Loading area with Chairkit loading gates.Uni-G-M terminal and bubble opening mechanism.Chair parking rail and future home of an indoor maintenance facility.Lift overview from near the old gondola station.Lower station from above.The middle portion of the line. Big Sky can add more chairs in the future.A 6-pack chair with blue bubble, heated seats and blue headrests.View up the line from tower 6.Lower terminal with towers 1 and 2.The bottom houses the drive as well.90-degree loading.Tower 3.The bottom terminal is actually longer than the top.Another view up the line.Combo assemblies on tower 5.Tower 7.Nearing the summit.Arriving up top.The breakover.This one is a Doppelmayr Uni-G-S.Return terminal underskin.Depress towers 9 and 10.Tower 5 from above.Side view of a bubble chair.Unloading ramp.Inside a chair.The return station and operator house.Side view of the top station.
17 thoughts on “Powder Seeker – Big Sky Resort, MT”
Lucas TokarskiJanuary 24, 2018 / 11:00 pm
Hi Peter, In photo 2 you mentioned this lift had a UNI-G-M terminal. Is there a difference between the UNI-G and the UNI-G-M terminal, and what is that difference? Is it a size difference?
3 common lengths of UNI-G terminals which are S, M, and L. You can tell them apart by counting the number of windows on the sides. 21=S, 25=M, and 29=L. Bottom is an M and top is an S on this lift.
From our European friends:
• UNI-G S (Short, used on TSD4 or TSD6) ( 21 windows )
• UNI-G M (Medium, normal, used on TSD4, TSD6) ( 25 windows )
• UNI G L (Long used on TSD8, gondola 5 m / s) ( 31 windows )
• UNI-G XL (Extra Long, used on the cable cars to 6m / s ( 33 windows )
• UNI-G XXL (Extra Extra Long , used at present only on the Cairn and Caron gondolas in Val Thorens)
• UNI-G 15-seater gondola (37 panes)
I believe the only options are DT-104 and DT-108 with 104 being certified for carriers of up to 4 and 108 being certified for carriers of up to 8. At one point there was a double grip called the DT-215 that was certified for up to 15 passenger gondolas, but I’m guessing it’s obsolete with the D-Line around.
And if you look at Big Sky/Yellowstone Club as one connected trail complex (which they are) it’s 10 bubble lifts out of 44 total. More bubbles than the entire rest of the United States!
Can’t really consider The Yellowstone Club part of it as only a very very VERY select few can ski there. Of course there are more bubbles planned for Big Sky which will probably have more than the rest of the public ski areas in the US by the time the 2025 plan is done.
I think when the gondola is built the capacity of this lift should be upgraded from 1800 to 2400. The gondola will end closer to this lift than Swift Current does, so it might result in an increase in traffic and Big Sky wants to have the shortest lift lines in the Rockies.
The only times I’ve ever seen lines here are when it’s the only real terrain open in the early season, and morning powder rushes where you can blast laps while waiting on the Tram, Challenger, and the south side. I still don’t think I’ve ever waited over 3 minutes, which is an eternity by Big Sky standards to be fair. Seeker should be fine as is.
Fair point, but I do think the gondola will significantly increase traffic to Powder Seeker enough to require an increase. They would also be wise to get the capacity increased before the 6E98 bubble chairs are totally out of production. The lift itself is designed for 3200, but I don’t think that will ever be needed unless Big Sky starts getting 1M+ skier visits.
Hi Peter, In photo 2 you mentioned this lift had a UNI-G-M terminal. Is there a difference between the UNI-G and the UNI-G-M terminal, and what is that difference? Is it a size difference?
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3 common lengths of UNI-G terminals which are S, M, and L. You can tell them apart by counting the number of windows on the sides. 21=S, 25=M, and 29=L. Bottom is an M and top is an S on this lift.
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From our European friends:
• UNI-G S (Short, used on TSD4 or TSD6) ( 21 windows )
• UNI-G M (Medium, normal, used on TSD4, TSD6) ( 25 windows )
• UNI G L (Long used on TSD8, gondola 5 m / s) ( 31 windows )
• UNI-G XL (Extra Long, used on the cable cars to 6m / s ( 33 windows )
• UNI-G XXL (Extra Extra Long , used at present only on the Cairn and Caron gondolas in Val Thorens)
• UNI-G 15-seater gondola (37 panes)
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What are Doppelmayr’s DT grips sizes?
Which are on this lift.
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I believe the only options are DT-104 and DT-108 with 104 being certified for carriers of up to 4 and 108 being certified for carriers of up to 8. At one point there was a double grip called the DT-215 that was certified for up to 15 passenger gondolas, but I’m guessing it’s obsolete with the D-Line around.
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So is this a DT-108 then?
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Yes
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Did they end up building the enclosed parking barn?
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Yes, it is finished.
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Do you have any pictures of the new parking barn peter?
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I find it very interesting that Big Sky has 3 lifts with bubbles. Ramcharger 8, Powder Seeker 6, and Lewis and Clark 4.
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And if you look at Big Sky/Yellowstone Club as one connected trail complex (which they are) it’s 10 bubble lifts out of 44 total. More bubbles than the entire rest of the United States!
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Can’t really consider The Yellowstone Club part of it as only a very very VERY select few can ski there. Of course there are more bubbles planned for Big Sky which will probably have more than the rest of the public ski areas in the US by the time the 2025 plan is done.
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I think when the gondola is built the capacity of this lift should be upgraded from 1800 to 2400. The gondola will end closer to this lift than Swift Current does, so it might result in an increase in traffic and Big Sky wants to have the shortest lift lines in the Rockies.
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The only times I’ve ever seen lines here are when it’s the only real terrain open in the early season, and morning powder rushes where you can blast laps while waiting on the Tram, Challenger, and the south side. I still don’t think I’ve ever waited over 3 minutes, which is an eternity by Big Sky standards to be fair. Seeker should be fine as is.
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Fair point, but I do think the gondola will significantly increase traffic to Powder Seeker enough to require an increase. They would also be wise to get the capacity increased before the 6E98 bubble chairs are totally out of production. The lift itself is designed for 3200, but I don’t think that will ever be needed unless Big Sky starts getting 1M+ skier visits.
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Why don’t they run this in the summer if they run the tram in the summer?
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