Peruvian Tunnel video

[cpj.slc]

Coming to Snowbird this winter, new terminology:
Through the world

I laughed at that. I wonder how much quicker it will be than around the world. I guess a bunch since you will be cutting out a whole lift in the long process of getting to the top.

Page top!

[truth]

It's almost at the top of Chips and the tunnel goes thru to Larkspur in Mineral. They are trying to get more gapers on the Peruvian side and into Mineral. It would have been much cheaper to just upgrade Little Cloud.

That wouldn't do any wonders for the gad / Thunder crowds. Seems almost like a set-up for a Jackson-esque tram decommissioning.

[schindlerpiste]

I was just thinking/fearing the same thing. The Snowbird tram is about 35 years old. I hope that this is not the first step in retiring the tram. I like the tunnel as a supplement, and not a substitute!

[Tippster]

They'll still need the tram for the Cirque, no? Doesn't the Peruvian Chair drop you too far down to hit the top?

[lemon boy]

They'll still need the tram for the Cirque, no? Doesn't the Peruvian Chair drop you too far down to hit the top?

not after you've gone through the tunnel and up mineral

[rideit]

The bird tram scares the bejeezus outta me.

Not the potential drop, the proximity to stretch-pant clad claw-sporters.

[Jer]

Snowbird was trying to solve several problems. Mainly, Snowbird wants Mineral Basin to be easily, quickly and reliably accessible (from base to summit) by many people of many skill levels and weather tolerances.

During high winds, the tram can't be used. That limits access to Hidden Peak and Mineral Basin.

The Tram's capacity isn't that great - the new lift has significantly higher capacity.

Besides avoiding ridgetop winds and weather, the new lift & tunnel drop skiers off in open, gentle terrain, rather than the switchbacks and steep slopes just off Hidden Peak.

A lift running to the ridge would have been more exposed to high winds, meaning it would be shut down more often and less used by people with lower weather tolerance. Once at the top, skiers would have to navigate switchbacks or drop down steep slopes (onto crowded switchbacks.)

The ridgetop lift option would not have met many of Snowbird's skier traffic goals.

The entire project was on private land (though the lift cables cross some USFS land). Snowbird consulted with the USFS, SOC, and other entities during their planning process. I believe the tunnel was Snowbird's preferred option from the earliest time SOC saw the proposal. Snowbird made use of some ideas, suggestions and requests. These were minor (setbacks from LCC creek at the bottom, exact location of lift terminals, use of local finish materials that would match the landscape, etc.)

Running the lift to the ridge would have required a lot of ridge demolition and road-building to/through the ridge. Hidden Peak is a big dirt parking lot with a fat set of switchbacks cut into a steep slope up to it. Now picture another parking lot hacked into the ridge next to Hidden Peak, with another set of switchbacks up to it.

I don't think "parking lot ridge" is the image Snowbird wants. By rejecting that option and building a tunnel, they can satisfy all their goals and claim credit for not being completely blind to the visual consequences of their developments. Naturally they will do their best to derive positive publicity from any action they take.

I don't think Snowbird is planning to decomission the Tram, or even considering it. The Snowbird Tram was built after the Jackson Tram, and the state of the art had advanced substantially during that time. So (I'm told) the Snowbird Tram is nowhere near the end of its mechanical / engineered lifespan (which was the reason given for decommissioning the Jackson Tram.)

Snowbird does have limited resources, and construction costs have risen. Steel prices are about double what they were in 2003. I believe that's one reason the Hidden Peak Mall has not been built yet. I don't know Snowbird's thoughts on Little Cloud and Gad 2 traffic patterns.

Just my €0.07 (inflation-adjusted, current exchange rate).

[Woodsy]

DW,
thank you for your well written, well thought out post.
I appreciate the info with out much spin from the love the bird/hate the bird camps, or the resort itself.
May your winter be bountiful.
not woods cross

[4-TEEF]

Here are a few pics to show exactly where everything is.

Here is the 05/06 trail map showing the new chair as the red dotted line through the middle of P-gultch. The old Peruvian chair is now gone.



This is a shot from on the Tram showing the top terminal.



This is a shot taken on foot, a little way down from Hidden Peak showing the top terminal and the mouth of the tunnel.



Looking into the tunnel. The light at the end is the Mineral Basin side.



Looking down the lift line from the ridge/Gorilla Pass, directly up the hill from the top terminal. On the left you can see the end of the Cirque and two Tram towers.

[4-TEEF]

They'll still need the tram for the Cirque, no? Doesn't the Peruvian Chair drop you too far down to hit the top?

Hey Tipp,

You are right. The chair is too low to allow access to the Cirque.

[sunnygirluvspow]

One of the electricians working on Peruvian told me that they were going to have a hard time getting the conveyor belt to stop without flinging people over the handle bars. Better wear your helmet!

[FartBag Commando]

That shit is gonna be fun to hit on a weekday...