# Would a Ski Lift On Mt. Everest Make Sense? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 19, 2012, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207 "2012-03-19T09:15:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/41 "2012-03-20T12:32:52Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > The solution to running is a car. > > The solution to swimming is a boat. > > Ralph, what you propose defeats the purpose of mountain climbing. > > Speak with some mountain climbers about why they climb. Oh really? Then why is an aluminum ladder bolted to the last pitch near the top? THAT ain’t cricket, either!😃 ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/42 "2012-03-20T13:38:54Z")
Having read most of the autobiographies and first-hand accounts of the [1996 Disaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Mount_Everest_disaster), and seen numerous movies and documentaries, this has been, by far the most amusing discussion of climbing Everest. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/43 "2012-03-20T14:28:48Z")
> [@snowmaster](#): > > (nitpick) World’s longest ski lift is much, much longer than that. Even the old Killington Gondola in Vermont was 3.5 miles.(/nitpick) I read about some other gondola systems that are huge but since they really aren’t used as a ski-lift I didn’t count them. It’s easy to create an infinite series of wires along a horizontal plane. My Google-fu was weak though as I couldn’t find out how long the longest dedicated ski-lift actually was. Is it anywhere close to 5,000 vertical feet? ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/44 "2012-03-20T14:39:31Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Ok, good point. So here’s what we do: when the wind blows in off-season, we have turbines that wind up a massive rubber band stretched between the summit of Everest and nearby Lhotse peak. When it gets to ski-lift season, just pull out the stick and allow it to unwind, thus powering the lift. Why even bother with a ski-lift at that point? You’ve got a turbine-powered rubber band. So slingshot the hikers up the last 5,000 feet! Or catapult them. That would probably work better because you could fit a wheelchair on the platform and then handicapped hikers would have a way to reach the top. ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/45 "2012-03-20T15:02:28Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > Why even bother with a ski-lift at that point? You’ve got a turbine-powered rubber band. So slingshot the hikers up the last 5,000 feet! > Or catapult them. That would probably work better because you could fit a wheelchair on the platform and then handicapped hikers would have a way to reach the top. clearly, hovercraft or jet-pack technology is the way to go… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/46 "2012-03-20T15:39:05Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > Why even bother with a ski-lift at that point? You’ve got a turbine-powered rubber band. So slingshot the hikers up the last 5,000 feet! > Or catapult them. That would probably work better because you could fit a wheelchair on the platform and then handicapped hikers would have a way to reach the top. Survival rate sounds like it would be approximately the same. ---
**Author:** ![Dervorin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dervorin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dervorin)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/47 "2012-03-20T16:11:10Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Survival rate sounds like it would be approximately the same. It’s got to be a challenge, right? Otherwise what’s the point? Also, imagine landing on a nice big bouncy cushion on top of the mountain. That would be splendid! ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/48 "2012-03-20T16:13:39Z")
Isn’t there already a secret luxury hotel for the super-rich up there? I saw it on Brenda Starr! ---
**Author:** ![mkecane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@mkecane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mkecane)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/49 "2012-03-20T16:44:14Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > “Because it’s easy.” This is a perfect response. ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2012, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/50 "2012-03-20T18:06:14Z")
When I was a kid, I had a kite accessory that carried a camera up a kite string. When it got to the top, it clicked the camera shutter, released the sail, and came back down the string. The strength to weight properties of Kevlar and Spectra rope would make it possible to anchor a 2" diameter rope on top of Mt. Everest with the other end anchored 20 miles or more away at a 45 degree angle. A perfect kite string. Even hard core mountain climbers would get a thrill out of it, plus a picture of their smiling face on top of Mt. Everest. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/51 "2012-03-21T01:29:21Z")
> [@mkecane](#): > > This is a perfect response. Thank you for getting that. Thought nobody else had. ---
