Projects & Plans

Sunlight to Replace Two Lifts in 2025

Peter Landsman4 Comments

Two of Colorado’s oldest chairlifts will be replaced simultaneously in 2025, Sunlight Mountain Resort has announced. Primo, a 1966 Riblet double, will be replaced by a Leitner-Poma Alpha fixed grip quad. Segundo, a 1954 Heron with Riblet upgrades, will be replaced by a 2001 Leitner-Poma triple from Arapahoe Basin. The project will be the largest capital undertaking in the history of Sunlight.

“The replacement of Primo and Segundo signifies a new era for our resort,” Sunlight said in a release. “We are excited about the increased capacity and efficiency these new lifts will bring, while also honoring the legacy of Segundo, a beloved fixture of our mountain for over 50 years. Our goal is to offer an incredible and personalized experience, ensuring that while our infrastructure evolves, the essence of Sunlight remains unchanged.” Construction is set to begin this summer with the bulk of work taking place in summer 2025. Existing lifts will continue to operate for the 2024-25 winter season and both new lifts will be completed for 2025-26.

Winter Park Eyes Beginner-Focused Lift Upgrades

Peter Landsman5 Comments

As I reported on Friday, Winter Park Resort is seeking Forest Service approval for a major revamp of the Discovery Park learning zone. The project, contemplated in the 2022 master plan, has four major lift components. First the Gemini Express would be replaced by a 10 passenger gondola, allowing beginner guests to upload and download as foot passengers. The 2,400 foot long gondola would start closer to the Village at Winter Park than Gemini and unload at a new children’s ski school building, where a variety of conveyor lifts are planned. The new gondola will be a workhorse capable of carrying 3,600 passengers per hour. One reason for such high capacity is this gondola could eventually become the third section of a town-to-village gondola long envisioned as a way to reduce traffic.

Once new skiers and riders are ready to progress to chairlifts, two new options will sit near the learning center. The current Endeavour triple will be replaced by a 2,400 pph detachable quad in a shorter alignment. The Discovery double will be upgraded from a double to a short fixed grip quad carrying 1,600 skiers per hour.

The final component of the plan is a new Cooper Creek six pack. This 2,700 foot long lift would load below the bottom of Olympia Express and rise 365 feet to the Cooper Creek Summit, carrying 2,800 guests per hour. Five new beginner trails would be constructed with new snowmaking throughout. As part of the project, the aging Looking Glass double would be removed. All told Winter Park would retire four chairlifts dating back to 1966, 1984 and 1993, replacing them with three new chairlifts and a gondola.

The Forest Service is preparing an Environmental Assessment and welcomes public comments. The agency expects to publish a decision in the first quarter of 2025 and construction could begin next summer.

Breckenridge Plans Peak 9 Lift Upgrades

Peter Landsman16 Comments

A new two stage gondola and six passenger chairlift could be coming soon to Breckenridge’s popular Peak 9. The Forest Service and Breckenridge have begun scoping for the project, which would boost out-of-base capacity, better serve beginners and improve mountain circulation. A new mid-mountain learning center would be constructed, allowing Breckenridge to join the growing list of mountains moving learn-to-ski away from congested base areas.

The gondola, first proposed as a one stage gondola in the 2022 Master Plan, would load in the Peak 9 base area adjacent to the Quicksilver Super6. A whopping 43 percent of Breckenridge skiers use the Peak 9 portal and the gondola would add 2,200 seats per hour. The new lift would cross over Quicksilver and travel to the new Frontier learning center, where a cabin storage facility and two conveyors are planned. The Camelback platter would also be relocated from the base of Peak 9 to this zone. Gondola cabins would make an angle change at the learning center station and continue to an unload point near the top of the existing A-Chair. While A services excellent beginner terrain, the 1975 Riblet triple sits underutilized due to its long ride time and would be removed. The existing Eldorado platter is also slated for removal without direct replacement.

The second major component of the project is a detachable replacement for the existing C-Chair, a Riblet double that dates back to 1972. The faster six seat lift would carry 3,000 skiers per hour and follow the existing alignment, crossing under the Peak 8 SuperConnect. Both the bottom and top terminals would shift slightly higher on the mountain. The C SuperChair would rise 1,250 vertical feet become the sixth detachable lift on Peak 9.

The Forest Service and Breck plan to host an open house for the public to learn more about the project on May 22nd from 4-6 pm at the Maggie. Public comments will be accepted until June 13th and the USFS intends to reach a decision around the end of the year. If approved, construction could commence in summer 2025. The gondola learning center project is likely to be built first, followed by the C-Chair replacement in a later season.

