After my post on Concrete and the Death of a Ski Resort (see here) the following comment was posted which I think deserves a proper reply.
Environmental change
Significant human intervention began at Cairn Gorm when skiers first arrived and decided it was the best place to build a ski area, a resort that has attracted millions to snow sports and still has a magnetic draw today. This had major environmental impacts but, through the efforts of the likes of Adam Watson, for a time standards improved and past damage was partly restored and partly recovered through natural processes.
It has to be said though that nothing that went on before has had such a long-term impact visually as the monstrosity that is the funicular railway. It was Alistair Bell, in his post on corporate gaslightling at Cairn Gorm (see here), who stated he had been on the opposite side of Aviemore and that while the railway stood out like a sore thumb, he had trouble finding the pylons for the Ciste chairlifts! It is mostly about size from afar and closer up the level of major ground disturbance.
The Mountain Bike Trails, as can be seen from the top photo, are just as bad – we should have learned by now! . Compare that visually to the car park tow (same photo) or the M1 poma (above) which can barely be seen on the right of the pictures. Because of the very slender nature of pylons they are much harder to see at a distance.
The dark area between the MTB trails is where CM(S)L bulldozed Coire Cas to make their “beginner area”. The bumps and lumps and high speed tracks are not the best idea for beginners, but more experienced skiers boarders will enjoy those custom made runs and jumps. What were the CNPA thinking about when they allowed that environmental destruction to take place? There used to be breeding pairs of Ring Ouzel in the area!
The economic and population benefits.
On the back of skiing Aviemore and the other surrounding villages changed from a quiet, dying backwater to a major winter tourist attraction, effectively starting to reverse a long history of clearances and depopulation in the Highlands. It was the place to ski in the U.K, as many as 6,500 on a good day. Compare that to the 2023 season when numbers were limited to a miserly 1,000.
When I first learned to ski at Cairn Gorm the A9 from Perth used to be single carriage way, 18 ft. wide, and went through every village! A good, clear run from Tyneside took about 8 hours but it was worth it! And how about this for dedication :-
“For several seasons, the London Weekend Ski Club coaches left that big city at the end of business on a Friday, to drive overnight to Newtonmore in Invernessshire, arriving at 7.30a.m. There the skiers breakfasted, changed into ski gear and were on Cairngorm as the lifts and tows opened….On Sunday they had a full day skiing before dining and changing in their hotel, to drive overnight back to London. This continued for several seasons with two or three coaches each weekend making the long journey,…” ( Ed Rattray. Scottish Skiing The Golden Years 1950 – 1990).
Hotels, B & B’s, all kinds of businesses opened, providing employment and catering for the huge influx of winter visitors. It is true that snow sports and the Cairn Gorm ski resort are not what they used to be, some 32,000 skier days last season, but instead of catering exclusively for a dwindling market, businesses adapted and Speyside became a non – skiing holiday destination for millions of people every year. I wonder how many, skiers and acquaintances, have been to Speyside at other times of the year, all because of their first visit as skiers?
Snow Conditions?
While the climate warmed and winters became less snowy, technology developed. Note how the machine-made snow has maintained a good cover while the surrounding area is virtually snow free. Ten years ago the operator was even able to provide skiers and boarders with some features to help to maintain late season interest.
As part of the investigation into the viability of snow making on Cairn Gorm, Winterhighland used a mathematical regression analysis model that indicated that a complete piste from the Sheiling to the Daylodge resulted in up to 700 additional Day Tickets being sold on a decent weekend day.
Making snow in this way is still possible, as this photo illustrates. The problem is that despite the money HIE has spent on snow making equipment , c £1m, which should have been a game changer, the management at Cairn Gorm have not utilised this asset to its full potential. The Beijing Olympics for example was run entirely on artificial snow! Why not Cairn Gorm?
Most of the snow machines cannot be used because of the lack of appropriate electrical infrastructure (the mains supply to the bottom of Coire Cas has been upgraded this year) and water supply at Cairn Gorm. Apparently before the equipment was bought nobody thought to appraise the running costs or environmental impacts if diesel generators had to be relied on!!!
