New lift(s) for Lake Louise?

[Eldo]

Season is over at the Lake, so time for the rumours to begin...

Has anyone heard these? There is some pretty reliable chatter that at least one of them is true.

- Gondola (used lift bought from Vail ) going from the base area to top of Eagle, providing access to Ptarmigan and the backside.

- Wild Cat quad chair moved from Wintergreen to replace Sunny T

- Or, that quad or another lift from Wintergreen or Fortress replacing Summit poma

When I was at Louise on the final Saturday I saw three guys with a bunch of maps on foot just down from the top of Eagle. They were pointing around at various things and looking at their maps. I stopped and asked if they were scouting the line for a new lift but they said they could not (or would not) tell me.

Also, took a photo of these in the far end of the resort parking lot near the equipment bone yard.

Verrry interesting.

[AntiSoCalSkier]

Just a thought on those gondola cars....

Some resorts occasionally attach one or two gondola cars to their high speed quads. I assume this is done to help transport stuff to the top of the lift. In some cases (Eagle Express at Mammoth), a lift is designed such that it can easily be converted to a gondola later on. Maybe those cabins are just for summer maintenance?

[JR]

I doubt it. Any maintenance gondolas I've ever seen look like maintenance gondolas complete with access hole in roof to get to the tower assemblies..

[PlayHarder]

Wouldn't the gondy cars be for the summer conversion of the glacier quad for the tourists?
Redskea did say she'd heard that a chair would be replacing the summit platter, which would almost have to mean the end of me with and rcr pass. No Fortress and a chair to the summit would make that pretty unappealing.

ps: Eldo, sorry for bailing on the bbq last Sat. Ended up with a dead car, playing mechanic all day.

[Eldo]

Good point about the summer sightseeing chair. But they have always used the ancient red gondola cars taken from the old gondi lift. When I was at Louise on closing weekend, those gondi cars were already attached on Glacier and ready for the sightseeing season to start.

I know many people don't like the idea, but I have no problem with a chair to replace the Summit poma. It may mean some people going up there that can't ride the current poma, but those people are going to stick to runs like Boomerang anyways. As for worrries about the powder getting tracked out quicker, if you get to the hill first thing you'll just be doing more laps quicker.

Also, that poma is brutal when you're on a snowboard, which I know is not a concern of skier-only types. But since I do both, a chair would be a welcome relief for my decrepit knees.

[two_planks]

A chair would mean easier access to the summit. But it would still be a long ass lap which IMO would keep most of the non locals away (at least for more than 1 run) and like Eldo says most of the people that can't ride the poma won't be able to ride anything other than boomerang anyways. I'd have no problem with a summit lift.

[PlayHarder]

I'd have no problem with a summit lift.

Actually, i'm not real worried about it getting any more tracked out - I just really enjoy the ride.
T-bars are getting hard to find and are, for me anyway, a great place to kind of drift and take in the sites - something for the soul, I guess.

[Schmear]

Originally posted by PlayHarder

T-bars are getting hard to find and are, for me anyway, a great place to kind of drift and take in the sites - something for the soul, I guess.

And they occasionally ram your nuts into your stomach! I love T-bars!

Edit: maybe I'm just sitting on them wrong.

[L7]

Pretty sure those gondola cars are what get put on Glacier for the summer sight seeing. Those old red ones are (hopefully) retired. They were old when I got there and that was long ago. Don't get me started on the stories.

The transfer of lifts from Wintergreen sounds very plausible. That Sunny Tbar is heinous as a teaching tool and pinching pennies is a way of life there.

The gondola to the top of Eagle has longed been talked about and I think it was a pet project of the current GM when he worked on lifts there many years ago. (See above for comments on stories).

I hadn't heard any of that but I spoke to him (GM) near season's end and Charlie as well, had I heard the rumour I would have grilled them.

As for Summit my understanding there is the shale face of summit was too long and too unstable to support the tower for a chair. Also concern about wind closures and suseptibility(sp). Maybe the bottom station could be moved. I hadn't heard this rumour either but it would have it's benefits along with the mentioned downsides.

When I get back I'll definitely sniff around about these things.

[L7]

Originally posted by Schmear
And they occasionally ram your nuts into your stomach! I love T-bars!

Edit: maybe I'm just sitting on them wrong.

Or maybe you just like it and you're trying to play innocent.

[Eldo]

Originally posted by L7
Pretty sure those gondola cars are what get put on Glacier for the summer sight seeing. Those old red ones are (hopefully) retired...

Last summer they used the ancient red ones, and those were again attached to the cable on Glacier when I was there last weekend. Someone in the know told me that Louise definitely bought a used gondi from Vail, at a very good price.

You should definitely quiz a few people when you return from golfing in Ontario.

(Yes, aren't these quite the classics!)

[two_planks]

I heard they bought a gondola from Squaw not Vail and that they are planning on running it to the top of eagle from the old gondola base.

[L7]

Originally posted by two_planks
I heard they bought a gondola from Squaw not Vail and that they are planning on running it to the top of eagle from the old gondola base.

The old gondola base at the highway I find hard to believe. I think it would be worth more as a bargaining chip with parks to reseed the lower portion of that.
I rode the summer lift with my sister and kids a couple of years back and I'm pretty sure we rode something more modern. At any rate I don't recall crippling fear and vivid terrifying flashbacks.

[Squirrel99]

Originally posted by two_planks
I heard they bought a gondola from Squaw not Vail and that they are planning on running it to the top of eagle from the old gondola base.

Sounds more plausible since the old Vail gondie was REALLY OLD.
Cabins were the lock'n load kind- and it only had four towers- something unheard of today for most gondies. I bet it's the Squaw one- although old, it is a bit more modern than the Lionshead gondola from Vail. Wonder if they will try and retro fit the doors to become automatic- like Big Sky did with Park City's old gondola cars?

[SIN]

I can confirm that there will be a gondola going to the top of eagle that will be installed for next season. No I do not know where it was bought and also that there will be a quad chair replacing the sunny-t (in case there is anyone out there that enjoys that terrain!). There is no plan in the immediate future to replace the summit lift though. I know people who are working on the details for these lifts as we speak and I had to sleep with her to get this info!

[mntlion]

welcome back SIN


JONG!!!!!!!

[Eldo]

Originally posted by SIN
... and I had to sleep with her to get this info!

Ahh, the James Bond method of interrogation. Smooth!

[Rascal King]

I'll let you know if they take the fortress lift because I'll be making several turns up there during the summer time.

[mntlion]

JONG!!!!!!!

Times must be tough over here if you are JONGing your own roomate! Good to be back.

[L7]

Originally posted by SIN
I know people who are working on the details for these lifts as we speak and I had to sleep with her to get this info!

Well then this information is probably false as that's the least she would do to screw with you after one of your infamous mediocre performances.

[SIN]

!

Well then this information is probably false as that's the least she would do to screw with you after one of your infamous mediocre performances

Just because you haven't been getting any lately.... oh wait, you are back with the family, maybe you will get lucky

[ak_powder_monkey]

Originally posted by mntlion
Times must be tough over here if you are JONGing your own roomate! Good to be back.

We are all JONGs inside aren't we?

[L7]

Originally posted by SIN
!

Just because you haven't been getting any lately.... oh wait, you are back with the family, maybe you will get lucky

zing!