Heavenly Mountain Resort
Heavenly Mountain Resort is a ski resort located on the California–Nevada border in South Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. It opened for business on December 15, 1955[1] and has 97 runs and 30 lifts that are spread between California and Nevada and four base facilities. The resort has 4,800 acres (1,900 ha) within its permit area, with approximately 33% currently developed for skiing, boasting the highest elevation of the Lake Tahoe area resorts with a peak elevation of 10,067 ft (3,068 m), and a peak lift-service elevation of 10,040 ft (3,060 m).
| Heavenly Mountain Resort | |
|---|---|
 The gondola lift base in South Lake Tahoe | |
  Heavenly Mountain Resort Location in California  Heavenly Mountain Resort Heavenly Mountain Resort (the United States) | |
| Location | El Dorado-Toiyabe National Forests El Dorado County, California / Douglas County, Nevada/Alpine County, California |
| Nearest major city | South Lake Tahoe, California |
| Coordinates | 38.9353°N 119.9400°W |
| Vertical | 3,812 ft (1,162 m) |
| Top elevation | 10,067 ft (3,068 m) |
| Base elevation | 6,255 ft (1,907 m) |
| Skiable area | 4,800 acres (1,900 ha) |
| Runs | 97 total  20% beginner  45% intermediate  35% advanced |
| Longest run | 5.5 mi (8.9 km) (Olympic downhill) |
| Lift system | 30 total: 1 high speed gondola, 1 aerial tram, 2 high speed six passenger chairs, 7 high speed quads, 1 fixed grip quad, 6 triples, 2 doubles, 6 surface, 4 magic carpets |
| Lift capacity | 52,000 passengers/hr |
| Terrain parks | 2 Groove Park, Remix Terrain Park |
| Snowfall | 360 in (910 cm) |
| Snowmaking | Yes |
| Night skiing | No |
| Website | www.SkiHeavenly.com |
Since 2002, Heavenly has been owned by Vail Resorts, which also operates Northstar California and Kirkwood Mountain Resort at Lake Tahoe and seven other ski resorts in Colorado, British Columbia, Idaho, Vermont, New Hampshire, Washington, Utah, Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin (Vail, Breckenridge, Okemo, Snowbasin, Sun Valley, Mount Sunapee, Crested Butte, Stevens Pass, Keystone, Beaver Creek, Park City Resort (Canyons), Afton Alps, Mt. Brighton, and Wilmot Mountain, Whistler Blackcomb).
With an average of 360 in (910 cm) of snow annually, and one of America's largest snowmaking systems, their ski season usually runs from mid November to mid April.
Heavenly is notable as the resort where Congressman and singer Sonny Bono died after hitting a tree on January 5, 1998.[2]
Ski Lifts
The lifts built by Doppelmayr are the Big Easy, Canyon Express, Comet Express, Dipper Express, Galaxy, Gondola, Gunbarrel Express, Mott Canyon, Powderbowl Express, Sky Express, Stagecoach Express, and Tamarack Express. The lifts built by Yan are Boulder, First Ride, Groove, Patsy's, and The Ridge. SLI built Olympic, and World Cup. The oldest lift is World Cup, having been built in 1969.[3] Mott Canyon also closes at 3:00 during the day thus its trails are closed too. Mostly high-speed detachable quads serve the resort. The longest lift is the Gondola by a significant amount. Two six-packs serve skiers; the Tamarack and Powderbowl Express chairs. Most of the lifts close at 4:00 PM with the exception of the Mott Canyon lift, which closes at 3:00, the Yan and SLI double lifts have a very similar appearance in chairs to lines, to terminals, only the bull wheels are different.
References
- Evans, Jeremy (November 21, 2005). "50 years of Heavenly: A chronicle of skiers' dreams and change on the South Shore". tahoedailytribune.com.
- "Sonny Bono killed in skiing accident". Cable News Network (CNN). January 6, 1998. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
- Heavenly, CA/NV – Lift Blog https://liftblog.com/heavenly-canv/. Retrieved March 7, 2020. Missing or empty
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