- Indy Pass adds Smugglers’ Notch, Vermont; Mt. Pisgah, New York; Winter4Kids, New Jersey; Spring Mountain, Pennsylvania; Veterans Memorial, New Hampshire and Ski Saint-Bruno, Quebec plus new international partners.
- Ikon Pass adds Caberfae Peaks, Michigan and Snowy Range, Wyoming as two day bonus mountains alongside new Asia partners.
- Manning Park. BC’s new master plan includes replacements for Blue and the T-Bar as well as a new terrain pod.
- 5,800 acres surrounding closed Big Tupper, New York to go up for auction.
- A pivotal vote regarding the proposed Rock City, Georgia gondola to take place September 21st.
- Canada imposes new tariffs on certain US goods including chairlifts, surface lifts and funiculars.
- Developers break ground on Aspen’s new Lift One base area with completion expected in 2030.
- A hotel project causes a gondola tower to shift in Romania.
- New carrier auctions: gondola cabins in Telluride, chairs from Seven Springs.
- Alterra outlines $350 million in CapEx this year.
- Wisp replaces two towers on Lift 4.
- A gondola could link Québec City and Lévis over the St. Lawrence River.
- An activist investor nominates a slate of candidates for the Vail Resorts board.
- A criminal investigation is opened following a chairlift death at Vorlage, Quebec last winter, though no charges have been filed.
Seven Springs
Vail Resorts Announces New Lifts for Blackcomb & Seven Springs
The world’s largest mountain operator today revealed two incremental lift projects for 2026, bringing the total to three. At Whistler Blackcomb, Vail plans to replace the Showcase T-Bar with a fixed grip chairlift, subject to government approval. Across the continent, another fixed quad will replace the Blitzen triple at Seven Springs, Pennsylvania. The two projects join the previously-announced Canyons Village gondola at Park City as part of Vail’s $234 to $239 million capital plan for ’26. By comparison, Vail built four new detachable lifts in 2025 at Perisher, Australia; Andermatt-Sedrun, Switzerland and Park City, Utah as part of a $249 million to $254 million capital plan. Vail operates just over 300 overhead cable lifts at 42 resorts as of this winter.
Opened in 1988, the Showcase T-Bar crests the upper part of Horstman Glacier near Blackcomb Peak. For much of its history, the T-Bar ran throughout winter, spring and summer; servicing a wide variety of terrain. In recent years, glacial recession caused the Doppelmayr T-Bar to operate sporadically. Three of Showcase’s towers are pinned on ice, requiring periodic maintenance and repair. When snow levels drop too low, the track becomes too steep for safe riding. Vail removed the nearby Horstman T-Bar without replacement in 2020 due to recession on the lower part of the glacier.
Now Whistler Blackcomb has a long-term plan. The new chairlift will follow a longer alignment off the ice. It will shift north and continue to service the glacier without running on top of it. The lift is expected to be in place by the beginning of the 2026-27 ski season.
A world away in western Pennsylvania, Vail plans to retire Seven Springs’ oldest lift and only remaining Thiokol called Blitzen. The classic triple dates back to 1975 and services a variety of beginner to advanced terrain. The new quad will be Vail’s first project at Seven Springs since acquiring the resort in 2021.
Manufacturer(s) have not been announced for any of Vail’s 2026 projects. Alongside today’s lift news, the company announced its fiscal first quarter results. Season pass sales declined 2 percent in units but increased 3 percent in dollars compared to a year ago. The company expects to welcome approximately 2.3 million passholders this season representing 74 percent of skier visits. Vail reaffirmed its fiscal 2026 guidance, including net income of $201 million to $276 million and Resort Reported EBITDA of $842 million to $898 million.
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.
News Roundup: Gondola Party
- The reopening of Mont Glen, Quebec falls through due to financing.
- Big Squaw owner James Confalone says a developer canceled plans to rebuild the resort because lenders abandoned the project.
- The nonprofit which operates the lower mountain at Big Squaw will sell double chairs from the former summit lift as a fundraiser.
- Jordan 8 and Merrill Hill debut on the Sunday River trail map.
- Sundance’s new map shows the Wildwood expansion.
- Loveland’s 22/23 map is out.
- Northstar too.
- Seven Springs launches an all new map under Vail Resorts.
- Snowriver renames nearly all its lifts and retires the Voyager Quad.
- Whistler hopes to open the new Creekside Gondola by Christmas with Big Red likely earlier.
- Waterville Valley pushes back opening by a week to focus on completing the Tecumseh Express.
- Palisades Tahoe flies towers for Red Dog, plans a huge party for the Base to Base Gondola opening.
- Thunder nears completion at Jackson Hole despite some delays.
- Magic Mountain further delays the Black Line Quad because the used lift needs a new haul rope.
- The new red tram car begins carrying skiers at Snowbird.
- Wachusett looks to replace the Polar Express in 2024.
- Marmot Basin seeks to swap the Knob double for a longer quad chair come 2023.
- Big openings: East Peak at Caberfae, Colter at Grand Targhee, Comstock Express at Northstar and Lakeview Express at Mt. Rose all carry their first skiers today.
- Tulsa seeks a new operator for Oklahoma’s only lift.
Vail Resorts Purchases Seven Springs, Hidden Valley and Laurel Mountain
Vail Resorts’ mountain portfolio will grow to 40 with the acquisition of Seven Springs Mountain Resort, Hidden Valley Resort and Laurel Mountain in Western Pennsylvania for approximately $125 million. Combined, the three ski areas feature 15 chairlifts and 450 acres of skiable terrain. They are currently held by the Nutting family, which also owns the Pittsburgh Pirates. Seven Springs Mountain Resort, Inc. will retain select adjoining operations, including the Seven Springs Golf Course and certain real estate for potential future development.
