Loon Mountain Announces Expansion at South Peak
Looks like they are adding 30 acres of beginner and low level intermediate terrain to South Peak to connect the Escape Route parking lots to the rest of the resort.
https://loonmtn.com/south-peak-expansion
While I don't ski Loon that much, I for one am excited about this as it's another point of entry to the ski area, and it potentially means there will be a better tie in to the town of Lincoln. Kind of a Western or European style setup to the ski area that it and the town would probably benefit from greatly.
https://loonmtn.com/south-peak-expansion
While I don't ski Loon that much, I for one am excited about this as it's another point of entry to the ski area, and it potentially means there will be a better tie in to the town of Lincoln. Kind of a Western or European style setup to the ski area that it and the town would probably benefit from greatly.
Comments
IMHO this has to be one of the worst thought-out expansions ever.
The plan is to build a beginner/low-intermediate pod — with teaching terrain — as a new gateway to the resort but not including any services other than “guest services” … no lodge? no rentals? no food/bar?
This pod is now completely isolated from the rest of the mountain for those that its designed for. Cruiser has a significant sustained pitch of 32%. While Boom Run is longer, it doesn’t get you to this pod without installation of a second lift from the bottom of Lincoln Express to this pod, and it’s steepest sustained pitch is steeper: 36%. Neither would classify as low-intermediate. Compare this to the bread and butter terrain on the main mountain: Bear Claw tops out at around 21%. No way for beginners who’ve progressed off of Kissing Cousins/Little Sister/this new FGQ in this pod to get between the main mountain and this pod.
The lift will be a FG quad (Doppelmayr of course) with a loading carpet. ~2600’ x ~500’. This will be the longest fixed grip lift other than the old East Basin Double. As of this season, every out of base lift is now a high speed lift (White Mountain Gondola, Seven Brothers HSQ, or Kanc 8); this proposal breaks the Boyne branding of having great lifts. If Boyne can afford an unnecessary bubble 8-pack with all the bells and whistles, why not invest in a more suitable lift for the pod? Yes it’s short, but the clientele who ski at Loon and the types of skiers who will ski this pod will expect a HSQ.
And finally it appears there no easy way to access the new FGQ from the lots without taking one or both carpets up high enough to ski over.
The best part of this project IMHO is the 100% automated snowmaking system going in. This will free labor for the rest of the mountain and will allow rapid resurfacing in ever shrinking windows thanks to climate change.
Sometimes you have to work with the terrain you have.
Your concern in the first paragraph was answered directly in the slides, it of course will have base facilities just not all of them day 1:
"The Future
This project is the foundation for future development in this area. A new learning area, two surface lifts and a suite of facilities tailored around the learn-to ski and snowboard experience are also being planned"
This lift is not going to be the lift of all lifts in the final build out, they are looking at something from South to the Main Face and additional connectors. Going off of that, it would be silly to install a 2600' detachable when you get can get the same capacity out of a carpet loading FGQ with the appropriate amount of chairs. For comparison, that is the length that our double was at WB. If that was a HSQ you would be pulling the bar up as soon as you put it down. Not worth the expense.
My criticism would be with the trail arrangement if they are set in stone. I am really not sure what is the infatuation with creating little bits and pieces here and there. Just build them down the fall line without cutovers and connectors stitching them together.
That's what allows you to make ski runs more interesting. Trails built straight down the fall line are as boring as they get.
Honestly I feel like a patchwork of trails that meander with connectors and such is typically a classic New England style trail layout. Maybe going for that kind of vibe.
Perhaps the wrong choice of words. Obviously I don't mean directly down the fall line IE those Jiminy Peak boulevards. I just can't stand the little bits and pieces stitched together. I like longer contiguous runs, but they certainly need to sweep with the terrain. Meandering is the best.
Okay, I can agree more with that. There is definitely something special about long meandering trails with few intersections, such as Saint John at Big Squaw, Ivory Run at Whaleback, or MD at Dartmouth.
It may not be perfectly sensible but you do the best you can with what you got. First time I was in Lincoln 1966 I was a little kid and there were giant piles of timber and it smelled horrible. The only thing that would surprise me would be if this venture failed.
