- Telluride’s ski patrol strike ends after 13 days.
- Le Massif partially reopens with limited hours as a strike drags on.
- More than 500 people spend most of an overnight atop the Palm Springs Tramway following a technical issue, now resolved.
- Nearly 200 are rescued safely from Whitefish’s Big Mountain Express in a multi-hour rope evacuation.
- Sugarloaf’s SuperQuad goes down due to a gearbox issue.
- Leitner-Poma will build the new Canyons Village gondola at Park City.
- Anakeesta’s new LPOA gondola to be called Crystal Express.
- Doppelmayr wins the contract for Killington Snowdon with a total project cost of $7.04 million.
- Doppelmayr also will build the world’s longest urban gondola in Mexico City with 12 stations, 462 cabins and 114 towers over 9.4 miles.
- Wildcat reopens its beginner chair after a year-long closure.
- Castle Mountain’s new map shows lift expansion on Mt. Haig.
- A state evaluation following the Park City gondola mishap last week notes no mechanical malfunction but says “a gondola cabin leaving a terminal with a passenger being suspended by the foot is not acceptable and has the potential for extremely serious injuries.” During a Utah Passenger Ropeway Safety Committee Meeting, Park City’s Director of Mountain Operations Nick Dana notes “we did have a loading incident on Red Pine Gondola last week so we’re continuing to look into that and work with the manufacturer to investigate into our door monitoring switches there at top of Red Pine Gondola.”
- Also from the UPRSC, the Forest Service notes several recent chair detachments on Riblet and Stadeli lifts in Montana.
Killington
News Roundup: Plan Maps
- Cuchara, Colorado plans to open a chairlift this season for the first time in 25 years.
- The New York Times check in on Killington’s efforts to modernize and compete with western resorts.
- Club Med to build on the Soleil side of Tremblant alongside “significant upgrades to the mountain.”
- Greater Paris joins the urban gondola club tomorrow.
- After millions of dollars and years of delays trying to install a gondola, Eaglecrest faces a $650,000 tariff bill and $450,000 cabin refurbishment bill amid questions whether the project should continue at all.
- Big White, BC amends its master plan to focus on the Backcountry expansion, Gem Lake 2 and infill lifts, shelving plans for East Peak and Gem Lake West.
- Telluride’s ski patrol votes down a contract proposal; could strike in the coming weeks. Telski owner Chuck Horning contends meeting the union’s demands would yield higher lift prices.
- Alberta designates Fortress, Castle and Nakiska its first designated all season resort areas targeted for development.
- Wachusett apologizes for another delay completing the new Polar Express.
- Ecosign’s Paul Mathews reflects on designing dozens of mountains and differences between the US and Canada.
- Big Sky is auctioning seats on Explorer Gondola’s first cabins for charity.
- Powder Mountain’s new trail map shows where the private Primetime detachable quad runs.
- Cache County approves Powder’s master plan for the northern half of the resort including two new lifts on James Peak and three near Cobabe Canyon.
Killington to Replace Snowdon Triple
Killington Resort’s new, independent owners plan to spend $22 million on improvements next year, including construction of a new chairlift. Projects will include the fixed grip quad replacing the Snowdon triple, a lodge expansion, $2 million in snowmaking improvements and $2 million for new snowcats. The news comes at the end of a $38 million summer with Killington replacing the Superstar Express, installing new cabins on the Skyeship Gondola and rebuilding Skyeship’s cabin parking facility this offseason. By this time next year, The Beast’s new owners will have invested $60 million since purchasing Killington and Pico from Powdr in 2024.
The $6.5 million Snowdon Quad will load in a slightly different spot but follow roughly the same line as the outgoing triple, a Heron-Poma dating back to 1973. “The lift will feature fixed-grip chairs as opposed to detachable ones to help it stay operational during tougher weather events,” Killington noted. “This is part of a long-term strategy to maintain our network of fixed-grip lifts, ensuring reliable lift access to all areas of the mountain, even during inclement New England weather.” From the top of Snowdon, guests can access both the North Ridge Quad and Canyon Quad even if the nearby K-1 Gondola and Snowdon Six Express are closed. A manufacturer for the new lift was not announced though Doppelmayr built the new Superstar six pack this summer. Otherwise Killington operates an extensive fleet of Leitner-Poma equipment.
Construction will begin in the spring and the Snowdon Quad is expected to open for the 2026-2027 ski season.
News Roundup: Superstar
- The death toll rises to three in last week’s Mt. Elbrus deropement with the CEO and head technician detained by the Russian government.
- Dramatic video emerges from last month’s failure of another Russian single chair not far away.
- 49° North to replace its beginner chairlift with a Doppelmayr quad next year.
