Lone Peak: Tram to the Top of Three States
Near Big Sky, Montana
The mountain that defines Big Sky is Lone Peak, an eleven thousand one hundred sixty six foot summit that rises in dramatic isolation above the surrounding Gallatin Range. It stands out from its neighbors because it is composed of harder rock that has resisted erosion over millions of years, leaving it higher and more precipitous than the ridges on either side. The resort opened in December of nineteen seventy three with four lifts and terrain centered on the eastern face of the mountain.
The summit itself was not accessible by lift until nineteen ninety five, when the resort installed the original Lone Peak Tram, a fifteen passenger aerial tram that carried riders directly to eleven thousand one hundred and fifty feet. On a clear day from the summit, you can see across three states, into Wyoming to the south and Idaho to the west, and across two national parks, Yellowstone and Grand Teton. The terrain at the top of Lone Peak is for experts only.
The runs accessible from the summit include some of the steepest in-bounds skiing available at any American resort, and a backcountry gate leads to uncontrolled terrain in the surrounding wilderness. In twenty twenty three, the resort replaced the original fifteen passenger tram with a new seventy five passenger gondola-style tram, dramatically increasing the capacity to carry skiers to the summit. The peak that rose above the Crail Ranch cattle meadows, that Chet Huntley saw from the road and decided was worth building a resort around, now has a tram that carries three thousand feet of vertical in a single ride.
