This lift runs near the previous KT-22 lift but continues past the KT-22 summit to Alpine Meadows.View down the very steep lift line.The lift follows the KT-22 spine with rocky outcrops along the line.A cabin with the lift in turnaround mode.Station with loading only on the sides.LPA terminal underskin.View down KT-22.Very tall towers 8 and 9.View from the summit.Top terminal.Unloading area.View up the entire lift line.Top terminal seen from Siberia.Future cabin parking site.View from the bottom station.The gondola crosses over both the Exhibition and KT-22 Doppelmayr quads.Loading and maze area.Drive station.View of the gondola from KT-22.Steep section of the line passing over the Mothership.The second crossing on the line.A 7 section splice tower.Side view of the top station.Loading area.Top terminal built atop fill.Breakover towers.T11.T12-13.Another tall tower.Steep lift line.Cabin 32.Carrier with views of Lake Tahoe.T10.Middle part of the lift line.Cabins are very high in the air along most of the line.View down in Olympic Valley.The lift line with sister lift Red Dog in the background.Crossing over the KT-22 detachable quad.Crossover.The gondola towers are much taller than the chairlift.View up the line.Hold down tower 7.Steep section of the lift line.Side view of a cabin with ski racks.View up at tower 4.Lower lift line.Loading area.Bottom station plaza.Towers 1 and 2.Stub rail for future parking facility.Generator at the drive station.Side view of the unloading area.Lower station seen from above.Side view of the return.A cabin passing towers at the summit.View from the top.Breakover.Cabin seen from below.Tower head.Upper half of the lift line.View up at tower 6.KT-22 station overview.
Bi-cable, 3S, funitel, tri-line… if you are going to spend $65 million on a lift, do it right. Time will tell how this lift performs in the area’s typical high winds, but it does not look promising. I will note that they wanted to please as many environmental groups as possible, and that may have been a factor in their decision to use a traditional gondola.
EXACTLY! They could’ve made this a Tri-line or Bicable, which are both much more reliable in the wind than this. Why on earth would they build such an exposed lift on one of the windswept resorts in the U.S? Also, I’m pretty sure a Bicable or Tri-line has less environmental impact because they don’t need nearly as many towers as a traditional gondola. I feel like there are SO MANY OTHER PLACES where a lift like this could be much more useful. Hell, even a full-size Funitel would be more practical than whatever this is!
Side note: Even though this lift is very inefficient and impractical, it still has one of the prettiest color schemes I’ve ever seen on an LPA lift. Definitely has better views than taking the bus. Still could’ve been better.
12/24/2022- the new $65 million gondola is still not running, despite all the hoopla Alterra Corp puts out. And Red Dod isn’t finished, sa Far East lift isn’t accessible and doesn’t run either. Red Dog face and the Dog Leg are well groomed, but skiers can’t access the trails.
Yeah I here there still working on the interconnect part of the system, it was supposed to be open 12-24?? Don’t have any details on that.
Red Dog status is exactly what I would expect. Starting a project that late with all manufactures and the few independent lift builders completely maxed out and already behind schedule on projects that started long before Red Dog.
Not to mention building lifts in the winter/snow is expensive and slow. Good recipe for construction crew burn out.
Is there a plan for cabin storage on the Palisades side, or is the building on the Alpine side going to be capable of storing all the cabins moving forward? The skier flow at the top of KT also needs to be addressed.
i find the fill at KT mid kind of annoying. I think some of the rocks have fallen out of the mesh b/c even after 400in of snow there were little rocks all over
Gabion rock baskets are known to lose material, especially if it isn’t classified prior to filling. It’s one of the most cost effective slope retention systems compared to similar solutions. I don’t think this method was used for cost reduction, but more likely a local, state, or federal requirement to use native materials on a visually exposed ridge line.
HATE IT!
It will only make Alpine more crowded, and the parking on the Alpine side more difficult. You can shuttle between the two base areas in less time than the gondola ride takes. What a waste!
Alpine Meadows was lost when it sold out to corporate interests in 1994, and allowed snowboards in 1997. (Save your hate, both my adult sons snowboard) This will prove to be the final nail in the coffin.
RIP, A.M., glad I knew you when you were low-ley, friendly, a local favorite, and the most unique place at Tahoe.
A hand charge thrown by Palisades Patrol during control work on Saturday 3/30/24 landed on an unoccupied cabin. Yet another reason to build a cabin storage facility on the Palisades side.
$65M for corporate marketing bragging rights that accesses exactly zero acres of new terrain. WTAF. Look to Park City, Christmas 2024 for a glimpse of what lies ahead for PTOV: super massive holiday crowds fueled by low cost season passes that will cause gridlock on the mtn, on the roads, and in the local towns. thousands upon thousands of tourons left with horrible experiences thanks to corporate greed. These unforgettable vacation memories courtesy of Alterra and Vail Resorts!
Seriously, If this were a Bicable or Tricable gondola, it’d be much more efficient and practical! The universe gave you options, Palisades, and you chose to drop 65 MILLION FREAKING DOLLARS on a gondola that is inefficient and impractical. They could’ve easily made this lift the Gondola to Town that was planned at Winter Park. And yet they built a super unstable gondola at the windiest resort on the west coast just for bragging rights. WTAF Alterra
If I am not mistaken wasnt a lot of this really bad planning from the previous owners and boar of directors. For god sake they STILL keep trying to build a stupid waterpark that removes half of the parking for skiing RIGHT NEXT TO A GIANT LAKE KNOWN FOR WATERSPORTS. Why would you ever go to a stupid waterpark when you are right next to Lake Tahoe? I dont think the people running Palisades have any idea what they are doing.
