What am I supposed to write about after Mark’s well thought out expose regarding the grand opening of the new gondola connecting two ski areas that previously had distinct characteristics. Prior to its installation I would have said, “NO THANK YOU”, but now it is here and ready to transfer people from here to there.
I am sure I will ride it at some point in time to take a run or two in the other valley. There is good skiing on the Olympic Valley slopes and taking the gondola to the top of KT22 when the snow is in good winter condition will be easier then driving to the Olympic Valley parking area with skis and boots only to have to walk a half mile to the slopes. I know that parking close to the Far East Lift is less of a walk, but most people end up walking to the Funitel or KT22. I also know that as time moves on new visitors to the area will think that the gondola has been in existence forever.
A number of skiers and boarders that I know are excited by the opening, perhaps I am in the minority.I do remember a number skiers that dreamed of connecting the two ski areas in one way or another. John Riley dreamed of Alpine Meadows becoming a ski area and eventually was successful in seeing his dream come true. He also dreamed of connecting it to Squaw Valley as well as an entire lift system that stretched in Ward Valley (Sherwood). Lifts would have gone up to Stanford Rock and Grouse Rock. He also dreamed of mid-rise condominium/hotel rooms on the side of the existing Sherwood Trail with ski in and ski out access. A number of the original people involved in designing the Alpine Meadows Ski Area were long time Squaw Valley skiers. They also dreamed of uniting the two areas. Well, now it is done. Let us hope it does not destroy the atmosphere and characteristics we love about Alpine Meadows.
Palisades and Keyhole Slopes
Relatively warm sunshine created excellent ski conditions at Alpine Meadows this morning. It was chilly at night with temperatures dipping into the teens. I found excellent groomed surfaces in Alpine Bowl, Rock Garden, Dance Floor, and Charity. Off-piste under Alpine Bowl Chair and into Terry’s Return one will find winter snow that has stiffened a bit over the past couple of days. Red Ridge was lovely with small nicely created moguls. Sherwood has been sunbaked. The groomed run was firmer than the front side. Shuttle Cornice and Expert Shortcut, where the sun does not hit the run as much, remains winter pack. Off-piste in the Sherwood area you most likely will find breakable crust. I did see grooming occurring at Lakeview. Perhaps they were getting it ready to open.
Tomorrow should be a repeat of today with temperatures increasing slightly.
Enjoy your day,
Andy
Here’s a bit of a surprise, from the Palisades website. It seems that the “grand opening” is not so grand:
This Saturday, the Base to Base Gondola will operate as two separate lifts. Guests planning to ride the entire length will be required to disembark at the KT-22 mid-station and re-load to continue on… Following Saturday’s grand opening, the Gondola will close while crews and the lift manufacturer (Leitner Poma) finalize the “interconnect” piece that will allow the lift to operate as one continuous lift. The plan is to have the Gondola open by the holiday period.
With a bit more poking around I found a comment that they are having communication and synchronization issues with the various segments that make up the length of the gondola. This probably explains why it has been running for only short periods of time over the past week or more, as they try to fix the synchronization.
First off, I’m not particularly excited about this vanity project. I will ride it to OV at some point, but probably not until it’s been running for months without issue.