Lots of new lifts at Burke Mountain but the beginner lift is not one of them.Hall bullwheel and motor room.Towers 1 and 2.Lift line view.Top bullwheel.Split towers.Tension return terminal.
For what it’s worth I believe that this was the beginner T-Bar that ran just below the Mid-Burke lodge in the years before they built the lower mountain area. Doug Kitchell moved it to the lower mountain and changed it to a J-Bar. A lot of us NEK kids learned to ski and ride on this lift.
The J-Bar will not operate for the 2024-2025 season due to a serious mechanical issue that the Receiver is not going to be able to have fixed for the season. As a result, Burke has taken the J-Bar off the snow report.
The J-Bar is back! I was lucky enough to ride it on its reopening (December 27, 2025) after a year-long closure. She got some new, fresh paint and a tune-up and ran very well and smoothly with no issues during the big holiday week. It is a popular beginner lift and is a key part of what is one of the best beginner areas I have skied. With the Magic Carpet next to it, one can easily progress from Magic Carpet to the J-Bar and then to the Sherburne Express. Thanks Peter for researching when it was initially installed as the former T-Bar (1965). I can’t believe it is 60 years old! One other interesting tidbit: the upstairs lounge in the Sherburne Lodge (that is now the Tamarack) was briefly named the “J-Bar Lounge”.
Lift Blog 
For what it’s worth I believe that this was the beginner T-Bar that ran just below the Mid-Burke lodge in the years before they built the lower mountain area. Doug Kitchell moved it to the lower mountain and changed it to a J-Bar. A lot of us NEK kids learned to ski and ride on this lift.
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The J-Bar will not operate for the 2024-2025 season due to a serious mechanical issue that the Receiver is not going to be able to have fixed for the season. As a result, Burke has taken the J-Bar off the snow report.
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The J-Bar is back! I was lucky enough to ride it on its reopening (December 27, 2025) after a year-long closure. She got some new, fresh paint and a tune-up and ran very well and smoothly with no issues during the big holiday week. It is a popular beginner lift and is a key part of what is one of the best beginner areas I have skied. With the Magic Carpet next to it, one can easily progress from Magic Carpet to the J-Bar and then to the Sherburne Express. Thanks Peter for researching when it was initially installed as the former T-Bar (1965). I can’t believe it is 60 years old! One other interesting tidbit: the upstairs lounge in the Sherburne Lodge (that is now the Tamarack) was briefly named the “J-Bar Lounge”.
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