I have confirmed with Snowsport Scotland that Cairn Gorm is still the only ski area in the UK with homologated FIS race status, a status that people led by Major Guy Chilver-Stainer, a founder member of the Scottish Ski Club and a driving force in the ski world, worked hard to obtain. HIE and CM(S)L have done nothing to use that very important asset. Many ski racers used to learn their trade on Cairn Gorm and could still yet, the equipment is there, all it needs is someone with a bit of get up and go.
Compare the management now with the pioneers and what they achieved, Bob Clyde, Tommy Paul, Frith Finlayson, Guy Chilver Stainer and so many others, all with one thing in common…. a desire, a passion, to create an outstanding ski area, which they achieved, something sadly lacking in the current ownership who seem quite content to let it slide into oblivion.
Conclusion
The funicular was a poor form of uplift for snowsports enthusiasts even before the further flaws built into the design at Cairn Gorm (the tunnel that snows in, the mid-station that is not at midpoint etc). It was in large part responsible, couple with the removal of other lifts, for the downward trend in skier numbers at Cairn Gorm, many going to the other ski areas that offer a superior service. It has never lived up to the hype that surrounded it during its inception. With the current state of uncertainty about its future maybe it is time to consider closing down and removing it. That would certainly improve the visual experience in Coire Cas.
Given the right attitude the ski area could still function without the funicular until such a time as investment could be looked at to provide better uplift. With another winter approaching, the sixth, possibly without decent uplift for snowsports enthusiasts, spare a thought for those who are now facing an uncertain future in employment at CM(S)L and local hospitality businesses.
No winter uplift = no winter work!
If the funicular had been installed properly the first time and the correct concrete compound used (as intimated by doppelmayer there would not be a problem
The funicular is puff provide year round access to the mountain and allow a sustainable business to work
This is just a small part of a wider debate which has gone on for years as to whether rural Scotland should be “unspoilt” to cater for the needs of those who have the vapours at the sight of anything man made (or at least anything they recognise as such, quite a lot that they think is natural is in fact post industrial with grass growing on it), or a place where people live, work and play.
It is never explained how this utopia is to be experienced without the necessary infrastructure; strong hints that it will be restricted to the favoured elite and the rest of us will have to stay at home and watch it on TV or at best take a carefully controlled “visitor experience”.
Cairngorm was, and could be again, the jewel in the crown of Scottish Snowsports.
However, those making decisions about the running of the mountain need to listen to those who know what it will take to get it there. The people who would use the services, SNOWSPORT ENTHUSIASTS!
Until then, people will vote with their feet and go where they can get what the need.
Its called Glencoe Mountain Resort.
X 2
What’s wring with skinning up and skiing down, or even cycling uphill, then cycling down? Or is that too hard or inconvenient. There are resorts abroad that are adapting to eco friendly (and healthy) practices. Skinning (ski mountaineering) is a fast growing sport?
And what about those who (1) don’t have the right equipment for skinning, or, (2) aren’t quite as young and fit as we used to be, or, (3) disabled skiers, or, (4) snowboarders?
What concrete was used? Was it the dreaded RAAC. Schools, hospital and fire stations are falling apart. I think people would like to know. Bill H.
Not sure who you spoke to at Snowsport Scotland but the FIS website lists 23 FIS homologations for various disciplines across all 5 Scottish ski areas, all renewed last year and valid until 2032.
You are of course perfectly correct in your comment. My apologies to the other ski areas.
Nevis Range used to/still does(?) hold an annual FIS race but agree with much of the article. Poor winters, increased competition, more Scots/Brits taking foreign ski holidays have all contributed. But the funicular is the straw that broke the camel’s back. It is a skier unfriendly lift (too much faff in comparison to tows or chairs) and should be removed in a phased process to spread cost. Meanwhile a new system of gondolas (which could take summer tourists), modern multi-seat chairs and drags should be phased in. It is crazy that the Ciste (one of the best ski slopes on the hill) has no lifts. Cairngorm (with Nevis) still has the potential to be the leading ski area in the UK.
Amen
Though the funicular is a drain it must be remembered that it has huge benefit during the summer. Many people stepping off coaches to go up to the top and thus keeping jobs in the area etc would not want to do the same on a chair lift. We must see past the skiing and understand that the economic survival of not only the ski resort but also the area as a whole is a year long strategy and the ski season is but one part of it and not the whole part.
