan Gondola project hits a snag related to water.
- Mission Ridge, Washington launches an expansion website.
- Mountain Capital Partners to buy a majority stake in four more Chilean mountains.
- Sun Valley proposes more Bald Mountain lift upgrades.
- Four Seasons, New York looks to be liquidating its ski operations.
- A storm causes an aerial tramway to derope in Dornbirn, Austria. Even the rescue ropeway de-roped, requiring the use of a helicopter to save 19 passengers and a dog.
- Skeetawk, Alaska completes preliminary geotechnical work for a proposed upper mountain lift.
- Big Moose Mountain, Maine performs similar work with the goal of returning lift service to the summit.
Park City Looks to Replace Canyons Village Cabriolet
Park City and the Canyons Village Management Association today announced plans (pending approval) to retire the aging Cabriolet, which carries guests from a lower parking lot and transit center to Canyons Village. The new lift would be a gondola, though specifics on cabin size and design will be detailed later this month. The one year build is expected to follow closely behind the Sunrise Gondola, slated to open this coming winter between Canyons Village and Red Pine Lodge.
Open air cabriolets became popular in the 1990s as a way to efficiently move guests over relatively short distances. These lifts were usually chosen to quickly move crowds between parking lots and villages. On the plus side, they’re efficient people movers and rarely stop. On the less great side, they require guests to remain standing while exposed to the elements and don’t easily accommodate bikes.
Intrawest installed four cabriolets between 1994 and 2008 (at Tremblant, Mountain Creek, Panorama and Winter Park) while American Skiing Company’s lone cabriolet debuted at The Canyons in 2000. At opening, The Canyons Cabriolet carried 3,000 passengers an hour in 40 eight place carriers. Talisker Corporation inhereted the lift when it acquired The Canyons in 2007 and Vail Resorts took over operations in 2013 while combining Park City and The Canyons into one mountain. The Cabriolet kept spinning through all this change, reliably transporting thousands of skiers each day from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm.
The new gondola would be designed to “enhance mountain accessibility for lodging guests, base and mid village area residents, and day skiers and snowboarders,” Vail Resorts said in an email to media. This opens up the possibility of an intermediate station. The new lift would also likely feature larger cabins to service the new Canyons Village Parking Structure. Park City broke ground on the expansive new garage and pedestrian plaza this spring. The first phase will open in 2025-26 with 653 parking spaces. The full five story, 1,850 stall facility is expected to debut in winter 2026-27 alongside the new gondola, again pending approval.
Residents can learn more about the project at an Open House on July 14th.
Instagram Tuesday: Argo
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Gondola Mania
- The Forest Service green lights Breckenridge to construct a Peak 9 gondola, remove A-Chair, replace C-Chair, remove Eldorado Platter and relocate Camelback Platter.
- Aspen Mountain proposes replacing Little Nell and Bell Mountain with one new chairlift.
- Another insightful Deer Valley East Village construction update.
- Park City identifies specific gondola alignments for study between Old Town and Deer Valley.
- Park City Municipal councilors and the new owner of Town Lift Plaza float replacing the existing Town triple chair with a gondola.
- I got to tour Sunrise Gondola construction at Park City’s Canyons Village earlier today.
Instagram Tuesday: High Wire Act
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Bigger Daddy
- Big White announces a CA$3 million renovation of Black Forest Express with Ridge Rocket Express to receive similar treatment next year.
- Dagmar, Ontario to lengthen the Big Daddy quad.
- Waterville Valley’s awesome ops blog shares stories of freeing a chair hung up in a comm line, sending a snowmaker cross country for a lift engine and summer preventative maintenance.
- The Bitterroot Resort property that never really got off the ground south of Missoula is for sale.
- More details emerge on possible aerial transit in Oshawa, Ontario.
- The Tennessee State Fair christens its new sky ride chairlift.
- The new head of NSAA calls for a cultural shift toward restraint bar use following a tough season.
- Sigma Cabins introduces a new logo to match sister company Poma’s rebranding.
- An update on the Los Angeles Dodgers gondola project with Leitner-Poma and Zero Emissins Transit.
- Insurer Safehold pulls out of Oregon, leaving resorts scrambling with just one carrier in the state.
- Sipapu formally announces its Lift 3 replacement (no it’s not the last of its kind in North America.)
- Chair sales are ongoing at Mammoth and Alpental.
- London’s IFS Cloud Cable Car adds glass floored cabins to increase revenue.
- Guests got stuck mid trip on Snowbird’s Tram for two hours yesterday.
Instagram Tuesday: Eight High
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
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