Bottom terminal in the Steamboat base area.View up from the bottom.Middle section of the line.Lower lift line.Tower head and carrier.Cabins stored for the summer.Chain-drive terminal.Return bullwheel and cabins.Lower lift line.Doppelmayr tower head.Upper lift line.Arriving up top.Inside the drive station.View down from the summit.Double DS grips and CWA cabins.Top breakover.One of three parking areas at the top station.Middle portion of the line.Lower lift line looking up.Middle part of the line in the winter.Monster depress tower.The last pitch before Thunderhead.Upper half of the lift line.Lower lift line.Lattice towers on Christie Peak.In 2017, Doppelmayr completed major upgrades to this lift including new terminal equipment, grips, hangers and depression towers.New sheave trains.More new assemblies.New gearbox, old bullwheel.New drive station equipment.The cabins are still original as of 2018 but probably not for much longer.Some of the parking system is also new with new chain conveyors.Deasonbuilt bike tray.Even some of the top terminal underskin was replaced.New cabins and old hangers.Door opening rail.New controls.Turnaround at the bottom return terminal.Lower station overview.
I’ve added photos of the major gondola upgrades, namely new terminal equipment, parking rails, grips, hangers, controls and depression assemblies. It all looks great!
The station floors look temporary (plywood) which makes me think soon too. They have quite a bit of height to work with so might even be able to go level walk-in.
It might be 1600 for a quad chair, but cabins are FAR more expensive than $1,600. I think they’re in the $30,000 range, depending on the options you get.
They are only replacing everything that wasn’t replaced in 2017. This essentially is the second phase of the renovation. I’m not sure if Intrawest had planned it exactly this way or if Alterra increased the scope of the project. Even after the 2017 upgrade, it was still about as capable as the original 1986 version. The capacity was still 2800 and the speed was only 5 m/s instead of the current standard of 6 m/s for new gondolas. The upgraded capacity will be 3600 and speed will be 6 m/s.
Benedict’s in the village has a gondola cabin for dining, although it has been refurbished to say Stratton and Benedict’s unlike the Vermont Barns cabin, which still has the original Steamboat livery.
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What were those mangled-looking hangars in the second image?
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Deasonbuilt bike carriers I think. They haul mountain bikes up in the summer.
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I’ve added photos of the major gondola upgrades, namely new terminal equipment, parking rails, grips, hangers, controls and depression assemblies. It all looks great!
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Did they give any hints on when the cabins may get replaced? Seems like it has to be soon.
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The station floors look temporary (plywood) which makes me think soon too. They have quite a bit of height to work with so might even be able to go level walk-in.
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They just announced recently (maybe even earlier today) that they will be replacing the entire gondola with a new one starting in April.
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Actually could be they are waiting to install the Bashor Gondola to get a volume discount on a huge cabin buy.
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Doesn’t it cost like 1600 a cabin? Or cheaper. plus they approved bashor gondola and the surface lifts around it.
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It might be 1600 for a quad chair, but cabins are FAR more expensive than $1,600. I think they’re in the $30,000 range, depending on the options you get.
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Yup. Most of the time a 20-30 year old used cabin will cost more than 1600 when they sell them off, so I would expect new ones to be well over that.
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Why would they bother replacing the grips and chains if they were going to replace the entire thing anyway?
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They are only replacing everything that wasn’t replaced in 2017. This essentially is the second phase of the renovation. I’m not sure if Intrawest had planned it exactly this way or if Alterra increased the scope of the project. Even after the 2017 upgrade, it was still about as capable as the original 1986 version. The capacity was still 2800 and the speed was only 5 m/s instead of the current standard of 6 m/s for new gondolas. The upgraded capacity will be 3600 and speed will be 6 m/s.
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The new gondola will have walk in cabins.
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In this picture, you can see one of the cabins (cabin 129) had been replaced with a newer CWA cabin. Is this cabin still on the new gondola line?
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That cabin is used on the new gondola in the top storage area. I think they use it for weddings.
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I think the 5th from the bottom caption is wrong. Shouldn’t it read “old cabins, new hangers”?
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Vermont Barns in Winhall, VT got one of the old Silver Bullet cabins. It is displayed on their front lawn.
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There’s also a gondola lying around the Stratton village somewhere if I remember correctly.
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Benedict’s in the village has a gondola cabin for dining, although it has been refurbished to say Stratton and Benedict’s unlike the Vermont Barns cabin, which still has the original Steamboat livery.
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There’s also one in Telluride, I came across it over the summer on the village bike run near Mountain Village, used for storm shelter.
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Wasn’t this the first 8 passenger gondola in the entire world
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