Lake Louise – Lift Blog

News Roundup: Chinook

September 12, 2025September 14, 2025Peter Landsman10 Comments

Kicking Horse’s gondola reopens after a six month closure with new hanger arms.
Vail Resorts might announce new lift projects on Monday, September 29th with fiscal year end earnings.
Arizona Snowbowl to use gondola cabins as dining rooms for five course dinners on select nights.
Colorado Mountain College in Leadville to reinstall Steamboat’s former Rough Rider platter as a training lift.
Purgatory postpones construction of the Gelande lift to next summer, citing permit delays.
Mt. Bachelor will upgrade the Northwest Express next summer with new operator houses, controls, a night drive system and expanded parking.
Alterra outlines $400 million in improvements for this season.
A Doppelmayr gondola station is set on fire in Nepal as part of widespread protests.
Doppelmayr’s first vertical RopeCon material ropeway to be built somehwere in the Americas.
The bottom terminal for Alpental’s new Chair 2 is set by Chinook helicopter.
Aspen receives county approval to build the Nell Bell detachable quad next summer.
America’s first Bike Cab gondolas arrive in Colorado.
Two people are killed when a chairlift de-ropes on Russia’s Mt. Elbrus. Videos show challenging conditions for a rope evacuation.
Lake Louise’s Richardson’s Ridge expansion to open early spring 2026, eventually will include a surface lift from Temple Lodge.
Doppelmayr reports a 13 percent increase in revenue for fiscal 2024-25, completing 93 ropeways in 25 countries. Approximately 24 percent of €1.2 billion in turnover came from the US and Canada.
Doppelmayr also reveals a contract to replace a Poma-Otis automated people mover at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.
The new gondola at Hawks Nest State Park in West Virginia nears completion.

News Roundup: Third Best

June 6, 2025Peter Landsman1 Comment

Vail Resorts reports pass sales down 1 percent in units and up 2 percent in dollars. Full season skier visits fell 3 percent (7 percent in March and April), quarterly net income rose 8.5 percent, lift revenue rose 3.3 percent, ski school revenue fell 0.6 percent, dining revenue rose 1.4 percent, retail revenue fell 10.1 percent and rental revenue fell 5.5 percent.
Colorado as a whole reports its third best season ever with 13.8 million visits.
Vermont also posts strong results with skier visits 6.2 percent over the 10 year average.
Lake Louise looks to open the Richardson’s Ridge expansion sometime during the 2025-26 season.
Monarch releases the map for the No Name Basin expansion with a lift named Tomichi. The frontside of the mountain also gets a new map.
Angel Fire shows where two new lifts will go.
Steel and aluminum tariffs increase to 50 percent as of June 4th.
An Austrian resort fits tables to chairlift restraint bars for happy hour chairlift rides with food and drinks.
A new master plan for Crescent Hill, Iowa includes replacing both chairlifts.
The Town of Mountain Village, Colorado seeks feedback for replacement gondola station designs.
A 2024 French tram crash is blamed on human error with several safeties bypassed.
Sunlight to offer retired chairs to the public through a raffle, online auction and live auction.
Hawaii’s first gondola proposal faces opposition.
Dagmar, Ontario teases major mountain investment.
Sponsored job: Mountain Designer and Planner at SE Group.

News Roundup: SLI Retirements

May 2, 2025Peter Landsman16 Comments

Big Moose, Maine hints at reviving summit lift access.
Austria’s KitzSki and SkiWelt could connect to form the world’s largest ski area.
Lake Louise cuts trails for the long-awaited Richardson’s Ridge expansion.
Hatley Pointe decommissions the SLI-built Laurel double.
Telluride seeks approval to replace its last two SLI doubles.
Big Sky to be the North American launch customer for the Doppelmayr S-Line surface lift, replacing the Bear Back Poma.
Big Sky will also enclose the Lone Peak Tram‘s top terminal this summer.
Doppelmayr releases its latest customer magazine featuring projects at Big Sky and Deer Valley.
Snowmass to keep the Elk Camp quad spinning for bikes through August 4th while work begins on its replacement.
Eldora seeks approval for unspecified projects from its master plan.
A court blocks the proposed Los Angeles Dodgers Stadium gondola for now.
Wachusett looks to sell the Polar Express to another ski area.
I stopped by Deer Valley for a quick look at the progress to build two gondola sections and four detachable chairlifts this summer.

News Roundup: Topridge

September 20, 2024September 20, 2024Peter Landsman8 Comments

Gore Mountain plans to replace the Topridge triple with a fixed quad next summer.
ORDA would relocate Topridge to Mt. Van Hoevenberg.
Grouse Mountan will hold an art contest to wrap new gondola cabins.
Another art contest to decorate retired gondolas in Park City.
Cascade Skyline Gondola proponents argue the competing Bridal Veil Mountain Resort project in BC shouldn’t be built due to spotted owls.
A young Canadian racer suffers severe injuries in Switzerland allegedly due to a malfunctioning T-Bar.
A lift maintenance worker is killed in Italy after being hit by a carrier.
A study concludes that only 9 percent of chairlift riders use safety bars in the Midwest compared with 80 percent in the Northeast.
A French resort highlights how used chairlift projects generate significantly lower carbon emissions than new.
A number of Aspen executives to retire amid sale rumors.
In Canada, Lake Louise’s new six pack will be named Pipestone Express; Mont Grand-Fonds’ will be named Lynx Express.
I joined the Low Pressure Podcast to talk about lifts.

News Roundup: D’oh!

