For some local skiers and snowboarders, a long-held dream looks like it's becoming a reality at Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows: a gondola to connect the two resorts.
Right now, those who want to use a pass to ski both resorts on the same day, which is allowed, have to drive down the mountain to highway 89, and back up to the next resort. The gondola they're hoping to build would connect the base at Squaw Valley to the base at Alpine Meadows.
"Guests will be able to hop right in a gondola, and in 13 to 15 minutes, they'll be over to the other resort," Sam Kieckhefer, spokesman for both resorts, said. "It really allows you to ski both mountains without any interruption."
Currently, guests who want to ski both resorts are looking at about a 30-minute trip by shuttle or car. Kieckhefer said the "California Express" gondola would cut down on time wasted, on road traffic, and on pollution.
The project still has to get the final green light from Placer County and the US Forest Service, but Kieckhefer said they are very confident that it will go through.
"It's been something that people have talked about for many years, you know," Kieckhefer said. "I've read articles from the 90s and even before that, of people talking about this possibility, and we are as close as we've ever been, which is really exciting."
They're hoping to open the California Express before the 2019/2020 season. If you want to help the project move along, click here to sign the petition.
On the other side of the issue, there is an environmental group opposing the project, saying the area the gondola would cross should be protected from development. To learn more about those concerns, click here.