Lift Blog 
Those are some very tall towers! I can’t wait to ride this lift soon
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I always how they’ll rope-evac people from cabins on the tall spans, particularly around the KT-22 crossing.
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It seems that Palisades has all of the 12S assemblies that LPOA has ever made between this gondola and Siberia.
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Just imagine what this $65M could have been spent on to improve the skiing experience rather than a connection that will cut people off in high winds.
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this would have been the perfect use case for the new Doppelmayr TRI-line.
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Bi-cable, 3S, funitel, tri-line… if you are going to spend $65 million on a lift, do it right. Time will tell how this lift performs in the area’s typical high winds, but it does not look promising. I will note that they wanted to please as many environmental groups as possible, and that may have been a factor in their decision to use a traditional gondola.
LikeLiked by 1 person
EXACTLY! They could’ve made this a Tri-line or Bicable, which are both much more reliable in the wind than this. Why on earth would they build such an exposed lift on one of the windswept resorts in the U.S? Also, I’m pretty sure a Bicable or Tri-line has less environmental impact because they don’t need nearly as many towers as a traditional gondola. I feel like there are SO MANY OTHER PLACES where a lift like this could be much more useful. Hell, even a full-size Funitel would be more practical than whatever this is!
Side note: Even though this lift is very inefficient and impractical, it still has one of the prettiest color schemes I’ve ever seen on an LPA lift. Definitely has better views than taking the bus. Still could’ve been better.
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That retaining wall at the KT-22 station probably cost $5 million on its own…
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Oh yeah! I built that! Looks awesome!
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12/24/2022- the new $65 million gondola is still not running, despite all the hoopla Alterra Corp puts out. And Red Dod isn’t finished, sa Far East lift isn’t accessible and doesn’t run either. Red Dog face and the Dog Leg are well groomed, but skiers can’t access the trails.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah I here there still working on the interconnect part of the system, it was supposed to be open 12-24?? Don’t have any details on that.
Red Dog status is exactly what I would expect. Starting a project that late with all manufactures and the few independent lift builders completely maxed out and already behind schedule on projects that started long before Red Dog.
Not to mention building lifts in the winter/snow is expensive and slow. Good recipe for construction crew burn out.
LikeLike
Is there a plan for cabin storage on the Palisades side, or is the building on the Alpine side going to be capable of storing all the cabins moving forward? The skier flow at the top of KT also needs to be addressed.
LikeLike
i find the fill at KT mid kind of annoying. I think some of the rocks have fallen out of the mesh b/c even after 400in of snow there were little rocks all over
LikeLike
Gabion rock baskets are known to lose material, especially if it isn’t classified prior to filling. It’s one of the most cost effective slope retention systems compared to similar solutions. I don’t think this method was used for cost reduction, but more likely a local, state, or federal requirement to use native materials on a visually exposed ridge line.
LikeLiked by 1 person
HATE IT!
It will only make Alpine more crowded, and the parking on the Alpine side more difficult. You can shuttle between the two base areas in less time than the gondola ride takes. What a waste!
Alpine Meadows was lost when it sold out to corporate interests in 1994, and allowed snowboards in 1997. (Save your hate, both my adult sons snowboard) This will prove to be the final nail in the coffin.
RIP, A.M., glad I knew you when you were low-ley, friendly, a local favorite, and the most unique place at Tahoe.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I generally like the look of Doppelmayr lifts more than LPOA, but these terminals look really good in all black
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A hand charge thrown by Palisades Patrol during control work on Saturday 3/30/24 landed on an unoccupied cabin. Yet another reason to build a cabin storage facility on the Palisades side.
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I heard about this, still haven’t seen any pictures but allegedly it looks about as bad as you might imagine.
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$65M for corporate marketing bragging rights that accesses exactly zero acres of new terrain. WTAF. Look to Park City, Christmas 2024 for a glimpse of what lies ahead for PTOV: super massive holiday crowds fueled by low cost season passes that will cause gridlock on the mtn, on the roads, and in the local towns. thousands upon thousands of tourons left with horrible experiences thanks to corporate greed. These unforgettable vacation memories courtesy of Alterra and Vail Resorts!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Seriously, If this were a Bicable or Tricable gondola, it’d be much more efficient and practical! The universe gave you options, Palisades, and you chose to drop 65 MILLION FREAKING DOLLARS on a gondola that is inefficient and impractical. They could’ve easily made this lift the Gondola to Town that was planned at Winter Park. And yet they built a super unstable gondola at the windiest resort on the west coast just for bragging rights. WTAF Alterra
LikeLike
If I am not mistaken wasnt a lot of this really bad planning from the previous owners and boar of directors. For god sake they STILL keep trying to build a stupid waterpark that removes half of the parking for skiing RIGHT NEXT TO A GIANT LAKE KNOWN FOR WATERSPORTS. Why would you ever go to a stupid waterpark when you are right next to Lake Tahoe? I dont think the people running Palisades have any idea what they are doing.
LikeLiked by 2 people