If I were managing this, I'd make an area-specific ticket with a slightly lower cost, and promote it as family-friendly to get more market share. And work like crazy to get rentals and a cafeteria in place.
destination resort on the scale of Killington, Okemo, Sunday River? The way I see it, they need to get two trails across Loon Brook. A short quad from Pemi Camp to a point on L. Boom Run and a bridge across to feed in to the bottom of Kissin' Cousin at a minimum, probably with other, similar novice to low intermeidate terrain as this expansion. And a way from U. Bear Claw across to a windy novice trail roughly paralleling Boom Run.
My design rejects everything the designers of the original resort and Lincoln pod stood for. Trails should be narrower, farther apart, and have more wiggle, roll, and buck. They should be more scenic and take up less of the forrested acerage. Lifts should come down to one convenient base area level with the lodge and parking lot. They should not be uphill to get to, and they sure shouldn't be spread out each into their own odd little base area every thousand feet. The Escape Route trail is shown for reference; I doubt it will be really there in its present form if Loon goes ahead with the current plan. Oh, and I made some slight improvements to the entry and accessability. But here is a plan to get 14 butts every 8 seconds or so up and out of a more convenient and appealing base with (except to experts) terrain that is more fun and interesting, all so they can grossly underpower the 7 Brother lift replacement (and not make it go up to Crosscut, either!)) and keep the embarassingly low capacity gondola afloat for a few more years.
https://jamesniehues.com/products/original-loon-2011-sketch
^this. I've skied and hiked that gorge several times. I've never been successful at getting across to the other side in either direction. I've always ended up being funneled all the way to the bottom. Short of building bridges I don't see a viable way to make connecting trails.
Loon’s big little South Peak project promises a much bigger impact off the trail map
By Eric Wibur January 17, 2023
Loon features 69 trails and glades spread over 370 acres. (Loon Mountain Resort/Boyne Resorts)
Don’t underestimate the impact that Loon Mountain’s recently announced South Peak expansion will have on the New Hampshire resort.
Under the scope of some other ski area developments throughout New England, Loon’s 30-acre expansion might not seem like much. There will be some new beginner terrain along with a new quad chairlift. But that “small portal,” as Loon vice president of marketing Kevin Bell described it, dramatically will help improve the mountain’s accessibility.
“When you look at expansion, it’s modest,” Bell said. “But it’s going to have a major impact on the experience for the guests. And for the town.”
That’s because the new Doppelmayr Alpenstar 4-CLF chairlift with loading conveyor is a game-changer. The lift, scheduled to open in time for the 2023-24 skiing and riding season, will be installed at the bottom of the current Escape Route trail. Guests will be transported up 500 vertical feet to access Cruiser and other terrain via the Lincoln Express Quad. It also will make Loon, already one of the most accessible resorts in the Northeast, even more so. The new lift will be located only 1 1/2 miles from Exit 32 off Route 93. As it stands now, the entrance to Loon is located three miles from the exit.
Loon’s South Peak expansion is expected to be completed in time for the 2023-23 season. (Loon Photo)
“Adding lift service just a mile-and-a-half from Interstate 93, in the center of Lincoln, improves the guest experience immensely and is something we’ve been focused on for many years,” Brian Norton, Loon’s president and general manager, said.
Connecting the community has been a major focus of Loon’s Flight Path: 2030, the resort’s 10-year improvement plan that launched almost three years ago. As part of the plan, Loon unveiled the Kancamagus Eight chairlift last season. The eight-person lift is billed as North America’s most technologically advanced chairlift (complete with ergonomically shaped, heated seats) and transports 3,500 skiers per hour to the top of some of Loon’s most-popular terrain. But connecting the community has been one of the four pillars of the plan (elevating the skiing experience, excelling in every season, and growing responsibly are the other three) since the beginning.
“We are on this flight together,” the plan reads. “Loon endeavors to help facilitate the opportunity for Lincoln and Woodstock to become the most-engaging mountain community in New England. Key investments will be made to expand resort activities to allow for increased access at all major portals. Loon’s team members will remain active in the community to promote and protect its values.”
Loon worked closely with the U.S. Forest Service and South Peak Resort LLC (a four-season home-owner community with slopeside trails onto Loon) to finalize and announce the plans. Approvals to proceed also were granted by the Town of Lincoln and New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. That might sound like news worthy of a footnote, but it’s an important distinction when it comes to South Peak development at Loon. According to New England Ski History.com, planning for South Peak started in 1983. However, construction was long delayed due to environmental concerns. In 1993, the U.S. Forest Service approved expansion plans and trails were first cut in 1996. That same year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit halted the expansion, citing a possible U.S. Forest Service violation of the National Environmental Policy Act. Various court decisions and lawsuits followed over the years before Loon finally was able to proceed.
