Closed Mountain No Way
by Kym Backland
Title
Closed Mountain No Way
Artist
Kym Backland
Medium
Photograph
Description
We came all the way up to this part of the mountain, then we see the dreaded CLOSED sign! It's beautiful up here, the air is fresh, the day is sunny, our legs are ready and and minds are clear! We are ready to get it done! Powder, but some of us just like to hike! It's another beautiful day in Washington State! The beauty of the Northwest! Here are some stats of the mountain, and the surrounding areas, just in case you want to come up here and ski! The place almost shut down! So, we are happy to still have our state treasure! I love when the clouds look like "pulled cotton"... Cool looking clouds! What a gorgeous day in the Pacific Northwest! Blue skies, and sunshine! Wow, I love the fog, and the snow! On the way to go skiing! Some of us are just going to take pictures of everyone else skiing. This is Washington, a few hours outside Seattle! It's a "Winter Wonderland" of enjoyment and pure fresh air. You've heard the song, " The blue-ist skies you've ever seen are in Seattle" I'm not sure of the names of these mountain tops, I use to have one of those maps with all the mountain ranges and their names. One for all the Olympic mountains and one for the Cascade range. I knew them at one time, but the memory...well I just need to google it again! Here is some information about the area. Nice place to ski! Gorgeous place to be. The air is clean and the skiing is fun..Now for those "stats"
Crystal Mountain Resort opened in December 1962 with two double chairlifts. The first of these lifts, Miner's Basin was decommissioned in the summer of 2011. Its route was close to that of the new gondola and ended by the top of the Exterminator and Deerfly runs. The other original lift (Iceberg Ridge) was removed when the current Rainier Express chair was built.[3] The site, just northeast of Mount Ranier National Park, was chosen after some Tacoma skiers were unable to start a resort within the boundaries of the park.The following summer the Green Valley double chairlift was built, and the Quicksilver lift followed in 1964.In 1965, Crystal hosted the collegiate ski championships in late March and the following week the U.S. Alpine Ski Championships, which included famous racers such as Karl Schranz of Austria, Olympic medalists Jimmie Heuga and Billy Kidd of the U.S., future triple gold medalist Jean-Claude Killy of France, and future gold medalist Nancy Greene of Canada. Crystal hosted the national championships again in 1968, a few weeks after the Winter Olympics Kidd, Heuga, and Greene were again in the field, as well as Spider Sabich. Back from the Olympics and the World Cup tour, local Judy Nagel won the women's slalom and combined titles at age 16Five years earlier, her father Jack Nagel
(1926 -2004) and the racing school at Crystal were featured in Sports Illustrated, with her older sister Cathy, then 14, on the cover.1970s The Campbell Basin chairlift opened in 1970, which opened Campbell Basin to skiing for the first time and traveled from the base area all the way to the site of the current Campbell Basin Lodge.Two weeks after the 1972 Olympics, Crystal hosted the World Cup tour in late February 1972 with two downhills for both men and women, with the start above Campbell Basin.Weather forced a low start; the winning men's times were under 90 seconds. Newly-crowned Olympic downhill champion Bernhard Russi of Switzerland won the Saturday race, and took second on Sunday. A women's slalom scheduled for Sunday was cancelled due to weather.In 1974, Crystal added its first triple chairlift, Bullion Basin. High Campbell, the highest lift at Crystal, was added in 1976. It was pre-owned, purchased from the defunct Yodelin Ski Area near Stevens Pass. High Campbell serves the summit of Silver Queen and provides access to The Throne, Silver King, Campbell Basin, Avalanche Basin, and Silver Basin.1980s In 1984, Bullion Basin was moved to its current location as the Gold Hills lift. That same year, the Rendezvous and Discovery triple chairlifts were installed. Washington’s first high-speed detachable quad chairlift, the Rainier Express was installed in the summer of 1988, replacing the original chair 2. A fixed grip quad, Midway Shuttle, was added to connect the base area with Rainier Express. The Campbell Basin double was shortened because the lower half was no longer necessary. These upgrades were funded with money from investors, who in return would get future discounts on lift tickets and season passes. Today this group of investors in the Crystal Mountain Founder's Club. 1990s In the mid-1990s, Crystal Mountain became deeply in debt and was unable to pay for further important improvements such as new lifts and lodges. The original investors sold the area to Boyne Resorts in March 1997.The deal directed Boyne to spend at least $15 million in capital improvements during the first ten years. In the first two years, Boyne purchased two high speed six passenger chairlifts, the Chinook and Forest Queen Express lifts to replace Midway Shuttle and Rendezvous, respectively. Boyne also made other improvements such as a new rental facility, paved parking lots, and five new Bombardier snowcat grooming machines. 2000sThe Green Valley double chairlift was replaced with a high-speed quad in the summer of 2000. In the summer of 2007, Crystal underwent a major expansion, building the Northway chairlift in the former North Backcountry.This increased developed terrain by 70% to 2,300 acres needed In addition, the Summit House restaurant was remodeled. 2010s During the summer of 2010, a terrain park was construction and the Mt. Rainier Gondola was installed. The gondola travels directly from the base area to the summit house,and its first day of operation was New Year's Day 2011.
