# Is this a picture of "limited capacity" at Steamboat Resort?



## CO skier (Feb 7, 2021)

"We are limiting capacity for every aspect of our operations, including mountain access and on our gondola and lifts."

Your Guide to the 2020-21 Winter Season at Steamboat Ski Resort

This is a picture of yesterday's lift line.


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## pierrepierre (Feb 7, 2021)

Holly mollie....that is some line!  Where is photo taken?  Use to live there late 70's/early 80's...do not recognize anything but that long line!  Hope your day is enjoyable and safe!


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## vmpt (Feb 7, 2021)

Last week we had lift lines at Steamboat of 0 to 2-3 minutes at the most Sun-Weds.  It was fabulous!


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## x3 skier (Feb 7, 2021)

I work part time in the Ticket office at Steamboat. I don’t recognize the location in the photo. It might be South Peak which is a fixed grip triple and one way to head for the base area but I doubt it. Since it’s very limited capacity and unless you’re a group of three, they won’t load strangers together to max capacity. If you know the name of the lift, let me know. 

Friday and Saturday we had two big powder days which brought out the crowds. The line for the Gondy was as long as I have seen in 24 years but by 1000, it was no problem. Since they can’t load the Gondola like normal because of social distancing, there’s a back up to start.

Here’s a link to the mountain cams. 



			https://www.steamboat.com/the-mountain/live-cams
		


Cheers


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## x3 skier (Feb 7, 2021)

If the Sunshine detachable 6 pack is down for some reason like high winds, the South Peak triple is the only way out of the basin. That might be what’s happening in the photo if it is in fact that lift. Locals know another way out but if you’re unfamiliar with the area, you might get stuck with South Peak. 

Cheers


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## davidvel (Feb 7, 2021)

Faced a similar situation at Heavenly last month.  Was a bluebird day and everyone stayed till the end.  Gondola line for the trip down stretched back to Tamarack lodge. As noted above, this was primarily due to the single group limit. Happens in the morning at the bottom as well. 

They were definitely limiting capacity which was noticeable on the mountain.


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## CO skier (Feb 7, 2021)

x3 skier said:


> It might be South Peak which is a fixed grip triple and one way to head for the base area but I doubt it. Since it’s very limited capacity and unless you’re a group of three, they won’t load strangers together to max capacity. If you know the name of the lift, let me know.


I gave up skiing on weekends 30 years ago due to high traffic volume and long lift lines, so I did not snap the picture.  Looking at the orientation of the runs, my guess is this is the Thunderhead Express lift with Burgess Creek Ski Way on the left and the main crowd on Main Drag to the right.  The second chair up from the bottom shows 2 skiers on the left, one on the right and space for one in between, so it appears to be a 4-seater lift.

I know of only two routes onto the mountain -- directly using the gondola or a combination of the Christie Express and Thunderhead Express lifts.  If the gondola went down for some reason, everyone would have to pass through this area.


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## CO skier (Feb 7, 2021)

x3 skier said:


> Here’s a link to the mountain cams.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


At 1 p.m. there are long lines at the Christie Express (pictured) and the gondola.  I wonder what the line at Thunderhead Express is looking like today.

I am hoping to catch a couple of powder days later this week on Morningside and Rendezvous Lodge areas.  I will take a look at the Gondola cam tomorrow morning to plan when I need to get in line first thing.  Maybe I will splurge on a First Tracks pass one of the mornings if the powder is exceptional.


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## pedro47 (Feb 7, 2021)

Wow! I just cleaned my glasses two (2) times to looked at this photo.


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## x3 skier (Feb 7, 2021)

Thunderhead was shut down a couple times for mechanical reasons, both for about 15 minutes or less while all the express lifts to the top of the resort were closed intermittently because of high winds. The Gondola also was slowed around the time of the Christy lift picture because of high winds.

I’ve seen similar lines at Christy Express in previous years on a Powder Day. Beautiful sky but the winds played havoc at the top.

Lots of fresh snow, high winds, weekend, limited loading, First Tracks sell out and it was a good day to avoid

Cheers


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## oneohana (Feb 19, 2021)

x3 skier said:


> Thunderhead was shut down a couple times for mechanical reasons, both for about 15 minutes or less while all the express lifts to the top of the resort were closed intermittently because of high winds. The Gondola also was slowed around the time of the Christy lift picture because of high winds.
> 
> I’ve seen similar lines at Christy Express in previous years on a Powder Day. Beautiful sky but the winds played havoc at the top.
> 
> ...


That's why we love the units in the Morningside Tower at the Sheraton. Look out the window to see what the lift lines are like.  If the lines are too long, we just wait in the room until it clears a little.


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## x3 skier (Feb 19, 2021)

oneohana said:


> That's why we love the units in the Morningside Tower at the Sheraton. Look out the window to see what the lift lines are like.  If the lines are too long, we just wait in the room until it clears a little.



if you go to the steamboat web site, they have live cams covering both the Gondola and Christy Express.

Cheers


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## boraxo (Feb 20, 2021)

It is the same at every resort I’ve visited this year except Snowmass and Buttermilk (we stayed in Aspen in mid-December). Aspen had a longline at the base but not too bad on Ajax. Park City was also not too bad except for a couple of lifts.

Northstar has been horrible all year - one hour lines at the base on weekend and 20 minutes on the mountain. Heavenly also horrible. Squaw Valley was not bad- only 20 minutes at the base today andmaybe 10 minutes on the mountain. To be fair the past couple of visits followed big dumps.

Vail resorts clearly oversold tickets at all resorts so the “capacity limits” and reservations are a way to exclude season ticket holders who already paid to ski. Nothing to do with COVID safety. Disgusting.


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## sandkastle4966 (Feb 24, 2021)

I  have skied Beaver Creek, Vail, Breckenridge on the Epic past for the past 8 weeks.  I have NOT been denied a day  that I wanted to ski yet....Have some days sold out ?  Yes, but I signed up either as a Priority day (bank holidays) or as a week of ressie.  I have thoroughly enjoyed the reservation system....kept it not so busy!   I also was at Steamboat for 2 weeks....and we were there for the Feb  dump....yup, it looked bad,  but it cleared out.


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