Fortress Mountain

Infobox ski area
name= Fortress Mountain

picture=
caption=
location= Kananaskis, Canada
nearest_city= Calgary
lat_degrees= 50
lat_minutes= 49
lat_seconds= 40
lat_direction= N
long_degrees= 115
long_minutes= 12
long_seconds= 06
long_direction= W
top_elevation= 2,369 m
base_elevation= 2,040 m
skiable_area= 3.8 km²
number_trails= 47
longest_run= 2 km
liftsystem= 3 chairlifts, 2 T-bars
snowfall= 630 cm/year
external_link= [http://www.skifortress.ca/ Ski Fortress] |

Fortress Mountain is a ski resort in Kananaskis Country, Alberta, Canada.

Located on the face of The Fortress, the resort spans over 3.8 km² from a top elevation of 2,369 m to the base at 2,040 m, and is serviced by 3 chairlifts (one triple, two doubles) and 2 T-bars. The longest run, at 2 km, has a vertical rise of 329 m.

The resort is located on Kananaskis Trail (115 km west of Calgary). It is owned and operated by the Banff Rail Co.

Closure

Fortress Mountain Skis Resort will not open for the 2007-2008 season.

In the fall of 2007, Alberta Sustainable Resources canceled the five leases that make up the ski area, effectively making an opening of the resort impossible. The leases were canceled because the Banff Rail Company did not meet obligations that were written into the lease documents.

In the summer of 2007 Banff Rail Company did make some effort to meet the obligations of the lease. The road received maintenance work, and the infamous "Corner 7" turn was, according to BRC, "completely rebuilt". The company also hired engineering work done on the bridge over the Kananaskis river, however, the extent of the work actually done on the bridge is unclear. Stantec was the engineering consultant.

Closure during 2006-07 season

The resort did not operate during the 2006-07 season. Initially the opening was delayed by an order by the provincial Director of Fair Trading requiring a halt to the sale of season passes and the closure of the resort's access road to the public. [Cite web| url= http://www.gov.ab.ca/acn/200611/20769C829325A-F8CB-A732-86175411F3489346.html | title= Consumer Alert | author= Alberta Government Services | authorlink = Government of Alberta | month= November | year=2006 |accessdate=2007-02-06] Additional delays resulted from failure to receive the required permits and certifications on its road, lodge and chair lifts. Management of the resort announced its limited opening in February 2007 via its website but the ski hill remained closed. On April 21, via the resort's website, the resort announced it was "closed awaiting approvals."

Unique T-Bar lift

The Curve T-Bar lift installed at Fortress mountain is of novel design. It operates in a big loop, draped over a ridge, so that it can pull skiers up both sides of the ridge with a single motor and loop of cable. There is not a similar lift in the Canadian Rockies.

The lift has not operated under the Banff Rail Company's ownership and was last run during the Resorts of the Canadian Rockies ownership period.

References

External links

* [http://www.skifortress.ca/ Ski Fortress] official website