- In an interview, Garaventa’s CEO discusses US tariffs on Switzerland, competition with HTI and more.
- Indy Pass adds Donner Ski Ranch, California; Magic Mountain, Idaho; Montage Mountain, Pennsylvania (returning after a brief hiatus) and Leavenworth Ski Hill, Washington plus mountains in Austria and Turkey.
- Ecosign releases a book highlighting 50 years of mountain planning.
- Crystal Mountain’s summit webcam captures a slight mishap during installation of Rainier Express’ top terminal (all is well, it’s now assembled.)
- Welch Village to sell Hall double chairs next week.
- Spirit Mountain asks the public to vote on 13 possible names for its new chairlift.
- Chelan County releases its draft environmental impact statement for the proposed Mission Ridge expansion.
- Construction is well underway on Arkansas’ only chairlift.
- Stagecoach Mountain Ranch moves toward approval outside Steamboat.
- Hesperus, Colorado to remain closed this season.
- Sommet Saint-Sauveur adds a loading conveyor to the Sommet Express.
- The chairlift at Whaleback, New Hampshire may miss this season.
- Enjoy a few construction photos from Killington (both the Superstar replacement and Skyeship cabin upgrade.)
News Roundup: In the South
- Timberline begins the NEPA process for a gondola from Government Camp to Timberline Lodge, requiring less than one acre of new permit area.
- West Virginia opens the first of two Doppelmayr gondolas in State Parks.
- A paraglider survives being caught in a moving gondola in Switzerland.
- Leitner’s apple ropeway opens in Italy.
- A funicular railway crashes in Portugal, killing 16 people, with the investigation focused on the wire rope.
- Leitner-Poma and Skytrac’s parent company invests in HKD Snowmakers; will consolidate DemacLenko and HKD in North America.
- A gondola to Disneyland is floated in Anaheim with unproven technology called Whoosh.
- The last day for Cannon Mountain’s tram will be October 26th; it’ll continue running for administrative purposes.
- Black Mountain, New Hampshire reports its highest skier visits ever but also growing pains with noise complaints from neighbors.
- The Okanagan Gondola previews the view from the top of the upcoming sightseeing lift.
- Killington’s former Sunrise lodge and base of the Northeast Passage triple are for sale.
- Homewood commences gondola construction.
- Here’s what happens to a glacier-pinned lift when the glacier recedes.
- Powder Mountain walks back its map showing DMI being installed for 2026-27.
News Roundup: Moonlight West
- Moonlight West to launch in Big Sky with four lifts planned.
- Alterra all but cancels Main Lodge redevelopment at Mammoth, including gondola replacement and several base lifts.
- Here’s the latest official Deer Valley construction update and a look at how Deer Valley East was designed on a blank canvas.
- Doppelmayr goes vertical on its new Salt Lake factory.
- The President expands 50 percent steel and aluminum tariffs to more products.
- ORDA defends financial losses, citing increased revenue and visitor numberts.
- Indy Pass promises dozens of new resorts coming next week, introduces a $189 Learn to Turn pass with lessons and rentals.
- Long lost Utah ski area Snowland to reopen this season with rope tows, may add a T-Bar in 2027.
- Bigrock, Maine has Mueller double chairs for sale.
- Sandia Peak to sell rare Stadeli center pole chairs.
- Killington to auction gondola cabins from Skyeship starting Monday.
- Park City billionaire Matthew Prince suggests activist investors could break up Vail Resorts.
- Purgatory works on what it can in the parking lot while awaiting permission to build the Gelande lift.
- A Colorado unseated passenger lawsuit heads to trial.
- Ober Mountain rebrands its aerial tram as the The Gatlinburg Tram.
- I stopped by the Mighty Argo last week to check out progress on their new D-Line gondola.
News Roundup: Ropera
- Deer Valley updates its expansion site to show Lift 6 as two detachable quads (6A and 6B) instead of a six pack with mid-station.
- Vail Mountain seeks permission to replace Orient Express #21 with a six pack, swap Little Eagle #15 for a detachable quad and remove Wapiti #24.
- Leitner-Poma discusses the impact of tariffs on the SAM huddle.
- Burke Mountain emerges from nine years of government receivership with new owners.
- Mount Saint Louis-Moonstone, Ontario teases a new era coming to the Outback side of the mountain.
- Leitner introduces its next generation monocable detachable called Ropera, combining technology from Leitner, Poma and Bartholet. The launch customer will be Speikboden, Italy with a six place chairlift.
- Leitner and Doppelmayr release annual yearbooks.
- Snoqualmie unveils new renderings of the Edelweiss project at Alpental.
- A Colorado man succumbs to injuries sustained in a fall from Keystone’s Ruby Express last December.
