Big White | Gem Lake Express

Big White had a large expansion planned, and it was ambitious. For over 15 years prior, they wanted to expand onto the west side of the mountain, with a massive lift. After having installed three other high speed lifts, they decided it was time for another one. They were on a streak, as this lift came in two years after the previous one, in 1994. The expansion was a large area of steep groomers, glades, an open bowl, and some mogul runs. This was a new one for Big White, as the terrain consisted of steeper runs than the other high speed lifts. This area was all served by Gem Lake Express, running from the base to near the summit of the west mountain.

Gem Lake Express is a Doppelmayr high speed quad. It is unique in many ways, but I'll name the important ones. It is the last lift to have Doppelmayr detachable technology, and the only top drive lift at Big White. It is the longest lift on the mountain, 8017 feet in length, and is also the tallest, 2331 feet of vertical. Because of its length, it is the fastest lift at Big White, with a design speed of 1100 fpm. It was very crowded during this recording, however it didn't even run close to its design speed. It didn't go any faster than around 850-900 fpm. This lift runs from the lowest lifted point at Big White, to the third highest, only below Falcon Chair, and The Cliff/Alpine T-Bar. It's also the only high speed lift to have a section above the tree line, which is why it has a parking rail to hold enough chairs that would otherwise be above the tree line. Just like Bullet Express, the com line is routed underground at a point for wind reasons. Typically, it does get very windy, but in this recording it was quite calm. Instead, there was mostly an ice fog, where ice builds up on you, and makes your jacket and other snow gear crunch when you move. You can hear this near the end of the recording. This is also a typical weather condition, and is how the snow ghosts in the alpine zone on Big White Mountain form.

Recorded on February 15th, 2020