Locals want to revive Pioneer Ski Area near CB South

“It would be like Mad River Glen”

The Gunnison County Ski Club built Colorado’s first chairlift on the flanks of Cement Mountain—near what is now Crested Butte South. It was completed in 1939, and the single-seated Comet Chair carried skiers nearly 2,000 feet up. The fun lasted until 1956, when the ski area closed for reasons unknown.

Fifty-four years later, there’s a movement afoot to reopen the Pioneer Ski Hill. Al Smith of Crested Butte South is the chief proponent, and he’s paid a visit to the Forest Service and started gauging public opinion. The Forest Service directed Smith to get them a proposal, and then they would tell him what else was required.
“The idea to resurrect the Pioneer Ski Hill came as a few CB South locals were hanging out at Camp4 Coffee doing what we seem to do best—talking and throwing ideas at the wall to see if something sticks,” said Smith. “Inevitably Snodgrass came up. Someone wondered how the Irwin Ski operation got up and running so quickly. The answer appeared to be that Irwin was a ski area before, so it was easy to resurrect.
“That got us thinking…Hmm…Cement Mountain had a ski area in the past—The Pioneer Ski Hill! We wondered what it would take to resurrect the Pioneer and turn it into a neighborhood ski hill for CB South and surrounding neighbors’ benefit.”
Crested Butte South Property Owners Association Manager Chris Behan said, “I wouldn’t call it an official P.O.A. pursuit just yet…but we are thinkers over here. So I may spend an hour or two investigating it a little more in the near future. But I also plan to spend an hour or two looking into the cost of an outdoor swimming pool in our park that would be heated to at least 80 degrees with a geo-thermal type of heat exchange. Maybe to 86 or so with some hot water solar assist via panels. Thinking and getting some preliminary numbers is the easy and cheap part of those types of investigations!”
Smith said he was surprised at how open people are to the idea. “Surprisingly, we have met very little opposition to the idea. We imagine that it would be like Mad River Glen—community owned/shared and really bare bones.  There would be no massive base area, no flock of condos, no grooming and very few rules. How could anyone be against it? Well…
“One fella said: ‘Do Not Use My CB South Dues! People are having a tough time without any more crazy projects.’
“Good point,” Smith continued. “Someone else intimated that Cement Mountain is a large unused area due to limited access and as such, it should be left alone. A local patriarch of a ranching family said he used to ski there a bunch when he was younger. ‘It was steep and fun!’”
He also said there are concerns about what impacts it may have. “Should it run summer and winter?” Smith wondered. “Weekends only? Once we get off the valley floor, should we install an additional surface lift to get us to the top of Cement?”
Smith is having fun with the project, and said there is strong interest in resurrecting the Pioneer Ski Hill. “I have heard there is already a movement by the group C.A.V.E (Citizens Against Virtually Everything) to start a protest/action group called ‘Friends Of Cement Mountain’ (acronym…never mind).”
Smith encourages people to send him feedback on the project at the following mailing address: Al Smith c/o Pioneer Ski Hill, POB 1062, Crested Butte, Colorado 81224.