Rendering from the perspective of the Village at Mammoth with planned new lifts in red. New, shorter beginner lifts are planned for the Main Lodge, Canyon Lodge and both ends of the Eagle Express. Chair 7 at Canyon could also go detachable to supplement the successful Schoolyard Express addition.

High-speed quad replacements are also eyed for Chair 12 and Chair 14, both built in 1972 on the backside with the latter project a higher priority. Some have already received upgrades, including this tower on the legendary Chair 23.Ĭhair 25 is planned to be replaced with a high-speed quad in a new alignment starting at the base of Cloud Nine. While a slew of Yan fixed-grips are due to be replaced, at least four will stay. The 1997 Stump Alley Express is also poised to go big. That is set to change, with the possibility remaining for Mammoth to build North America’s first eight-passenger chairlift(s.) The mountain’s two Lift Engineering-turned-Doppelmayr machines – Canyon and Broadway – serve the hearts of their respective pods and are likely to be replaced sooner rather than later with higher-capacity models. Mammoth was relatively slow to join the six-pack club with only the Eagle Express and Cloud Nine Express built to date. The new Eagle Gondola would have a truly unique profile with two mid-stations and two high spans along its 2.5- mile length. I think the answer to both questions is yes, with caveats. Mammoth’s gondola goals raise some interesting technical questions – whether Eagle Express could be converted to a gondola and whether a second stage could be compatible with a 20-year old Village system. An option in Ecosign’s plan adds a second stage to the 15-passenger Village Gondola from Canyon Lodge to the Eagle Gondola’s first mid-station, creating a seven-gondola network unmatched in North America. A short but spectacular third stage would soar to the 11,060-foot summit, meeting Panorama Stage 2 and creating a five stage link. The second, longest stage would stretch from the top of the current Eagle to the summit of the new High Five Express. “Take Eagle Express and turn that into the gondola it is,” he told the local paper. Gregory said in April, a major goal is adding a second multi-stage gondola on the Canyon side of the mountain to mirror the popular two– stage Panorama Gondola. Mammoth Mountain’s current trail map showing 3,500 acres serviced by 27 lifts.Īs Mr. Remarkably, every lift Mammoth has built since 1998 has been detachable, 15 in a row with DT grips (the two Yan detachables got them in 1996.) At some point, Mammoth’s impressive fleet commonality will have to end, but the streak may not be over just yet. All 14 lifts built before 1995 are Yan, while the 13 added post-1996 are exclusively Doppelmayr. Mammoth currently operates the largest second largest lift fleet in the United States, with 27 machines averaging 27 years old. Still, the possibilities are exciting at this already monster mountain. A vast majority of the changes are likely to be realignments and capacity upgrades of existing lifts rather than the opening of new terrain. While I can’t find a comprehensive online version of the 2007 Mammoth Master Plan prepared by Ecosign, the vision includes 17 lift additions and replacements including up to four new gondola stages. “One hundred million dollars” is how Mammoth Mountain CEO Rusty Gregory responded when asked about capital improvements in the wake of the recent purchase of Mammoth Resorts by Aspen Skiing Co. America’s third most-skied resort could see a bunch of new lifts over the next decade following its purchase by a new company rivaling Vail Resorts.

Mammoth mountain