Vail Resorts now operates eight mountains in Pennsylvania, the most of any state. “We are incredibly excited to have the opportunity to add Seven Springs to our family of resorts along with Hidden Valley and Laurel Mountain,” said Kirsten Lynch, Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts. “As a company, we have been focused on acquiring resorts near major metropolitan areas as we know many skiers and riders build their passion for the sport close to home. These great ski areas in Pennsylvania are a perfect complement to our existing resorts, creating a much stronger connection and compelling offering to our current and future guests in Pittsburgh as well as those in other critical markets such as Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Cleveland.”
The transaction is expected to close this winter, however, operations at the three resorts for the 2021-22 winter season will continue normally. Vail Resorts plans to add the three resorts to select Epic Pass products for the 2022-23 season.
News Roundup: 685 Cabins
- New owners launch Granby Ranch Rising, a set of capital improvement initiatives.
- Seven Springs’ new lift may be completed as soon as the end of this month.
- Mexico City will launch the Doppelmayr-built Cablebús Line 1 on Sunday, followed by the Leitner-built Line 2 on July 24th with a system total of 13 stations, 121 towers and 685 cabins.
- Mt. Hood Meadows proposes replacing the Mt. Hood Express with a Leitner-Poma six place in 2022 or 2023.
- Lookout Pass begins cutting trails on Eagle Peak with installation of Sundance’s former Ray’s quad set to commence in 2022.
- A Breckenridge developer proposes a short gondola to bring skiers from the Gold Rush parking lot to the BreckConnect Gondola.
- Sunlight tables construction of the East Ridge expansion lift, citing “soaring costs of materials such as steel due to ongoing supply chain challenges.” The mountain says “new lift installations are happening at a premium price right now,” and will prioritize more immediate needs such as upgrades to existing lifts.
- Speaking of premium lifts, more towers arrive for the Squaw-Alpine Base to Base Gondola.
Seven Springs Announces New Avalanche Quad
One of the very first CTEC lifts built way back in 1979 is being retired from Seven Springs Mountain Resort. Doppelmayr will construct a new Alpen Star quad in its place on the Avalanche slope this summer. The new lift will transport 2,400 skiers per hour with a ride time of just 4.3 minutes. “Our new Doppelmayr chairlift will greatly improve our guest experience on the front face of the mountain allowing for many more runs each day,” said Joel Rerko, Seven Springs Director of Mountain Operations. “We continue to be committed to our season passholders, homeowners and growing the sport as a whole. After coming off an incredible winter, we cannot wait to unveil it this coming ski season.”
The Avalanche quad will follow a new alignment ending closer to the top of Tyrol. It will feature 7 towers, 88 chairs and a 200 horsepower electric motor. The lift will be 1,956 feet in length and will cover 492 vertical feet. Construction is already underway and scheduled to be completed by November.
News Roundup: Mother Nature
- Lawsuit filed by man who fell from Seven Springs chairlift in 2015 thrown out.
- CWA joins Instagram and look at how many gondola cabins are waiting to leave the factory this fall!
- Snowbasin now has live streaming webcams at both six-pack terminal construction sites.
- “Time is of the essence,” Snow King GM says seeking approval for Summit Gondola and ski expansion.
- I hit four awesome retro T-Bar–only ski areas in Idaho last weekend.
- Red Bull turns Swedish tramway into a rope swing.
- Two Skytrac quad chairs reaching the highest point on the Dutch side of St. Maarten faced a huge test Tuesday, taking a direct hit from a Category 5 hurricane just ten days before their scheduled grand opening. Skytrac says the lifts were designed to withstand 200 mph winds.
- This was the view from the gondola Monday night as wildfire threatened Crystal Mountain. The fire has already burned much of East Peak, inside the permitted ski area where Crystal sought approval to build a new lift in 2004.
News Roundup: Flying Volkswagens
- Gunther Jochl, the Austrian-born owner of Sugar Mountain, got the CEOs of both Doppelmayr and CWA to come christen his new six-pack Saturday along with the governor of North Carolina. Apparently the lift may get gondola cabins in the future.
- A lawsuit from a homeowner could force the closure of Pennsylvania’s second largest ski resort. Seven Springs Mountain Resort operates two six-packs and eight fixed-grip lifts on 300 acres. Unfortunately, four of those lifts and 75 percent of the mountain’s ski runs cross a public road that the homeowner wants opened in winter. There are plenty of other ski resorts that have major highways passing through that close seasonally, including Deer Valley, Bridger Bowl and Mt. Baker.
- Cherry Peak, the new ski area in Utah, won’t be able to complete their Summit lift in time for this season. When I was there a few months ago, towers were laying on the ground along the line which will either have to be set or moved elsewhere. Two other triple chairs and a carpet are set to go.
- Arizona Snowbowl’s first new lift in 30 years is almost finished.
- An 8.5 mile gondola system coming to Missouri’s Las Vegas?
- Bartholet’s aerial tramway across the city of Puebla in Mexico will be finished December 15th, about a year behind schedule. Speaking of BMF, they have a new website.
- The Balsams clears some more hurdles but has still yet to break ground.
- Staying on the mega-resort topic, Hemlock Resort near Chilliwack, BC receives approval to spend $1.5 billion on 23 new lifts and 20,000 lodging beds among other improvements over the next 60 years. Hemlock currently has a 1977-vintage Doppelmayr triple and two even older Mueller doubles. Buried in the linked article is the fact that the ski area never opened last year due to lack of snow.
Hemlock Master Plan rendering from Brent Harley & Associates.
Lift Blog 
