As soon as I learned to ski, I also learned I love ski history. In those mid 90’s days of early internet the only choice I had was to scour books at the library and talk to old-timers to figure out where tows, runs, and lifts used to be. Even when the internet came and more information was available I preferred to get out in the mountains looking for clues and documenting what I found. Many of those old film photos are lost, but I wanted to share a little bit of info on a few of my favorites that I haven’t seen others talking about in case others come along needing a starting point for their own adventures.
The other reason to share these is because in the decades since I first found them much of the evidence of their existence has been remove and many of the folks who actually skied there have passed away. Now is a good time to gather and record these histories before it’s too late.
Loafer (Payson)
I’ve heard this called Loaf View Ski Club and Loafer Ski Club, but my childhood scout leader had skied there with his kids and gave me enough clues to eventually find it. It was located in Payson Canyon, about ~9miles from town (Google Maps). There’s a dirt parking lot just before a tight left hand turn. Tucked inside that turn are the old footings for the rope tow with the lift line going up the hill to the southwest. Main run appears to have curled to the south before heading north back to the base.
The footings are still visible at the base. When I hiked to the top 15 years ago I found old rims and pieces from the tow’s return towers, but some cleanup has been done and I couldn’t find any of that on my most recent trip.
Mantua
I’m not sure of the name of this ski tow but I met a woman in college from Mantua and her older neighbors and family members remembered when it was around. This tow was located about 1.5 miles North of the main 600 N intersection in Mantua (Google Maps).
What I believe was the bottom tower for this tow is still standing. It used to have a tire rim attached to it at the bottom but that has been removed in recent years. That tower, however, is easily visible from the highway.
Interestingly, in a Deseret News article about lost ski areas a photo of this area was mistakenly labeled as Little Mountain in Emigration Canyon. When you overlay the Google Street View image with the image from that article you can see it’s actually a photo of this tow in Mantua.
Lindsay Hill (Heber City)
A short tow used to be operated on Lindsay Hill in Heber City. The base was located on Center Street about 2.3 miles from the main highway through town (Google Maps). The tow was located right next to the road and, the best I can tell, ran mostly south to the crest of Lindsay Hill.
Right around the year 2000 I visited this hill and there was still the old truck, tire rims, and even the drive wheel (two large tires mounted side-by-side to form a groove for the rope to run in) were still around. Those photos got lost somewhere during the last couple decades and the most recent visit showed a few random scraps left where the truck and parts once were.
Beaver Mountain (Logan Canyon)
While Beaver Mountain still exists, their original location was actually a few miles further up the road in The Sinks. This is a really fun bit of history because so much of the original tow still exists. If you head to the large parking area right before you start dropping down toward Sunrise Campground and then Bear Lake, a short hike up the ridge will put you at the top of the old tow line (Google Maps).
There is the main frame of the top terminal still visible along with a handful of odds and ends scattered around. The line appears to have grown in a little but is still clear enough that you could probably string up another tow without too much work.