- Powder Mountain tells the Utah tram board it’ll install between one and four new lifts this summer.
- A jury declines to award millions to a Mt. Bachelor skier who fell getting off a chairlift.
- Killington to donate and match proceeds from closing day to Whaleback Mountain’s chairlift replacement fund.
- Snow Partners to launch a new multi-mountain pass product offering three total days at six to ten Eastern resorts.
- Mt. Ashland, Oregon looks to replace the Ariel and Windsor doubles with Skytrac triple chairs in 2026.
News Roundup: Passport
- Vail Resorts reports skier visits down 3.1%, lift revenue up 3.4%, ski school revenue up 2.7%, dining up 2.2% and retail/rental down 4.0% with pass sales for next year down slightly in units.
- Burke Mountain to be sold to Bear Den Partners for $11.5 million.
- Park City explores possible routes for a Main Street-Deer Valley gondola.
- Ski Utah continues advocating for a Little Cottonwood gondola.
- Telluride seeks approval for yet-to-be-specified projects from its master plan.
- Boyne launches two multi-resort pass products good at all their resorts.
- Local artists to transform Park City Sunrise chairs into works of art to be auctioned for charity.
- Italy opens a criminal investigation into last week’s fatal tram incident involving a haul rope failure and track rope brake failure on one of two cabins.
- Steeplechase, Minnesota turns to crowdfunding to finance expansion.
- Leitner-Poma Canada is hiring lift installers for a project at Whitewater, BC.
- Loveland to operate the new Lift 7 quad as a triple.
- Killington is full steam ahead on Superstar replacement.
- Red Lodge Mountain begins repairing the chairlift involved in a fatal incident last month.
- Palisades Tahoe invites local high school students on mountain operations tours to aid with recruitment.
News Roundup: Windstorm
- Killington’s Superstar lift replacement will cancel the 2025 Killington World Cup; chairs from Superstar will move to Golden Express at Pico.
- An unseated passenger is successfully caught in a deceleration net at Killington.
- Powderhorn plans a detachable replacement for West End.
- Gunstock loses its summit chairlift for much of the holiday week due to gearbox failure.
- Silver Mountain, Idaho rope evacuates Chair 4 due to a power outage and evacuation engine failure (now back open).
- A falling tree in high wind causes a three tower deropement on the Belleaye Express at Belleayre, New York (scheduled to reopen some time tomorrow).
- The same storm leads to a deropement and rope evacuation at Pats Peak, New Hampshire (back open).
- And the roof blows off Stratton’s gondola top terminal (also back open).
- Following three recent incidents in the state, New Hampshire clarifies how its tramway oversight works.
- Brattleboro Ski Hill in Vermont closes due to an electric motor issue.
- Arkansas adopts the ANSI standard in advance of its first chairlift installation.
- Pioneer at Park City still hasn’t run this season but may soon.
- Cannon’s tramway is still on track for $19 million in upgrades.
- Sugarloaf confirms plans to install Big Sky’s former Six Shooter to replace Timberline, a two year project.
- Stevens Pass rope evacuates the new Kehr’s quad at night.
- Echo Mountain, Colorado also has a night rope evac.
- Timberline closes the Molly’s detachable quad due to damage to a tower from a snow cat.
- Tenney Mountain, New Hampshire loses its main lift due to a mechanical issue.
- Hersheypark, Pennsylvania retires its chairlift ride.
News Roundup: Shortest and Longest
- Vista Ridge, Alberta rope evacuates the Wilson quad.
- Lutsen rope evacuates the Caribou Express (*despite what the link says, customers did receive lift ticket vouchers)
- Summit Express at Keystone has been down since last Saturday.
- Both Snowcat and Bobcat are inoperable at Wildcat, New Hampshire.
- The problem with Blackcomb’s Glacier Express is gearbox-related; WB airlifts a new electric motor into the Big Red Express terminal by helicopter with minimal down time.
- A number of lifts are also inoperable at Seven Springs, PA.
- A minor holder of Vail stock calls for executive firings and publishes a detailed presentation why.
- A teenager is injured and airlifted after hitting a lift tower at Mohawk Mountain.
- Killington has looked at replacing Ramshead with a bubble lift.
- Burke Mountain removes its J-Bar from the snow report entirely.
- Sitzmark, Washington won’t open this season.
- The Forest Service green lights Brighton to replace Milly Express and shorten Explorer.
- Looming tariffs on both Canada and the European Union could impact both lift manufacturers and their customers.
- The world’s shortest T-Bar – with no towers and just five carriers – begins spinning tomorrow.
- The world’s longest gondola reaches 60 percent completion with 290 workers on site.
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