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January 28th, 2013
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Viewed 347 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/10/2024 at 12:19 PM
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Comments (25)
Anne-Elizabeth Whiteway
Kym, This is quite a spectacular image. I always like visiting your site. Thank you for your insighytful and kind comments today about "Me Saying Goodbye" (to one of my sold paintings). I'm sorry you have carpal tunnel. I know it must be very paintful, making it hard to type (or do anything with that hand).. Keep up your happy attitude. I always like to see your smile. F/V
Kym Backland replied:
Anne, You can tell we are baby boomers, we like to make sure we correct our typing mistakes.. it's like wearing a watch, or writing thank you notes, or calling someone on the phone.. we are old school! hehe.. We "HAVE" to correct our grammar.. oh no is that with an E or an A? Yikes, it looks so foreign to me now.. How OCD is that? hehe
Kym Backland
NADINE AND BOB, Happy May Day to ya! Thank you for the feature of this photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY, in your group ALL NATURAL SCENIC LANDSCAPES! Much appreciated!
Mariola Bitner
Great shot Kym! I also hike and the feeling when you are on the TOP! V/F Thank you for nice description.
Kym Backland replied:
Mariola, Thanks so much for coming by today, and leaving a nice comment! I'm glad you took a hike today! Yikes, that doesn't sound right does it? hehe
Lingfai Leung
Wow. You are right to have the mountain closed. No way, Jose! voted
Kym Backland replied:
Lingfai, Thanks again for your comical comments and numerous visits! Always fun to type to you! I appreciate you votes too!
Kym Backland
CHARLES, I didn't realize this was your group! Thank you for the feature yesterday, of my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY in your group MT. RAINIER..
Charles Robinson
I love it, Kym. I love Mt. Rainier. I hope it isn't "Closed."
Kym Backland replied:
Charles, A new face? Thanks for the comments.. Mount Rainier isn't closed, just one of the runs up at the ski resort.. Crystal... but the skiing closes in about two weeks... Thanks for stopping by Charles!
Kym Backland
Shawn, Thank you for the feature of this photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY, in your group SEASONS OF BEAUTY! Much appreciated Shawn!
Lo Tordsen
Great image and congrats on the feature...voted/fav
Kym Backland replied:
Lo, Happy March to you! Thanks for popping by again, and giving this photo a favorite and a vote! I hope your March starts off with a shot of happiness! Until next time!
Kym Backland
EDWARD, Thank you for the feature today! I appreciate you taking the time to feature my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY in your group -1 A DAY - PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWCASE NEWSPAPER
Kym Backland
MERRIDY, Thank you so much for the multiple features of rock type photos today! I appreciate you featuring my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY in your new group ROCKS...
Kym Backland
BRUCE, Thank you for the feature of my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY, In your group COMFORTABLE ART -LIMIT 2.. I see you have been busy in the wee hours of the morning today! Thanks again Bruce~
Kym Backland
FTLOA, Thank you so much for the triple feature today! Thanks for featuring my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY, in your group FOR THE LOVE OF ART.. I didn't realize you were from Portland! Cool!
Chad Dutson
Love your description! And yes, so many of us just like to hike! Nice shot!
Kym Backland replied:
Chad, Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! You made me feel better than I just like to walk...hike too! I appreciate your compliment too! Cheers to us... hikers!
ANA MARIA EDULESCU
Wonderful scene in this photo and that sign with CLOSED is a brilliant touch...... f,v
Kym Backland replied:
Ana Maria, Thanks again, the sign, being a brillant touch, that makes me laugh. This sign looks so cheap! Sometimes I wonder if some skiier just put it up there so he could have the ski run to himself! Just kidding.... it's just something that makes me laugh! I appreciate your votes and time Ana!
Kym Backland
EMMANOUIL, Hello! Thank you for the feature of my lastest mountain photo CLOSED MOUTNAIN NO WAY in your groUp STILLS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.. I appreciate it!
Kym Backland
Kelly, Hello again! Thanks so much for the feature of my latest photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY in your group SIGNS, I appreciate your time and dedication!
Kym Backland
KRISTA, I hope your week started out well? Thank you for the feature of my photo CLOSED MOUNTAIN NO WAY in your group SILHOUETTES.. I appreciate it!
Mindy Bench
LOL accept for the closed sign,
Kym Backland replied:
Mindy, This comment really did make me chuckle, or laugh, or LOL.. thanks for that!