Arizona/New Mexico 2023-2024 Taos Ski Resort/Conditions/Meetups

[locknload]

An important point I forgot to mention...
If you do decide to stay at the base, some of the "ski-in-ski-out" properties are over by the bottom of chair 4. It is a somewhat sketchy road to get over there, and you probably can't ski over from there to the main base in time for ski school.
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But what's important is that you are stumbling distance from The Bavarian which is my fave spot at Taos!

 

[Tex]

Looks like they updated their website. I think I like the old one better. Maybe I'm just getting old and don't like change.

 

[dbostedo]

Looks like they updated their website. I think I like the old one better. Maybe I'm just getting old and don't like change.

I like the new one I think myself.

 

[dbostedo]

From Taos Facebook page... seems like a good place to be for Oktoberfest:

 

[Tex]

They tore down #4 lift long time ago, don't seem to be making much progress putting a new one up tho.

Still no new progress. Seems strange.

 

[dbostedo]

Still no new progress. Seems strange.

Uh oh... I wonder if they'll be ready for the season opening? @Lift Blog ... anything you happen to know?

 

[KingGrump]

They want you to earn your turns.

 

[dbostedo]

They want you to earn your turns.

I feel like just travelling out there and showing up is enough to earn them!

 

[KingGrump]

I feel like just travelling out there and showing up is enough to earn them!

Man, you are soft.

 

[pais alto]

I suppose it’s too much to hope they won’t finish the new chair 4 until next season.

I’m thinking hiking to Kachina, skiing it, back to chair 7/7a, rinse and repeat. Back to pre-bumps Kachina.

I’m in. And yes, I’m a curmudgeon. Is that a problem?

 

[mdf]

Man, you are soft.

Me too.

 

[Tony S]

Man, you are soft.

This from the guy who won't walk up to the ridge unless ...

Well to be honest I'm not actually sure what it would take to get him up there. Maybe a helicopter.

 

[mdf]

This from the guy who won't walk up to the ridge unless ...

Well to be honest I'm not actually sure what it would take to get him up there. Maybe a helicopter.

In my experience, all it took was an opportunity to throw me down Zdarsky.

 

[KingGrump]

This from the guy who won't walk up to the ridge unless

You guys come here to ski or hike?

 

[Near Nyquist]

They want you to earn your turns.

Says the guy who never ever hikes

 

[Tony S]

You guys come here to ski or hike?

The occasional boot pack is part of a well-rounded ski experience for those of us who are only periodic visitors.

 

[pais alto]

The occasional boot pack is part of a well-rounded ski experience for those of us who are only periodic visitors.

There, fixed it.

 

[KingGrump]

Says the guy who never ever hikes

Have you ever been bored skiing with me at Taos?

The occasional boot pack is part of a well-rounded ski experience for those of us who are only periodic visitors.

I am easy going. I like to go with the flow.

 

[Tony]

The 5 Steepest Chairlifts in the United States.

IMO, the terrain served by the Kachina lift is middling when compared with other runs at Taos.

That's cool... but they cheated by including Highland Bowl... why not just have Deep Temerity there?

I've ridden three of them... need to hit Highland Bowl and Lone Peak Tram at some point I guess.

I realize both these posts are more than three months old, but they are linking to an inaccurate article from Snowbrains that I thought I'd tried to have corrected.

A more accurate list of 7 steepest chairlifts in the US is:
1. Honeycomb Return, Solitude UT (somewhat of a transport lift .504 vertical rise/length)
2. Headwaters, Big Sky, MT .483
3. Scott, Alpine Meadows side of Palisades Tahoe, CA .475 (short flat at bottom, can ride it during March 2024 Gathering)
4. Kachina, Taos, NM .470
5. Tye Mill, Stevens Pass, WA 0.467
6. Chair 5, (Mt. Baker, WA 0.465
7. Deep Temerity, Aspen Highlands, CO 0.464 (over 1700' vertical - I skied it 10x on one day during 2016 Gathering)

Stevens Pass, WA is also interesting with two other steep lifts:
7th Heaven .437 (only 437 vertical feet but in 1000' length)
Double Diamond/Southern Cross .4345 (2466' vertical in 5675' length but that is counting both sides as it's one lift going up two side of mtn)

I'm using data from https://liftblog.com/united-states/ and post from Feb 5, 2022 at https://liftblog.com/kachina-peak-taos-nm/

Some other steep lifts in CA for reference
Gunbarrel, Heavenly, CA .423 (1588' vertical and a great lift on cold powder day with good coverage as I had a few days last season)
Chair 23, Mammoth, CA .409 (I skied it 17x on JULY 27, 2023)
Chair 22, Mammoth, CA .399
Olympic Lady, Palisade Tahoe, CA .381 (I don't believe liftblog's vertical for Shirley Lake as it's 700-something not 1109)

 

[VickiK]

My Taos lodging will be somewhere in Taos or near there (option 2 or 3 from posts above). I don't have the details yet but am staying with a Ski Diva friend who rents a place. Last time I stayed at the Alpine Suites in the Village, which was very convenient.

I'm thinking of driving from L.A. Not sure because I'm on my own and out of concern for winter weather delays/issues. It would take extra time but that's ok. My route would be almost entirely east on I-40 with a left turn at Albuquerque.