Badger Pass Ski Area
Badger Pass Ski Area | ||
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Terrain parks 1 | | |
Snowfall | 300 in (7.6 m) | |
Night skiing | None | |
Website | [1] |
Badger Pass Ski Area is a small ski area located within
Location
Badger Pass is at about 7,200 feet (2,200 m) in elevation at the restaurant and services buildings. At the summit of the downhill ski lifts, elevations rise to 8,000 feet (2,400 m). The nearest community to Badger Pass is
In addition to the downhill facilities, there are extensive cross-country skiing and snowshoe trails.[1] In fact this is one of the highlights of the Badger Pass/Yosemite National Park winter activities. There are over 84 miles (135 km) of trails encompassing many of the tourist sites in Yosemite.[2] In addition, two overnight huts are available for extended winter trips into the wilderness.[3]
History
The history of winter sports in
With the interest building in Yosemite for winter sports, and the Olympics selecting Los Angeles as the site for the summer games for 1932, Tresidder teamed up with William Garland, president of the Steering Committee of the Plays of Los Angeles to promote Yosemite for winter sports for the Olympics of 1932.[8]
Lake Placid was selected instead. This did not diminish the interest in winter sports in Yosemite, but rather intensified it. Tresidder could see the need for real facilities in Yosemite for winter sports.
A lift was built in 1933 but it was not at the Ahwahnee but at Badger Pass some miles away. The first slalom in California was held in 1933 at Badger Pass. With the lingering effects of The Great Depression and the difficult road access to Badger Pass, the need for an easier route to the high country slowed further development.
The History of the Yosemite area depicts the building of the tunnel as follows:
"The completion of the 0.8 mile (1.3 km) long Wawona Tunnel in 1933 was both an engineering marvel and significantly reduced the amount of travel time to the Valley from Wawona without scarring the landscape with a long road cut (the famous 'Tunnel View' is on the Valley side of the tunnel and Inspiration Point is above it)."
After the Wawona Road and Tunnel opened in late 1933 and Glacier Point Road to Badger Pass opened in 1935, Yosemite's first ski lodge was built in Monroe Meadow, and by the end of the season Badger Pass had welcomed more than 25,000 skiers. The West's first ski lift, called the Upski, was installed in 1936. Nicknamed the “Queen Mary,” it was a large sled that moved up and down the hill on a cable, carrying six skiers at a time up to the summit.[9]
Also with completion of the new Wawona Road and tunnel, visitors began to use the Chinquapin area for skiing as well as the Badger Pass slope. Because of the poor condition of the Glacier Point road, the Yosemite Park and Curry Company became interested in installing the cable tramway as a means of getting skiers to the south rim. Gradually valley floor winter activities faded and skiers concentrated on Badger Pass and the high country, especially after improvement of the Glacier Point road afforded greater accessibility to that area.
Due to a
Badger Pass today
Today, the Badger Pass Ski Area provides a public venue for both downhill and snowboarding activities. It is operated for the National Park Service by the current concessionaire, Aramark. One of the major features of the area is the restored Badger Pass Day Lodge, which houses the Snowflake Room. From this pub visitors can view the 10 down-hill runs and the 5 lifts. The Lodge no longer has overnight accommodations and is for day use only. Food concessions and an activities desk are located on the lower level of the lodge. Several ski schools, catering to both beginners and advanced skiers, operate on the slopes.
In addition, cross-country skiing is available for those visitors interested in a back country experience. With instructors and guides available, Yosemite provides 22 miles (35 km) of groomed cross-country track and 90 miles (145 km) marked trails. For the cross-country skier there are more than 9 miles (14 km) of skiing lanes. These are located along a groomed portion of Glacier Point road. Equipment for cross-country skiing can be rented by the day from the ski rental department on the bottom floor of the lodge.
It is a 21-mile (34 km) round-trip from Badger Pass to Glacier Point. The views of Half Dome in winter are spectacular. The National Park Service, in conjunction with The Yosemite Association, provides webcams of the vistas along this route.
Badger Pass hosts the annual Yosemite Nordic Holiday, a series of cross-country races held every February.[14]
Gallery
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Ski Slopes at Dusk
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Ski lift to lowest summit
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Glacier Point Road
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Backpackers on overnight
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Cross-country skiing
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Woman making a snow angel
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Backcounty snow trail to Dewey Point
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Cross-country skiing near Badger Pass
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Badger Pass day lodge
See also
- Mariposa County
- History of the Yosemite area
- Chinquapin, California
- Yosemite West
References
- ^ "About Yosemite: Skiing and snowboarding in Yosemite". AboutYosemite.com.
- ^ "Yosemite's Badger Pass". SkiTown.com.
- ^ "Lodging within Yosemite National Park: Ski Huts". John Rabold.
- ^ "Ahwahnee History Fact Sheet" (PDF). American Planning Association, California Chapter. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2006-12-27.
- ^ Ross, Gene (March 2003). "Ahwahnee Hotel: Yosemite Grandeur". Skiing Heritage Journal. 14 (1): 23.
- ^ "Yosemite Winter Club history". Yosemite Winter Club. Archived from the original on 2010-09-09.
- ^ "Downhill Slide". Newsroom. Yosemite Association. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007.
- ^ "Official Report: III Olympic Winter Games" (PDF). III Olympic Winter Games Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-10.
- ^ "Badger Pass Ski Resort – Mariposa CA Ski Vacation". AllGetaways. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28.
- ^ Yosemite National Park to change landmarks' names – CNN. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
- ^ Wigglesworth, Alex (July 15, 2019). "Yosemite to restore names to historic attractions under $12-million settlement". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
- ^ "Sentinel Dome webcam". Yosemite Association. Archived from the original on 2007-01-02.
- ^ "Glacier Point Ski Hut". Delaware North. Archived from the original on 2007-01-17.
- ^ "Yosemite Nordic Holiday Race". Far West Nordic Ski Education Association. Archived from the original on 23 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.