Australia’s highest chairlift has transformed skiing on this mountain

Unusually, the current snow season started right on time and thanks to consistent snowfalls and cold temperatures, it has stayed strong. Good timing then, to open a new chairlift, one that completely transforms the skiing on its mountain.

It has been running for skiers and boarders since June, but Friday marked the official opening of Perisher’s $26 million, six-seater, high-speed chairlift – the highest in the country.

A snowboarder on the new Legends Run near the top of the Mt Perisher 6 chairlift.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Mount Perisher, one of the many zones for skiers and boarders in what is by far Australia’s most popular snow destination, has everything you look for on snow in Australia – some long smooth groomed runs, some varied terrain for build-your-own adventures, and a sprinkling of snow gums to ride in and around.

The problem was mainly one of getting up the hill. It was served by two chairlifts – a rickety old two-seater (opened in 1961) and a three-seater (1979) – a lift that was cutting edge in its day, but is very much outdated.

The new lift, named Mt Perisher 6, replaces the two old ones, cuts travel time to the top almost by half, is designed to better handle windy conditions and has let the resort remove 17 lift towers from Mount Perisher – opening up a lot more skiable terrain.

Perisher’s snowsports senior manager, Andy Rae, has been skiing here just about all his life – his father Colin, later the resort’s manager, ran the old double chairlift in the early 1960s.

“I have to admit it, I hated riding that lift – as a kid it hit you in the legs and it really hurt,” Andy Rae said.

With the new lift, it’s a different story. “It completely changes the way Mount Perisher skis, there’s so much more of it – you can ski out wide and make your way back to the lift and keep on doing the laps.”

As well as being far easier to ride, an advantage of chairlifts is that they remove the uphill traffic from the slopes – T-bar or Poma lifts drag their riders up the hill, so the downhill traffic has to avoid them and their path.

The new lift replaces two old ones, reducing the number of lift towers on Mount Perisher from 27 to 10.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Putting the passengers up in the air gives more room for the skiers and boarders on their downhill run – the only unnatural obstacles they need avoid are the lift towers, with most of them gone, that’s good news on runs that can be crowded.

On snow, the opening was greeted with a Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony by Indigenous elders Glenda Dixon and David Dixon. Their ancestors are from the Snowy Mountains area – the Narigo and Walgal people.

David Dixon has explored the area in summer and uncovered cutting tools and other cultural artefacts. He welcomed the new lift and underscored the importance of the connection to the land it is on . “Without the land, we don’t exist,” he said.

Before the official cutting of the ribbon, the Bega River Dancers also performed – among their dances were a welcome dance and the cabbage tree dance, which depicts the role of women as gatherers, stripping bark and weaving baskets.

The Bega River Dancers performing at the official opening of the new chairlift. Credit: Jim Darby

Traveller also rode the lift on its official opening day – it is indeed cutting edge for speed and comfort; even with a queue of keen skiers and boarders in the morning, it pushed them through in just a few minutes.

It is so efficient, most of them seemed to get their quota of rides faster than usual, breaking for lunch ahead of time – despite the quality of the snow, there was no queue at all around 12.30pm.

The writer travelled as a guest of Perisher.