Big Sky Resort : Skiing Lone Peak.gif)
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| Looking
up at the Lone Peak Summit from the Tram station. |
On the
previous page, an attempt was made to provide a general
overview of Big Sky Resort. As mentioned, the mountain
is divided into two main areas (the Lone Peak area and
the Andesite Mountain area), each of which have several
different types of sections. On this and following pages,
we shall take a much closer look at the skiing possibilities
in each of these sections.
So,
let’s get started by looking at the most challenging
skiing that is found at Big Sky Resort – the ski trails
that head down from the summit of Lone Peak.
Skiing the Lone
Peak Summit
The
summit of Lone Peak rises to a lofty 11,166 feet. Both
the skiing and the views from the summit of Lone Peak are
nothing short of fantastic and are discussed on this page.
It should be noted that there are no beginner or intermediate
trails off the summit of Lone Peak.
Getting to the
summit of Lone Peak is an adventure all by
itself, as it requires using three lifts. From the base area,
you first head up about mid-way up the mountain using either
an express quad (the Swift Current Express Quad) or a Gondola
(Gondola One). Either way, these lifts deposit you about
half way up (distance wise) the mountain.
From
there, you then hop on a fixed grip triple chair (the Lone
Peak Triple). The Lone Peak triple takes you up to the
top of “The Bowl”, which is where some of the
finest downhill skiing at Big Sky is located (and is discussed
later). “The
Bowl” is aptly named – it is a huge expanse of
snow surrounded on three sides by the towering summit of
Lone Park and the ridgelines that reach up to the summit.
For those who like open terrain skiing and are at the advanced
intermediate level or higher, “The Bowl” is a
MUST place to go.
Yet,
if the enticing open bowl skiing found at the top of the
Lone Peak Triple chair isn’t enough for you, you
can hop on the Lone Peak Tram for a ride to the very summit
of Lone Peak. It needs to be noted that this is a tram, not
a gondola. What this means is that the Lone Peak Tram has
very limited lift capacity. Each tram car (and there are
only two of them – one on each end of the cable) has
a capacity of 15 people, in theory. The ride time from the
bottom tram station to the summit tram station takes only
3 minutes, although after you allow for loading and unloading,
it takes closer to 6 or 7. As such, the Lone Peak Tram has
a lift capacity of only about 120 people or so an hour. In
other words, on busier days or days with fresh powder, be
prepared for some lift lines (or get there early).
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| View
from the Lone Peak Summit. Ennis Lake is the body
of water in the valley. |
Yet,
for those patient enough to wait in the line, or lucky
enough to avoid it during slow periods, a trip to the summit
of Lone Peak is well worth the wait. The views from the summit
of Lone Peak are absolutely outstanding. On clear days you
can see well over a hundred miles in all directions – with
countless mountain ranges (including the far off Tetons)
visible everywhere.
Thus,
if the weather is clear and you like spectacular views,
do yourself a favor by visiting the
summit of Lone Peak – even if you have no intention
of skiing down it (you can ride the tram back down if your
skiing abilities are below what is needed to ski down from
the summit – read on for this!).
The
skiing off the summit of Lone Peak is not for beginner
or intermediate skiers. All trails off of Lone Peak are
double
diamond (advanced) in difficulty except for one trail (Liberty
Bowl), which is single diamond trail (expert). In short,
there is no easy way down from the summit of Lone Peak. If
you are an intermediate or beginner skier hoping to go to
the summit to find a simple traverse down, you’ll be
sadly disappointed! Thankfully, you can always take the tram
back down if you find the skiing a bit over your head.
The
double diamond trails off of Lone Peak are true “double
diamonds”, too. Some of these trails approach a gradient
of 50 degrees and make their way down through chutes that
even mountain goats might be loathe navigating. There is
also no going back from these trails – once you are
on them, that’s it, you’re committed. And, if
the double diamond and “death sign” at the summit
isn’t enough of a warning, one mistake on these double
diamond trails is likely to lead to some very painful if
not fatal falls.
If you plan on
skiing down from the summit of Lone Peak,
you can go one of several directions. The first route is
right back beneath the tram. The second route is to go down
the South Face. And the third route is to ski down Liberty
Bowl. Each of these routes is discussed below.
Route 1 : Skiing Under the Tram
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| Looking
up at the Crons Pocket and Big Couloir (chute to
the right) Ski Trials off the summit of Lone Peak |
The
first route from the summit is to go right back down underneath
the Tram that brought you up to the summit. This is by
far
the most
difficult route down. One false move on the Big Couloir trail
can very easily lead to very unpleasant consequences. Thankfully,
you can get a good view of the trails and lines on this side
of the mountain since they are both easily visible from “The
Bowl” and because the tram goes right above it.
There
are only two designated trails on the tram side of Lone
Peak summit. The first, as mentioned, is Big Couloir,
probably the most difficult trail of them all at Big Sky.
The second is another almost equally hairy trail called Crons
Pocket. What make both of these trails so difficult are the
steepness as well as the fact that they are very narrow chutes.
These trails are also quite long, too. As such, one fall
or bad turn can easily lead to some extremely unpleasant
encounters with rocks – so skiing with care sort of
goes without saying. And don’t even think of venturing
out onto these trails if you are less than a fully accomplished
skier or snowboarder.
 See
Map of Trails Under the Tram and in "The Bowl"
Happily,
if you are an advanced skier and want to hit the appealing
terrain that is all so visible from the bottom
of “The Bowl” or most other places at Big Sky
resort for that matter, there are easier – and far
safer - ways to get at it.
 
Next
Page : Skiing
Lone Peak Summit : Continued...
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