**Author:** ![snowmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@snowmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowmaster)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/52 "2012-03-28T15:57:05Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > I read about some other gondola systems that are huge but since they really aren’t used as a ski-lift I didn’t count them. It’s easy to create an infinite series of wires along a horizontal plane. My Google-fu was weak though as I couldn’t find out how long the longest dedicated ski-lift actually was. Is it anywhere close to 5,000 vertical feet? Yes. Off the top of my head, a detachable quad at Sun Valley and the Whistler gondola are both at about 3500 vertical. I’ll have to look it up, but I believe in Europe there are lifts in excess of 5K vertical feet; probably jigback aerial tramways. There are also some very long multi stage monocable gondolas. One particularly long one is in Iran. Ski lifts are a topic on which I can speak at length, if anyone has any questions. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/53 "2012-03-28T18:20:40Z")
> [@Dervorin](#): > > Also, what’s going to power this lift? There isn’t electricity laid on on top of Everest, you know, and carrying fuel up for a generator is going to be very, very expensive. Um…we put the motor at the _bottom_ of the ski lift in, say, Chukhung. And if you want lights and a space heater at the top you just run DC current through the actual cable. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/54 "2012-03-28T18:49:10Z")
> [@snowmaster](#): > > Ski lifts are a topic on which I can speak at length, if anyone has any questions. How much would a six person gondola lift (like the Bell one that almost worked so well at Lionshead) cost if it were to run from Chukhung to Lhotse and then peak to peak to Everest? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/55 "2012-03-28T19:20:04Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > How much would a six person gondola lift (like the Bell one that almost worked so well at Lionshead) cost if it were to run from Chukhung to Lhotse and then peak to peak to Everest? No lift could run in those winds, it’s a non-starter. ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/56 "2012-03-28T19:51:26Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > How much would a six person gondola lift (like the Bell one that almost worked so well at Lionshead) cost if it were to run from Chukhung to Lhotse and then peak to peak to Everest? No support poles/towers could be transported, created, erected, or otherwise made stationary in order to hold said ski lift, so it’s a non-starter. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/57 "2012-03-28T22:38:02Z")
> [@phungi](#): > > No support poles/towers could be transported, created, erected, or otherwise made stationary in order to hold said ski lift, so it’s a non-starter. Don’t be a pussy. Never heard of a tripod? Ain’t nothin’ more stable than a tripod! My math teacher told me so in geometry class. I have tremendous wealth remaining from my piracy days and can fund development and fabrication of electrical drilling and earth-moving gear, oxygen tanks, even pressure suits for sissies such as yourself to monitor construction sites. We got engineer dopers, metalurgist dopers, rock-jock dopers, hell we even got **silenus**. Let’s design this bitch and price it out! ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/58 "2012-03-28T23:16:07Z")
> [@Dervorin](#): > > In short: I think this is a daft idea, to try to solve a problem that doesn’t exist. A nice summation of pretty much all of ralph’s threads. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/59 "2012-03-28T23:46:38Z")
> [@snowmaster](#): > > Yes. Off the top of my head, a detachable quad at Sun Valley and the Whistler gondola are both at about 3500 vertical. I’ll have to look it up, but I believe in Europe there are lifts in excess of 5K vertical feet; probably jigback aerial tramways. This one which is a tram is 9186 ft vertical in Chamonix, France [http://unofficialnetworks.com/whos-ski-lift-world-41734/](http://unofficialnetworks.com/whos-ski-lift-world-41734/) ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207/60 "2012-03-29T02:09:29Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Don’t be a pussy. Never heard of a tripod? Ain’t nothin’ more stable than a tripod! My math teacher told me so in geometry class. > > I have tremendous wealth remaining from my piracy days and can fund development and fabrication of electrical drilling and earth-moving gear, oxygen tanks, even pressure suits for sissies such as yourself to monitor construction sites. > > We got engineer dopers, metalurgist dopers, rock-jock dopers, hell we even got **silenus**. Let’s design this bitch and price it out! Everest is itself a tripod, so might as well carve into the top of it directly to house the bullwheel and coffee shop. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-ski-lift-on-mt-everest-make-sense/616207.md?page=4)