Sugarbush announced the closure of Heaven’s Gate for the season on social media late last week and social media went into overdrive with complaints about shutting the 40-year-old lift with so much snow in March, the eclipse coming, Mount Ellen closed and another winter storm predicted.
Resort vice-president of marketing and sales, JJ Toland, said the closure was specifically linked to the timeline needed to install a new lift before next ski season.
“We didn’t expect so much sadness about putting in a new lift,” he said. “We were surprised by the reaction. We’re replacing a 40-year-old lift with a new quad. This is a good thing.”
John Bleh, the resort’s communications manager, in a blog posted went into more details about the timing and why it was so critical. A lot of it has to do with a bird, the Bicknell’s thrush.
“The biggest immediate time constraint revolves around the Bicknell’s thrush. Those familiar with ski industry operations have probably heard of this bird since ski resorts often operate in their habitats. Bicknell’s thrush is classified as a high priority species of Greatest Conservation Need in Vermont. It is classified as a Regional Species of Greatest Conservation Need for the Northeast U.S. It is listed as Threatened in Canada under the Species at Risk Act. And globally it is classified as Vulnerable to Extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature,” Bleh explained.
“In Vermont, and specifically here at Sugarbush, the Bicknell’s thrush is found at high elevations along the northern Green Mountains. So as part of this lift project we’re required to avoid, minimize, and/or mitigate work between May 15 and August 1 to limit impacts to this bird, which breeds and nests in dense forests in northeastern North America between May and August and heads south to the Greater Antilles for the winter. What that really means is we need to get going on the more impactful parts of this project like blasting, drilling, and excavating at upper elevations from tower seven up to the top terminal. If we don’t get things done before May 15, it means no new Heaven’s Gate,” he pointed out.
To accomplish the front-loaded parts of this work, Heaven’s Gate is closed along with Downspout, Domino, Lower Domino, Gondolier, and parts of Heaven’s Gate Traverse and Lower Jester. The entire area will be a work zone. Gondolier, Castlerock Runout, Header, Lower Jester, Heaven’s Gate Traverse, the top part of Valley House Traverse, and Jester will serve as work road to move vehicles and construction materials.
Accessing the site is just one part of the complex project, Bleh noted, one involving multiple contractors, state agencies, environmental consultants and more. Some of the project tasks include removing the existing lift, moving the ski patrol hut, removing trees, drilling, and blasting the top terminal area for trail regrading, new top terminal and tower bases.
An excavator will have to be winched down Ripcord to dig, drill and blast new tower foundations, concrete will be flown in via helicopter along with new towers, terminal components and the old towers and cross arms will be flown out.
In terms of why Mount Ellen could not remain open longer, Toland said that the resort had clearly communicated its closing date last fall.
Here’s what Bleh wrote about Mount Ellen
“And while extending Mt. Ellen’s operation would be nice, the international staff that made up a large part of Mt. Ellen’s operations team this season have left to return to their home countries and we simply don’t have the staff at this time of year to keep two mountains operating simultaneously.”
Read the blog post with a full list of tasks here: https://blog.sugarbush.com/mountain/a-deeper-dive-into-the-heavens-gate-lift-replacement/
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