The Kachina Peak lift was constructed in 2014 and only opens occasionally as conditions permit.The bottom terminal is a Skytrac Monarch model.Loading area.Lift line seen from the bottom terminal.Skytrac towers and chairs.Tower 1.Upper terminal seen from below.There are a dozen towers total.Upper half of the lift.The lower station seen from Highline Ridge.Top station and breakover towers.Most of the lift line.The entire lift.Breakover towers.Top unload ramp at 12,400 feet.Top station overview.View from the summit.Looking down Main Street.
The vertical rise of the lift divided by its line length makes for an admittedly imperfect measure of steepness, but is useful nonetheless.The higher the number the “steeper” the lift. The Kachina is a .46, among the highest I’ve seen. Crystal Mountain’s #6 checks in at .36-substantially less steep. Telluride’s Gold Hill lift is a.40, and is slightly bested by Telluride’s Revelation at .43. I guess it’s stating the obvious that any flat spots along a lift’s rise is a killer for the steepness rating!
The shorter the line length and the greater the vertical rise, the steeper the lift is on average. (e.g. the Beaver Run SuperChair is a .17 on that scale, and the Kensho SuperChair is a .25; the latter is 3,100 feet shorter than the former in distance traveled)
Downhill spots might also factor into the steepness rating.
I’m not sure if the Nakiska platter is a data issue, but per Peter’s stats, Kachina would be the 11th steepest lift of any kind with at least 500′ of slope length:
Lift Blog 
Steeper than Chair 6 at Crystal?
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I think Gold Hill at Telluride would be a better lift to be making comparisons to.
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Why? Chair 6 is plenty steep, and also a Skytrac.
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Only the upper half of C-6 is steep (very steep). The bottom half is pretty average. Consequently, the overall is less than you’d think.
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The vertical rise of the lift divided by its line length makes for an admittedly imperfect measure of steepness, but is useful nonetheless.The higher the number the “steeper” the lift. The Kachina is a .46, among the highest I’ve seen. Crystal Mountain’s #6 checks in at .36-substantially less steep. Telluride’s Gold Hill lift is a.40, and is slightly bested by Telluride’s Revelation at .43. I guess it’s stating the obvious that any flat spots along a lift’s rise is a killer for the steepness rating!
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The shorter the line length and the greater the vertical rise, the steeper the lift is on average. (e.g. the Beaver Run SuperChair is a .17 on that scale, and the Kensho SuperChair is a .25; the latter is 3,100 feet shorter than the former in distance traveled)
Downhill spots might also factor into the steepness rating.
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Of course now this is top of mind…
Lone Peak Tram at Big Sky is a .51. No towers certainly an indicator there!
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What about Pine Creek Express at Bogus Basin, ID? That is steep. Or the triple chair at Anthony Lakes, Oregon.
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Pine Creek is a .37 and Anthony Lakes is a .25. Not quite a .46 in vertical.
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Is this unofficially the highest operating triple chairlift in the world?
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I’m not sure if the Nakiska platter is a data issue, but per Peter’s stats, Kachina would be the 11th steepest lift of any kind with at least 500′ of slope length:
1. Goldbelt Tram, (Mt Roberts, AK, Tram 60) — 0.564
2. Platter, (Nakiska, AB , Platter) — 0.537
3. Blue Skyride, (Grouse Mtn, BC, Tram 44) — 0.53
4. Lone Peak Tram, (Big Sky, MT, Tram 15) — 0.513
5. Sulfur Mountain Gondola, (Banff, AB, Gondola 4) — 0.51
6. Honeycomb Return, (Solitude, UT, Quad) — 0.504
7. Red Skyride, (Grouse Mtn, BC, Tram 100) — 0.496
8. Jasper SkyTram, (Jasper, AB, Tram 30) — 0.484
9. Headwaters, (Big Sky, MT, Double) — 0.483
10. Scott, (Palisades, CA, Triple) — 0.475
11. Kachina Peak, (Taos, NM, Triple) — 0.47
If we limit to chairlifts:
1. Honeycomb Return, (Solitude, UT, Quad) — 0.504
2. Headwaters, (Big Sky, MT, Double) — 0.483
3. Scott, (Palisades Tahoe, CA. Triple) — 0.475
4. Kachina Peak, (Taos, NM, Triple) — 0.47
5. Tye Mill, (Stevens Pass, WA, Triple) — 0.467
6. Chair 5, (Mt. Baker, WA, Quad) — 0.465
7. Deep Termerity, (Aspen Highlands, CO, Triple) — 0.464
8. Eagle, (Park City, UT, Triple) — 0.459
9. Chair 1, (Mt. Waterman, CA, Double) — 0.442
10. Double Diamond/Southern Cross, (Stevens Pass, WA, Triple) — 0.435
(#10 i think is an average across the two sides)
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Double checking photos … I think Eagle at Park City is a data issue.
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