This
Wasatch Peaks proposal/development sounds more promising. I cannot find any information about terrain plans. Their website is really lacking
here. However, Lift Blog reports its access chair is 8000 ft long. While its upper lift expert oriented. Surprised they are open. Maybe it's a very soft launch?! No press. They would really need to connect to Snowbasin to make it interesting for more than 1-2 days.
When
Yellowstone Club launched, I think they already had a lift/trail link to Big Sky. It's become pretty impressive. I just want to know who operates these non-core real estate lifts (those with the unmarked real estate trails). The owners must show up 1 week of the season - the rest of the time/10 weeks there must be zero lift riders. Powder must definitely last for days/weeks.
Cimarron
And speaking about other bad private ski resort ideas -
Cimarron Mountain Club. It's near Ridgway, CO (between Crested Butte and Telluride). Guess they are now open. Looks like a snowcat operation. 13 ranches with 35-acre lots are sold out. Frankly, I'd rather do Canadian heli/cat skiing at lodge for a week. But this is near Ralph Laurens ranch - so I guess they think they are appealing to a lifestyle. I'd get so bored. How many 1%'s of 1% are out there to flip property to each other? How long do they hold these properties till they become bored and sell?
Nordic Valley Utah
I thought this potential Utah development was perhaps a semi-good idea, perhaps not the full proposal.
Nordic Valley. You might as well put development where it already exists.
And while we are on it, I thought the
Little Cottonwood Gondola was a good idea.
https://gondolaworks.com/
"The gondola would move up to 3,400 people an hour, using cars that hold 35 people and cover the distance to Alta in 36 minutes with a single intermediary stop at Snowbird. At the base terminal near the La Caille restaurant would be a 1,500-stall parking structure that would likely include restaurants, skier services and a transit hub tied to Utah Transit Authority bus routes."
Of course, not everyone thinks so.
https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2022/06/23/officials-blast-little/
It's not like Colorado has done much with I-70 improvements over decades.
Just luck how successful projects like this are in Europe/Canada:
- Sunshine in Banff. Replaced a road with a gondola system in 1979.
- Zermatt. Has a train bringing you into the town/ski area.
- Eiger/Grindelwald. $500M project - same as Utah
- Les Arcs - Funicular from valley vs. roads
- Meribel - Gondola from Moutiers vs. roads
- Telluride - Gondola connecting Telluride town to Mountain Village. Required by EPA to develop Mountain Village to reduce auto traffic since Telluride violates particulate levels almost every winter day. Major year-round tourist draw - skiing/biking/dining.
It's really sad these Utah Save the Canyons clubs just complain about any development. Maybe they just want to pay for parking and have tolls on the road.