Forget the free shuttle that is going to operate between the newly joined Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows this year. What skiers really want is to be able to ski between the two mountains. Well, looks like they just might get their wish. With the merger of Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows finalized last month, all that was missing in creating the country’s largest ski area was an actual link between the two resorts.
While any chairlift connecting the two mountains may be years in the future, Squaw Valley is starting a pilot study to determine whether backcountry access between Squaw and Alpine is feasible. If the study goes well, skiers and riders with specialized backcountry training and equipment could be skiing between the two resorts sometime this season.
Squaw’s investigation, which is focused on putting a gate at the bottom of the Sun Bowl run, is being conducted in cooperation with management and ski patrols at both mountains and the U.S. Forest Service, since any backcountry connection would be through wilderness land. The study is examining route selection, types of terrain, exposure, and topography of the area between Alpine and Squaw, as well as the best location for the access gate, or gates. Other potential issues include backcountry access during in-bounds closures, search and rescue issues, and interface with private land and wilderness areas.
Amelia Richmond, Squaw Valley spokeswoman, said that since the study requires adequate snow conditions, the length and timing of the investigation depends on how much snowfall the mountain receives. While a gate will not be in place at the beginning of the season, Richmond said that it is possible that backcountry access between the two resorts could happen as early as the second half of the season. Until that time, however, Alpine and Squaw’s different boundary policies remain in place. Alpine will continue its open-boundary policy, while Squaw’s boundaries remains closed. Nevertheless, the mere fact that Squaw Valley, which has remain notoriously tight-fisted with its boundary policy over the years, is entertaining the idea of allowing backcountry access is big news for skiers and riders.
