North America — It was another winter with many new lifts opening across North America, which has improved the experience at various ski resorts. Of all these projects, though, which appealed the most to the tenured skiers?
We’ve compiled an unranked list of the five lifts that opened across North America, which made the experience significantly better for advanced/expert skiers and riders. The word game-changing is a bit of a cliche in the ski industry, but these five chairlifts fit that description.
From Alberta to Vermont, here are five great lifts that opened this winter.
1. Sublette @ Jackson Hole: Some of the toughest terrain at Jackson Hole is situated around the Sublette chairlift. For a couple of decades, this area was serviced by a slow, fixed-grip quad chairlift that was subject to the elements.
This winter, the new Sublette chairlift opened. Formerly having a ride time of ten minutes, the new Sublette travels roughly 1600 vertical feet in around four minutes. The chairs, which are also much comfier than most chairlifts, serve a vital purpose. During windy days, they sway less than normal carriers, unlike the old Sublette.
Jackson Hole put together a great documentary on its predecessor and what the new one brings to the table. It’s worth the watch.
2. Internationale Chair @ Alpental: Over at another one of the most challenging ski areas in the country, they added a chairlift that makes accessing terrain much easier.
The Doppelmayr fixed-grip triple chairlift features a vertical rise of 1345 feet, a length of 3799 feet, a carrying capacity of more than 1300 people an hour, and a maximum rope speed of 500 feet per minute.
Before this addition, these runs were only accessible from the Edelweiss Chair, which created long lift lines at that chairlift. This has reduced those lift lines and provided much easier access to runs like Snake Dance, Felsen, and Lower Internationale.
In addition, it makes reaching the Nash backcountry gate much easier, which gives you access to some hard-core terrain: the Alpental Back Bowls. Next up on the replacement list is the Edelweiss (also known as Chair 2), which also services some challenging trails and glades.
3. Lightning Ridge @ Powder Mountain: This winter, Powder Mountain opened three new public chairlifts. These additions included a lift-serviced terrain expansion.
For years, Lightning Ridge has been beloved by skiers, but it was only accessible when hiking or cat-skiing. That changed this season when Powder Mountain opened a new fixed-grip quad chairlift into this terrain pod. This fixed-grip quad chairlift has a vertical rise of 1086 feet and a ride time of roughly 8 minutes.
It gives convenient access to mostly advanced and expert terrain. In addition, Lightning Ridge provides access to the toughest terrain currently reachable by lift at the ski resort. It also allows those who are on the Timberline side of the mountain to ski over to the Sundown base area.
An honorable mention for this list is Paradise, a new high-speed chairlift that services primarily advanced terrain. It replaced the old Paradise quad chairlift, which moved at about the same speed as a turtle.
4. Pipestone Express @ Lake Louise: Banff can be a very cold place to ski, so skiers were stoked when Lake Louise opened a new bubble chairlift that not only services the summit but also features bubble covers.
This Doppelmayr detachable high-speed six-pack bubble chairlift features heated seats, footrests, and blue bubble covers that protect guests from the elements. With an uphill capacity of 2000 people per hour, this has reduced lift lines and crunch points across the ski resort. This bubble chairlift also helps make reaching the Summit and West Bowls easier than before. The West Bowls feature the most challenging terrain accessible at Lake Louise. Some of the most notable double black diamond terrain is directly accessible from the chairlift, which includes chutes like Jackpot, The Beast, and Dropout.
5. Heaven’s Gate @ Sugarbush: Installed back in 1984, the old Heaven’s Gate chairlift faced issues during windy days. In addition, the location of the top terminal required hiking to a popular trail. The experience got a much-needed upgrade this season.
The new Doppelmayr chairlift has a vertical rise of 1449 feet, a length of 3870 feet, and a carrying capacity of 1814 people per hour. The loading conveyor speeds the ride up the fixed-grip chairlift, with a total ride time of approximately eight and a half minutes. It also featured slated seats that help protect the carriers against heavy winds.
The lift gives access to intermediate, advanced, and double black diamond terrain. For Jester, the intermediate run previously required a hike. Sugarbush did some blasting this past offseason, making it much easier to reach. The lift also provides access to difficult runs like Paradise, Sigi’s Ripcord, Organgrinder, and Spillsville. It also accesses an unnamed trail at the ski resort, which is all I’ll say about that…
Image/Video Credits: Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Alpental (The Summit at Snoqualmie), Lake Louise Ski Resort, Powder Mountain, Sugarbush Resort, NBC 5
