On Wednesday, at approximately 11:40 a.m., Big Sky Resort, Montana's Shedhorn lift experienced a mechanical issue, forcing the resort to stop its operations and eventually evacuate those who remained on the lift.
In an email exchange with POWDER, a resort spokesperson wrote that all the stuck skiers and snowboarders had been evacuated via rope by 2:02 p.m.
In a comment below a Reddit post documenting the incident, one Big Sky guest who got stuck on the Shedhorn lift said the resort gave them two complimentary ticket vouchers after they were rescued by ski patrol.
Below Shedhorn is Big Sky's resort boundary—there are no runs or lifts that can transport skiers and snowboarders to different parts of the mountain, leading some guests to hike from the base of the closed lift to the Skittles Road cat track.
The resort retrieved those who waited at the base of Shedhorn with snowcats, transporting them to Shedhorn's upper terminal so they could easily ski to still-operating lifts via the Duck Walk run.
Big Sky also temporarily closed other portions of its south-side terrain, including the Lone Peak Tram, as additional ski patrol resources were needed to rescue skiers from the Shedhorn lift.
While the closed south-side terrain reopened at 2:15 p.m., Shedhorn didn't operate for the rest of the day.
"Thank you to our lift maintenance and ski patrol teams for their quick assessment, problem-solving, and resolution," the resort spokesperson wrote.
Repairs for the Shedhorn lift are underway, and Big Sky hopes to reopen it as soon as possible.
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