Lift Upgrades Coming to Bear Valley

Peter Landsman9 Comments

California Mountain Resort Company has revealed its first major capital projects at newly-acquired Bear Valley. In an email to passholders, Bear Valley explained the plan includes changes to four different lifts in the main base area, improving the experience for beginner and intermediate skiers. “We’ve got some major lift improvement projects lined up for this summer, and they’re going to completely transform the Bear Valley base area,” the mountain wrote.

First, the Koala double will be removed and replaced with a used fixed grip quad. Koala dates back to 1968 and the new machine is a 1992 Poma fixed grip quad recently removed from Taos, New Mexico. For the second project, the Kuma triple will be shortened from its original length to become a beginner lift with the top station moving downhill. Kuma hasn’t been needed in its current base-to-summit configuration since the parallel Mokelumne Express opened in 2017. As part of the Kuma project, the existing Cub double will be retired. That lift dates back to 1967 and will be made redundant by the shortened Kuma chair. Finally, the Super Cub double will receive new chairs that will be easier for beginners to load. This entire lift shuffle is expected to be completed this summer and will reduce the mountain’s fleet of of aging Riblet lifts from four to two. In addition to base area projects, Bear Valley also expects to complete significant summer grooming and lift repairs in Grizzly Bowl.

Loon Mountain Announces Pulse Gondola

Peter Landsman13 Comments

New Hampshire’s Loon Mountain has made it official: a pulse gondola will join the lift fleet in 2025. The connector lift will cross the Pemigewasset River, linking RiverWalk at Loon Mountain in the town of Lincoln to Escape Route parking lot B, the Timbertown Quad and future South Peak Village. Doppelmayr USA will build the 1,300 foot machine, which will become the first pulse gondola in New England. Pulse gondolas are fixed grip lifts with pods of cabins that slow down for loading and unloading. Loon’s pulse will be configured four groupings of three cabins each. The 12 Omega IV cabin will hold up to eight riders and include floor-to-ceiling windows for views of the White Mountains.

With the South Peak expansion, Loon Mountain has nearly doubled the size of its lift fleet over the past 18 years. “Innovation and access are areas we continue to focus on,” said Brian Norton, Loon’s president and general manager. “This lift has been long dreamt of—dating back to the late ‘80s—and would not be possible without collaboration with RiverWalk and South Peak resorts,” Norton noted.

Construction on the gondola is expected to begin in spring 2025 and the lift will open for the 2025-26 winter season. Hours of operation and whether the gondola will be free or paid will be determined closer to opening.

Deer Valley East Village to Open Next Season with Bubble Six Pack

Peter Landsman9 Comments

Both destination and day skiers will gain a new option to access Deer Valley Resort next winter with the addition of a Doppelmayr bubble chairlift. The yet-to-be-named six pack will connect the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley in the new East Village to a knob above the existing Sultan Express and Mayflower lifts. The 5,800 foot long bubble lift will service both the slopeside hotel and 500 new day skier parking spaces at opening. After riding 1,240 vertical feet on the D-Line bubble chair, guests can access the rest of Deer Valley via Sultan without needing to park at Snow Park Village.

Known for now as Lift 3, the Doppelmayr six place will be the first of nine lifts to open as part of Expanded Excellence phase one. This bubble chair is distinct from Lift 7, another bubble six place under consideration by the Park City Planning Commission tomorrow evening. Lift 3 and perhaps a couple small access lifts will be completed by December 2024 with Lift 7 with the rest of the 2,900 acre phase one expansion opening for the 2025-26 season.

Deer Valley Plans Park Peak Bubble Chair

Peter Landsman12 Comments

The Park City Planning Commission is set to consider one of the first lift projects in Deer Valley’s Expanded Excellence expansion next week. The new Lift 7 would become not only become Deer Valley’s first six pack but also its first bubble chair and first D-Line lift. Though relatively short, Lift 7 will form a key link between existing terrain on Bald and Flagstaff mountains and Park Peak, the summit of Expanded Excellence terrain. In the below map, Lift 7 is the uppermost red alignment surrounded by green runs. It will be accessed from existing Ontario and Trump ski runs and carry 3,000 skiers per hour. Guests will unload near the top of the future East Village gondola and Lift 6 six pack on Park Peak.