Eventually a $10 million project, South Peak finally opened for the 2007-08 season with three trails and two lifts.
“The South Peak expansion has been a key part of Loon’s master plan for decades and we are thrilled to be moving toward the next major milestone of Flight Path: 2030,” Jay Scambio, COO of owner Boyne Resorts, said.
South Peak’s expanded terrain will feature new trails and tree-skiing areas designated as a mix of green circles and blue squares. The addition will increase Loon’s green-level terrain by more than 50 percent and boost the resort to more than 400 skiable acres. “The topography here is ideal for learning to ski or snowboard,” Norton said. “The most-advanced and energy-efficient snowmaking technology will be in place to service the new trails, including fully automated fan guns and frost-free pipes.”
The new lift also will immediately connect the Escape Route parking lot to the rest of the resort’s parking areas. The Escape Route lots, marooned at the far end of the resort, currently are serviced by shuttles that transport guests to the lodge of your choice. There is no lift or lodge access from these lots. Until next season.
“I can tell you, from someone like myself who stands on the bridge and tells people to turn around and park at South Peak, it is going to be a game-changer for us,” Bell said. “One of the challenges that we have right now is some people just don’t understand that we have a shuttle service to the Escape Route, and that’s not a great experience. We are trying to improve that.”
Along with the new lift and trails, Bell said essential services like ticketing and restrooms will be available for next season at South Peak. A new learning area, two surface lifts and a suite of facilities tailored around the learn to ski and snowboard experience also are being planned. The current Undercut trail will see additional tree clearing to allow for more access to the new South Peak terrain.
“But moving forward, we expect that area, this lift and that terrain to be our learning center,” Bell said. “So, we have a vision and plans to develop another rental shop and service lessons there. That terrain is perfect for all of that and one thing that we lack here at the resort is adequate learning terrain. When we finally get that terrain done, we’ll move into the full suite of services that would follow.”
Other projects on the 2030 timeline scheduled to begin before 2025 include a reimagined West Basin area, North Peak trail expansion and a new summer attraction. Late-stage projects (2025-30) include a relocation of the snow-tubing area, a Westward trail expansion, gondola upgrade, and the implementation of fully automated snowmaking technology.
https://www.skijournal.com/loons-big-little-south-peak-project-promises-a-much-bigger-impact-off-the-trail-map/
That's Black Mountain. I've skied it and also explored it in the off season. It's really not much like Thompson Brook. The bottom of the drainage (Boyle Brook) isn't really skiable. So the best options are hiking across the ridge and dropping down back towards the base of North Peak (although in most conditions you'll get stuck in the brook), or following the ridge all the way out and intersecting the west edge of the XC network so you can traverse back to Brookway. Getting across the ridge involves quite a bit of ups and downs, including some skis-off hiking. It's a lot of traversing and hiking for a very small reward.
They must believe it is or they wouldn't have said it, and certainly not be planning to do it. I think they know their clientele and market better than anyone else.
If they've probed the soil thoroughly and still plan to install a frost-free system that means ones of two things: They have the only piece of property in Northern New England not covered in ledge or we're going to be seeing a sh*tload of blasting all summer. Serious headscratcher to me how the benefits to that could outweigh the costs around here. There's a reason it's not done.
While skiers and riders enjoyed some of the best spring conditions in years, crews from Doppelmayr have been assembling the new chairlift for the South Peak Expansion project.
Bits and Pieces
Over the past several weeks, shipments of the new Doppelmayr Alpenstar 4-place lift have streamed in. All 14 of the lift towers are on site and staged for installation. The bullwheels have arrived, and the cross-arms are being assembled and prepared as well.
The snowmaking team is also in action and has begun stringing frost-free pipes for the South Peak Expansion. Sections of pipe are currently being welded together and positioned on the mountain.
As work continues on the new lift, crews are getting ready for the next steps, flying concrete for the foundations.
Gallery
https://www.loonmtn.com/south-peak-expansion/assembly-underway?utm_source=mc_loon&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=loon_enews&utm_content=307372_LM_SoPeak+Expansion+News+04.28.23&sfcid=0035Y000042IM0TQA