HarleySpoon said:
Just took the family skiing there last week and was complaining that the Kachina lift and basin were not open. Over the years I've seen a number of small avalanches roll down Kachina as I rode up the lift....this was apparently much bigger. Kachina is one of the few places in North America where you can do bowl skiing using a lift rather than hiking, helicoptering, or snow sled. Pretty neat little hidden gem as compared to most lift accessible runs in the US Rockies.
Looks like one guy died and another is in critical condition now. Very sad.
I hear you and it's a great hidden gem. At Taos there are some regions that are connected and the news seems to interchange. Kachina basin has been chair lift accessible for decades and is spectacular - most skiers did not go to that side at it was about a 40 minute trek by multiple chair lifts just to get back there. You could see the avalanches coming off Kachina peak that sometimes would roll down very near the top part of the Kachina basin lift. About a few years ago, they added a lift to take people to the upper part and Kachina peak - which was the part previously only accessible by helicopter and hiking - and was closed often due to Avalanche danger. Kachina peak isn't a family ski area - while the lower part has different levels. In the old days, the lower lift accessible (albeit stil require a very short hike up) favorite of mine was Hunziker Bowl. The upper par was incredible but was expensive (helicopter), damn hard to get to (hiking), or closed. There's going to be some big lawsuits as that region should have been closed or better Avalanche prevention taken.
As a very side note to this very sad story, my grandparents use to own some of the land that the lower part of the ski area and base camp are located. They sold to a guy named Ernie Blake, who then started the ski area. I still am mad they didn't put free skiing in the deal for all children, grandchildren, etc.