This late model Riblet was one of two similar lifts built at Cuchara in 1984.Loading area and motor room.Drive station.Riblet box tube style tower.View up the lift line.Lower part of the line.Upper lift line.View up the overgrown lift line.Looking down.Upper part of the line with galvanized chairs.View down.The final three towers.Top terminal.Breakover towers.Top terminal overview.
From what I understand, it’s on forest service land so they would need to get a permit/approval from the forest service to use it or remove it or do anything with it.
This section of the mountain is on USFS land and when Cuchara stopped making USFS lease payments, the USFS seized the lift. However, since this lift can only be accessed via private property, the USFS has no way to remove it / sell it.
Much of the private property at the base of the mountain is now public. It was purchased by Huerfano County in 2017. I suspect the Forest Service has not removed the lifts because of lack of funding and other priorities. If a suitable operator came along and wanted to reactivate Lifts 3 and 5, I think the Forest Service would work with them. The real problem is eight private owners have tried and failed to attract enough skiers to Cuchara. Twenty years later, It would take a ton of money to get all of the lifts, snowmaking and facilities back to modern standards. A project for Mountain Capital Partners perhaps but untenable for most.
This lift doesn’t look in too bad condition. Perhaps it could be salvaged, sometime in the future.
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From what I understand, it’s on forest service land so they would need to get a permit/approval from the forest service to use it or remove it or do anything with it.
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This triple chair has been seized by the United States Forest Service and all of its electronics have been stripped.
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Why was it seized?
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This section of the mountain is on USFS land and when Cuchara stopped making USFS lease payments, the USFS seized the lift. However, since this lift can only be accessed via private property, the USFS has no way to remove it / sell it.
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Looking at Peter’s photos, the “Property of the United States” sign is missing from the lift shack.
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Much of the private property at the base of the mountain is now public. It was purchased by Huerfano County in 2017. I suspect the Forest Service has not removed the lifts because of lack of funding and other priorities. If a suitable operator came along and wanted to reactivate Lifts 3 and 5, I think the Forest Service would work with them. The real problem is eight private owners have tried and failed to attract enough skiers to Cuchara. Twenty years later, It would take a ton of money to get all of the lifts, snowmaking and facilities back to modern standards. A project for Mountain Capital Partners perhaps but untenable for most.
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Cuchara’s master plan does include the possibility of opening Chair 3 if skiing is popular. No mention of reopening 5.
https://thecucharamountainpark.org/projects
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