Rotors turn as The Canyons bids for helibase - The Park Record

NO, NO, NO! There should not be a heli-pad at the Canyons. There should not even be heli skiing in the Wasatch. The Wasatch range is too populated and too small to support ANOTHER heli landing area. Let the rich tourists take a cab over to Little Cottonwood if they need to heli-ski. This is a non-issue. What benefit do the residents of Park City and environs get from having this heli pad? NOTHING! But the negatives include: disrupting wildlife, an increasing carbon footprint, excessive noise, and taking turns away from those of us who actually earn them. Please don't allow this to happen!

NO! The quality of the skiing experience at the Canyons and in the side country will suffer. If a new heliport was for emergency services that would be OK but this is all about convenience so that Powderbirds attracts more customers and makes more money. For many years I was neutral on heli skiing in the Wasatch but it's clear to me now that it's an obnoxious intrusion on other peoples enjoyment of the Wasatch. Shut them down.

It seems to me that Powderbirds should negotiate with the Fire Department in Kimball Junction. They could use the already existing heliport and parking area for their guests. This might add 30 seconds to the flight time but completely eliminate additional environmental impacts that would surely come with a base at The Canyons.

Increase the carbon footprint?

LOL.

The back country access off the 9990 chair is some of the easiest in the west. 5 minute hike and you are in some of the most pristine back-country skiing around. I can't believe these people would waste their $ for an over priced heli ride to areas that are already accessible via a 5 minute hike. Everyone go to the meeting and vote NO.

Please - NO heli-skiing from The Canyons. I agree, the Wasatch is too populated and too small for a heli-ski operation anywhere (including Little Cottonwood Canyon). I also agree with the poster who noted that the backcountry access at The Canyons allows one to go anywhere under human power. Let the bloated high income business types learn some backcountry skills and do some work for their turns instead of disrupting native species and robbing un-tracked pow from those who earn their turns. It might just give them an appreciation for the natural world and a sense of accomplishment. Oh, and yes, heli-skiing does increase the carbon footprint. I do not believe helicopters run on bio-fuels or fart gas.:) NO MORE - please!!

I live really close. It would be lame if they let them fly out of the Canyons. What are skiing choppers doing in UT anyway? Keep the flat landers on the blues....

Giff Brown wrote:

I live really close. It would be lame if they let them fly out of the Canyons. What are skiing choppers doing in UT anyway? Keep the flat landers on the blues....

or the greens.

how about the bunny hills. that works for me too!

if they are looking for thrills, let them parachute out of a plane, cut away, and ski down.

I don't have a huge opinion on the issue, but I just want to point out that I don't think this will have a huge impact on backcountry skiing in the Wasatch. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

First, I wouldn't expect the runs that WPG uses to change at all. A heli can fly from Snowbird to the Canyons in minutes so if they weren't going to land on Dutch's, Square Top or Big Mac before, they probably won't now.

Second, WPG flies nearly at capacity all year anyway (try getting a seat on a bluebird fly-day), so unless they get another bird, don't expect this to increase heli-ski traffic, further mogul-up the backcountry, or increase their carbon footprint.

Everyone can agree that the serious issues are the noise for local residents and skiers at The Canyons.

Finally, before painting WPG with the evil brush, let's not forget the amount of avalanche control assistance they provide to help keep the canyon roads open so everyone can access the resorts and back country trail-heads alike. I'd be interested to hear if having a landing pad at The Canyons would help in these efforts.

WPGs lease at Snowbird in LCC is up this spring.

WPG has a record of doing A/C for the terrain they plan on skiing. Often with little regard for B/C users who may be in the run out of a large and potentially lethal avalanche.

The time for heli-skiing in the area that WPG uses within the tri-canyons area has passed.

http://www.telemarktalk.com/phpBB/viewtopic.p...

A discussion on this subject from many Utah residents.

Landing next to condos? That's just stupid. Just say NO!

Lou wrote:

Landing next to condos? That's just stupid. Just say NO!

Why? It's a helicopter not a 747. There is a huge difference.

They land at both PCMR and Deer Valley. Two days a week at The Canyons is not going to impact anyone. I've never skied with WPG and probably never will but can't see how this will negatively impact the area other than add to the overall economy and skiing experience in Park City. If you're a skier and hate the idea of the carbon impact I'd say a better protest would be to stop skiing - running gondolas, chairlifts and the gas to run all those vehicles up the canyons to all our resorts spews more carbon than a single heli does in a season.

Mountain Local wrote:

They land at both PCMR and Deer Valley. Two days a week at The Canyons is not going to impact anyone. I've never skied with WPG and probably never will but can't see how this will negatively impact the area other than add to the overall economy and skiing experience in Park City. If you're a skier and hate the idea of the carbon impact I'd say a better protest would be to stop skiing - running gondolas, chairlifts and the gas to run all those vehicles up the canyons to all our resorts spews more carbon than a single heli does in a season.

The issue is not about Back Country skiing BUT where and time of day the helicoptors will be running i.e taking off and landing. The proposed spot is not the place. This is all being pushed by The Canyons mind you to add more 'Glitz' to their operation and have something DV and PCMR don't have and WPB is more than happy to go along with it. How would you like to be staying at the Silverado for instance trying to sleep in so to speak and have a helicopter which holds only 4-5 people constantly coming and going literally right outside your window in the morning to ferry 20 people to the back country. Do the math, that's 4-5 noisy take offs and landings just to get the people out for the day. NO!! The helipad in THAT location must never happen... Oops it's now afternoon and all those people now need to be brought back to where they first departed and here I am after a hard day of skiing wanting to rest and I can't even hear the TV because of all the noise outside. Next time I come to Utah to ski I think I'll actually stay at the airport..it just might be more quiet there. I know for sure it will be safer.

End heli skiing in the wasatch.......I live in their fly zones.(just over the hill from canyons......one more noisy flight is one too many........life flight flys over my place a lot...I've seen WPG land on private property...their avi "control" work is a lot like search and destroy the backcountry...do all those super rich people up along the mid mountain trail want to be buzzed all day by helis? You wouldn't want to be staying anywhere near that pad....but then WPG seems to always get whatever they want...including landing almost on top of my friends on little Superior last year

moulton wrote:

End heli skiing in the wasatch.......I live in their fly zones.(just over the hill from canyons......one more noisy flight is one too many........life flight flys over my place a lot...I've seen WPG land on private property...their avi "control" work is a lot like search and destroy the backcountry...do all those super rich people up along the mid mountain trail want to be buzzed all day by helis? You wouldn't want to be staying anywhere near that pad....but then WPG seems to always get whatever they want...including landing almost on top of my friends on little Superior last year

they took away autumn aloft balloon festival because of the noise complaints.. and yet this stuff is ok.

and on a side note, please tell me you aren't complaining about the noise from life-flight.