In caving there is something called a sacrificial cave. It is an area given over for groups etc so that other cave system can be preserved. People will always visit the cairngorm and Aviemore, so we must accept that to protect the cairngorms we need to offer an area that is managed and structured to accommodate this demand and the ski is area is that place. The money it generates should then be pumped back into the community and conservation ensuring that it is not only self sustaining but also a benefit to the area and this means we need facilities like the funicular to support this.
The funicular has not operated since 2018 when it was taken out of service on the advice of structural engineers and yet the economy and visitor numbers in Speyside have dramatically increased. That also means that coaches who visited the mountain did not discharge customers to the funicular. If you have looked at some of my other posts you would see that I have proposed a chair gondola hybrid. Chairs could be removed in the summer to reduce the running costs or used for mountain bike uplift! The Financial Business Case presented to the S.G. by HIE concludes that the ski area may never be economically viable as it will need an ongoing subsidy of £2 – 3m pa to keep it in business. The latest information from HIE is that the funicukar will be closed for an indefinite period as they try to get it operational again, but the next question is “What happens if it doesn’t re-open”?
I was on the funicular this year (but it closed again the week after)
Its a real shame. I started snowboarding here and its a magical place! I understand the dent on the scenery from infrastructure and perhaps other forms of uplift would have been a better choice, but the funicular is not as badly affected by high winds, allowing some uplift to continue. The alps are a beautiful place and that too is littered with ski areas and its beauty still remains. After skiing around the world I think the modern high speed chairlift is a great mode of transportation over drag lifts, but obviously has more visual impact. If the people running the show really got their brains into gear and utilised everything at their disposal Cairngorm would be a cracking place to ski. Unfortunately this would take time, money, politics and of course low elevation and global warming is an ever increasing problem. Still, when conditions are good this is an awesome place, as you cannot beat boarding on your own island
I remember when I got my skis waxed in Nov and ready for the season…that was the early 80s, when we had full cover by Xmas. The world had changed, forget the obvious aspects of warmer wetter winters and sketchy conditions even mid season high up….with grass/heather from mid mountain down. In the glory days the convoy of buses came up from England, nowadays they will grab an Easyjet flight into Geneva, and drive an hour to linked resorts with decent skiing… rather than the long slog north where poor snow/weather and queues greet them at best.
Aviemore and the surrounding area is re-inventing itself into a summer resort, and also as a commute area to Inverness. Breaks my heart to think of Scotland Skiing in the past tense but investment needs to be given to sports that have a viable future in the highlands.
Many lower resorts in the Alps are having the same conversations, as the snow season shortens and their businesses suffer. Artificial snow is a tool to keep the resorts open…but not a starting point.
Very sad story of gross incompetence and poor management. My wife learned to ski on Cairngorm and made the Olympics at Calgary. Sadly it is hard to see how youngsters can be developed in future with such poor infrastructure.
It seems to me like there is just a succession of poor management/operational decisions. I could never understand why when there was significant snowfall that they didn’t start clearing the road until the morning and the slopes not open until after lunch, while skiers queued down in Glenmore!
Surely the cost of having a couple of drivers keeping the road clear through the night would be paid off in the first hour of skiing?! I can’t imagine there wouldn’t be locals with the flexibility to provide cover for sporadic shifts when high snowfall was expected!
I still hold out hope for improvements in the Course Cas area, both visually/environmentally and also in economic benefits…
A complete shambles. As well thought out as the ferry nonsense. Major design changes half way through the build! Our collective inability to do anything these days is a national embarrassment.
I can’t believe a person would say just get rid of all the skiing infrastructure… and revert to what? As close to original natural pre resort appearance, but not pre resort original state of nature? Given that the decommissioning of the ski infrastructure would be the easy part and restoration of the state of nature would be a rather harder part of such a project, with likely massive effort and cost overheads and many years longer time to completion, how the investment and returns be generated for that?
I suspect it might be rather easier to get investment for skilfully re-imagined re-engineering of the site to enable continuation of the areas sporting raison d’etre whilst reducing the negative environmental and aesthetic aspects and leveraging the total potential of Cairn Gorm to deliver a better future, for the local area, it’s residents, businesses and clients, than the article coherently argues is currently the case.