Top elevation 10,450 ft (3,185 m) | Base elevation 6,311 ft (1,924 m) | |
 | ||
Vertical continuous 4,139 ft (1,262 m) Skiable area 2,500 acres (10 km)inbounds3,000 acres (12 km)backcountry | ||
The Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) is a ski resort in the western United States, at Teton Village, Wyoming. In the Teton Range of the Rocky Mountains, it is located in Teton County, 12 miles (20 km) northwest of Jackson and due south of Grand Teton National Park. It is named after the historically significant Jackson Hole valley and is known for its steep terrain and a large continuous vertical drop of 4,139 ft (1,262 m).
Contents
Ski area information
The ski area partially covers Rendezvous and Apres Vous Mountains. Known for its challenging terrain, half of the runs are rated expert, 40% intermediate, and only 10% beginner. The intermediate terrain is primarily on south-facing Apres Vous Mountain, while Rendezvous Mountain has Jackson Hole's more advanced terrain that includes bowls, glades, and chutes, and over 4,100 vertical feet of skiing, the greatest continuous rise in the U.S. (nearby Big Sky in Montana has an overall vertical of 4,350 feet (1,330 m), but its continuous vertical is about 700 feet (210 m) less; Snowmass in Colorado has the greatest lift-served vertical drop in the nation at 4,406 feet (1,343 m)). The slopes on Rendezvous primarily face southeast.
Jackson Hole has become the home to many of the world's best free skiers as the terrain is considered to be some of the most challenging in North America. In addition to the skiable terrain in-bounds, there is an even larger area to be explored off-piste (out of bounds). These areas are accessed through marked gates by expert skiers/boarders who are equipped with avalanche safety gear. The terrain has not only attracted the top skiers in the world, but is also home to one of the most well known expert ski runs in the world, Corbet's Couloir.
Jackson Hole's original aerial tram, an icon of the resort since 1966, was closed to the public in the fall of 2006 and replaced with a new tram that opened in 2008. The tram's vertical rise is 4,139 feet (1,262 m) to an elevation of 10,450 feet (3,185 m) above sea level. Construction on the new, 100-passenger Doppelmayr CTEC tram began in June 2007 and it began service on December 20, 2008. During the two seasons without a tram, a temporary double chairlift named East Ridge was built to service the runs at the top of Rendezvous Mountain.
Other lifts include the eight passenger Bridger gondola, four high speed detachable quad chairlifts, and seven fixed grip chairlifts. Recent additions include the Marmot Double Chair (former East Ridge installed in 2006) in 2011 built by Doppelmayr CTEC, the Casper Detachable Quad in 2012 built by Leitner-Poma, and the Teton Detachable Quad in 2015 built by Doppelmayr (North America).
In the summer, the resort offers numerous activities such as mountain biking, hiking and paragliding.
The resort and region is served by the Jackson Hole Airport, northeast of Teton Village
History
Before 1961, the area of the future resort was the Crystal Springs Girl Scout Ranch. Paul McCollister purchased the ranch and formed the Jackson Hole Ski Corporation in 1963 with partners Alex Morley and Gordon Graham. Construction began a year later, and Apres Vous mountain opened to the public in 1964 with two double chairlifts. The original tram on Rendezvous opened 51 years ago on July 31, 1966; carrying 52 people, and took 10½ minutes to reach the summit on a west-northwest heading. The resort officially opened in December 1966, and 1964 Olympic gold medalist Josef "Pepi" Stiegler of Austria was hired that same year as ski school director. In 1992, McCollister sold his interests in the resort to John Kemmerer III.
Jackson Hole hosted World Cup ski races in 1967, 1970, and 1975. The first national Powder 8 Championship was held at Jackson Hole in 1970.
Avalanches
Jackson Hole was the site of two in-bounds avalanches in late 2008, first on December 27 and another two days later on December 29. The first avalanche resulted in the death of skier David Nodine, one of three in-bound deaths in the American West in the 2008-09 ski season, the most since three skiers were killed at Alpine Meadows in 1976. The second avalanche occurred in the Headwall area and buried part of the Bridger Restaurant but resulted in no injuries.
An in-bounds avalanche swept a longtime member of the ski patrol, Mark Wolling (known as Big Wally) off a cliff on January 6, 2010. Rescued, he later died from his injuries. A double black diamond run in Cheyenne Bowl has been named after Big Wally, and is marked on the trail map as Wally's World. A set of flags lying on the run's fall line tells you where they found him lying in the snow.