The project currently under review includes 4.62 miles of beginner ski runs that will be among the highest elevation trails at Deer Valley, topping out at 9,285 feet. Lift 7 will include 58 bubble chairs both for guest comfort and wind protection. The top drive, bottom tension machine will ascend 624 vertical feet in just 3.5 minutes at 1,000 feet per minute. Half the chairs can be parked in the bottom terminal with the rest in an adjacent 8,500 square foot storage facility. Deer Valley proposes to install 10 lift towers ranging in height from 19 to 53 feet.

Lift 7 is one of ten lifts set to be built over the next two summers as part of Expanded Excellence, set to open in winter 2025/26. If approved, Lift 7 and perhaps other lifts could open as early as next winter. Alterra typically announces specific capital plans for all its resorts in March but has not yet done so for 2024 (the only reason we know these details about Lift 7 is because it falls within the purview of the Park City municipal Planning Commission. The rest of the expansion is outside Park City boundaries in Wasatch County.) The Grand Hyatt Deer Valley is slated to open next season and in order to be ski in, ski out, the out-of-base Lift 3 would need to be constructed this summer to connect to Sultan Express. That project would likely also be a Doppelmayr bubble six place. Other real estate access chairlifts may be constructed this summer as well. I have reached out to Deer Valley for more information on 2024 lift plans and will update if I hear back.

Ski Sundown to Build First Skytrac in Connecticut

Peter Landsman8 Comments

Ski Sundown today announced it will replace the base-to-summit Exhibition triple this offseason with a quad from Skytrac. The current Exhibition lift opened in 1977 and carries 1,800 skiers per hour. The new fixed grip lift will feature a loading conveyor and 2,400 skier per hour capacity. The new lift will reduce ride time to 4.5 minutes with speed increasing from 400 feet per minute to 450 feet per minute. It will include 90 quad chairs and span 1,999 feet.

Exhibition’s final day will be this Sunday and the new lift is expected to open for the 2024-25 season.

New Gondola Coming to West Virginia’s Pipestem State Park

Peter Landsman3 Comments

Construction is ramping up on a new six passenger gondola in West Virginia. The State announced this week the Doppelmayr pulse system is expected to be complete this fall. The lift replaces a four passenger Mueller gondola which operated from 1970 until 2023. The new lift will be fully ADA accessible and carry riders 1,100 vertical feet down into the Bluestone River Gorge. The lift will serve a wide variety of visitors from sightseers to overnight lodging guests, anglers and boaters. To accomplish this, the gondola will feature four pulses of three cabins each along with a freight carrier for bicycles and kayaks.

“Pipestem Resort has always been one of the most popular state parks in West Virginia and this new tramway is going to help us accommodate visitors and continue to offer a world-class experience,” said West Virginia Division of Natural Resources Director Brett McMillion. “As a former superintendent at Pipestem, I want to thank Governor Justice for his continued support of our state parks over these last seven years and guaranteeing that they will be enjoyed by West Virginians and visitors alike for years to come.”

Crews will soon fly out nine old Mueller lattice towers and set new tubular towers for the system. Each station will also require new loading platforms to be constructed.

Doppelmayr has a longstanding construction base in West Virginia and is also scheduled to construct a new gondola at Hawks Nest State Park in 2024-25.

The Highlands, Michigan to Replace Interconnect Chair

Peter Landsman17 Comments

The Highlands at Harbor Springs will forge ahead with another lift replacement project this summer, retiring the Interconnect Riblet triple for a faster Doppelmayr version. The new fixed grip triple will feature a height adjustable loading conveyor, RFID gates and safety bars, all of which the current triple lacks. The Alpenstar machine will move 33 percent faster and improve access to North Peak terrain. The move comes hot on the heels of this season’s debut of Camelot 6, the first bubble detachable in the Midwest and fastest chairlift in Michigan.

When the new Interconnect lift is complete, The Highlands will have replaced four aging Riblet chairlifts with new technology over just two seasons. “We are eager to upgrade our Interconnect lift with a new Doppelmayr fixed-grip design to enhance the experience for guests next winter season,” said Mike Chumbler, president and general manager of The Highlands. “With improved speed, efficiency, modern conveniences, and safety features, we are confident that this addition will help build on the overall skiing and riding adventures at The Highlands.”

For the second year in a row, Boyne Resorts has announced more new lifts at more mountains than any other North American operator. Boyne plans at least six lift projects this summer at its resorts in Maine, Michigan, Montana and Washington.