March 8, 2024Peter Landsman6 Comments

A skier tries to jump over Lake Louise’s Top of the World Express, runs into a chair instead.
Powderhorn closes the Flat Top Flyer all week for maintenance.
Magic Mountain celebrates the last new lift opening of the year.
Epic Pass prices increase approximately 8 percent, Crans-Montana will be added subject to closing.
Ikon Pass increases a similar amount, goes back to unlimited days at Crystal Mountain, Washington.
Indy Pass adds Big Moose, Maine; Mt. Eyak, Alaska; Mt. Washington, British Columbia; Powderhorn, Colorado; Steeplechase, Minnesota; Wintergreen, Virginia and Wisp, Maryland.
Massachusetts issues an RFP for operating Blue Hills Ski Area.
A man dies aboard a chairlift at Lookout Pass due to a medical emergency.
Timberline Lodge closes Bruno’s for the season due to gearbox failure.
The world’s longest gondola is on track to open late next year in the Caribbean.
Powder Mountain hints it may alter plans to make three quad chairs private for homeowners next season.

News Roundup: On the Horizon

February 9, 2024February 9, 2024Peter Landsman37 Comments

Mountain Capital Partners successfully brings back Sandia Peak Ski Area, opening for the first time in three seasons tomorrow.
Doppelmayr plans a €200 million expansion in Wolfurt to support strong ropeway demand, particularly in North America.
The Colorado Supreme Court will hear the case of a rider seriously injured falling from Crested Butte’s Paradise Express.
A skier sues Sun Peaks for a chairlift unloading injury.
The sale of Jackson Hole to a new ownership group closes.
Mt. Hood Meadows eyes building a new Lift 15 pod in 2026 and replacing Heather Canyon in 2027.
Lake Louise continues construction over winter on a UNI-G bubble six pack for next season.
In China, an unseated passenger is successfully rescued after operators reverse a lift.
Sugarbush’s new Heaven’s Gate quad will be a Doppelmayr Tristar with loading conveyor costing $3.2 million.
Teton Pass Ski Area’s owner pens a letter explaining why he was forced to close after just four operating this season.
Mammoth Mountain’s Broadway Express is expected to close April 1st for removal and replacement.

Three New Lifts Coming to Lake Louise

September 20, 2023September 20, 2023Peter Landsman14 Comments

One week after Sunshine Village announced a new bubble chair with heated seats, Lake Louise says it will build one too. Foundation work is already underway for the Upper Juniper detachable quad, which will connect the top of the two year old Juniper Express with the Top of the World. Upper Juniper Express will be constructed by Doppelmayr Canada and open for the 2024-25 ski season. “This new lift should not only enhance accessibility to the upper mountain, but substantially alleviate base area congestion even during peak days,” said Lake Louise.

Two additional chairlifts will debut for the 2025-26 season, one a beginner lift called Sunny Side and the other an expansion behind Paradise Bowl. Richardson’s Ridge Express will service a “vast expanse of intermediate and advanced terrain,” said the ski area. Construction of the second new high speed quad will take two years with foundations installed in 2024 and steel following in 2025. The Sunny Side beginner chairlift will also be constructed in the summer of ’25. “This new chair will provide comfortable and quick access to our superb beginner terrain,” noted Lake Louise.

News Roundup: Lifts Matter

July 14, 2023Peter Landsman1 Comment

Lake Louise reopens a week after an intentionally-set fire displaced hundreds of employees.
Okemo temporarily closes due to Vermont flooding.
Lift-free Colorado resort Bluebird Backcountry fails after three seasons.
Sterling Vineyards load tests its new D-Line gondola, with wine of course.
Both Solitude and Brighton offer old high speed quad chairs for sale.
Summer operations at Brundage remain paused due to issues with the Bluebird Express.

News Roundup: The Desert

July 7, 2023Peter Landsman9 Comments

Matterhorn Glacier Ride II opens, connecting Switzerland and Italy via 3S gondola.
A fire destroys Lake Louise’s main employee housing complex, displacing 165 workers and closing the resort temporarily. Emergency relief fund here.
The State of Vermont agrees to pay $16.5 million to settle claims over its role in fraud at Jay Peak and Burke Mountain.
Vail Mountain to auction 65 retired triple and quad chairs for charity.
Lots of ski terrain gets sculpted at Mayflower next to Deer Valley.

News Roundup: Birds of Prey

May 19, 2023May 19, 2023Peter Landsman7 Comments

A pair of osprey nest atop a tower on Beaver Creek’s Riverfront Express, preventing maintenance work for now.
New York’s Olympic Regional Development Authority plans to spend $80 million on lifts and snowmaking each of the next four years.
The first 29 cabins will debut on Park City’s Red Pine Gondola June 30th with 26 more to follow next winter.
SilverStar adds 21 new cabins to the Schumann Summit Express gondola.
The first urban gondola in Canada could go out to bid in 2025.
Leitner-Poma secures a tax credit for its upcoming facility in Utah.
White Pass retires the Pigtail II double, the second oldest chairlift in the country dating back to 1958.
The asking price for closed Toggenburg Mountain drops to $1.995 million.
Leitner and Poma partner with a solar energy company to offer photovoltaic panels on detachable lift terminals.
Lake Louise formally announces the Upper Juniper Express, to be built by Doppelmayr over the next two summers.
A worker dies in a fall from an Italian aerial tramway while performing maintenance work.
Chair 2 at Snow Valley is being shortened to become a beginner lift.
Mt. Holly’s second detachable quad will be called Lightning Express.
Snowmass seeks Forest Service approval to replace Coney Glade and Cirque.
Cannon Mountain looks to announce a new tram on July 7th, the 85th anniversary of the original tram.

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