Chacaltaya ( Mollo language for " bridge of winds " or " winds meeting point ", Aymara for "cold road") is a mountain in the Cordillera Real , one of the mountain ranges of the Cordillera Oriental , itself a range of the Bolivian Andes . Its elevation is 5,421 meters (17,785 ft). Chacaltaya's glacier — which was as old as 18,000 years — had an area of 0.22 km (0.085 sq mi) in 1940, which had been reduced to 0.01 km (0.0039 sq mi) in 2007 and was completely gone by 2009. Half of the meltdown, as measured by volume, took place before 1980. The final meltdown after 1980, due to missing precipitation and the warm phase of El Niño, resulted in the glacier's disappearance in 2009. The glacier was located about 30 kilometers (19 mi) from La Paz , near Huayna Potosí mountain.
18-546: The glacier on Chacaltaya served as Bolivia's only ski resort . It was the world's highest lift-served ski area and the northernmost in South America . The rope tow, the first in South America, was built in 1939 using an automobile engine; it was housed in the site's original clapboard lodge, and is now inoperable. The road to the base of the 200-meter (660 ft) drop is reached by a narrow road, also built in
36-457: A ski area –a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North America , it is more common for ski areas to exist well away from towns, so ski resorts usually are destination resorts , often purpose-built and self-contained, where skiing is the main activity. Ski resorts are located on both Northern and Southern Hemispheres on all continents except Antarctica . They typically are located on mountains , as they require
54-524: A basic first aid facility, and some kind of ski patrol service to ensure that injured skiers are rescued. The ski patrol is usually responsible for rule enforcement, marking hazards , closing individual runs or areas as conditions require, and removing (dismissing) dangerous participants from the area. The typical ski area base includes a ticket office, ski lodge , ski school , equipment rental/repair shop, restaurant/bar, shopping, shuttle bus stop and parking. Some ski resorts offer lodging options on
72-646: A derivation of the Old Norse skíð via Norwegian , the choice of French is likely attributed to the early popularity of such activities in the French Alps , with which it was then linked. As rising temperatures, receding glaciers and declining snowfall affect the environment, resort development and operations also have an environmental impact on land, lakes, streams, and wildlife. Amenities and infrastructure such as concrete buildings, ski lifts, access roads, parking lots, and railways have contributed to
90-740: A large slope. They also need to receive sufficient snow (at least in combination with artificial snowmaking , unless the resort uses dry ski slopes ). High concentrations of ski resorts are located in the Alps , Scandinavia , western and eastern North America , and Japan . There are also ski resorts in the Andes , scattered across central Asia , and in Australia and New Zealand . Extreme locations of non-indoor (at least one ski lift outside) ski resorts include: The ski industry has identified advancing generations of ski resorts: The term ski station
108-731: A team. In 1992 Annelise Coberger became the first person from the Southern Hemisphere to win a medal at the Winter Olympics when she won silver in the slalom at Albertville in France . Other forms of skiing that New Zealand is known for include heli-skiing and kite-skiing . Snowkiting , while a relative new sport, has an avid following in New Zealand, with a festival in Wānaka held annually. Aoraki / Mount Cook
126-450: Is a term for entertainment, nightlife or social events that occur specifically at ski resorts. These add to the enjoyment of resort-goers and provide something to do besides skiing and snowboarding . The culture originated in the Alps, where it is most popular and where skiers often stop at bars on their last run of the day while still wearing all their ski gear. Though the word "ski" is
144-455: Is also used, particularly in Europe, for a skiing facility which is not located in or near a town or village. A ski resort which is also open for summer activities is often referred to as a mountain resort . Ski areas have marked paths for skiing known as runs, trails or pistes . Ski areas typically have one or more chairlifts for moving skiers rapidly to the top of hills, and to interconnect
162-580: The Chacaltaya Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) station. The GAW station is one of the few monitoring sites of Essential Climate Variables (meteorological variables, aerosols , and greenhouse gases ) in the Southern Hemisphere. Ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing , snowboarding , and other winter sports . In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to
180-563: The Mount Chacaltaya Laboratory began as a weather station in 1942. It is an important site for gamma ray research and was the site in the 1940s of the first observations of pions . The Chacaltaya ( Astrophysical ) Observatory belongs to the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés and it is operated in collaboration with other universities worldwide. It hosts a cosmic ray research group, and since 2011
198-411: The urbanization of mountainous zones. In recent years, the use of snow cannons by many ski resorts has increased to compensate for reduced levels of snowfall. In order to sustain good quality snow coverage, snowmaking requires large amounts of water and sometimes the creation of artificial lakes . Snow cannons also introduce a noise element. The required infrastructure can affect erosion through
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#1732772845195216-421: The 1930s. Traditionally, due to the extreme cold weather, the lift operated exclusively on weekends from November to March. Since 2009, skiing is restricted to a 600-foot (180 m) stretch that sometimes receives sufficient snowfall for a run during the winter. The mountain is also popular with amateur mountaineers, as the road stops only 200 metres (660 ft) from the summit. Guinness World Records considers
234-452: The dry season. The World Bank has warned that many glaciers in the tropical portion of the Andes are expected to disappear within 20 years. This will threaten the water supplies of nearly 80 million people as well as the future generation of hydropower . Bolivia, Ecuador , and Peru depend on hydropower for about half their electricity. Located at 5,240 meters (17,190 ft),
252-665: The increased area of impervious surfaces , redirecting the flow of water runoff . Many resorts are taking steps to reduce their energy and water consumption and waste production, increase recycling, and restore habitats. Initiatives aimed at addressing environmental concerns include: Skiing in New Zealand New Zealand is a major skiing destination in the Southern Hemisphere , due to its high latitude, mountainous terrain, and well-developed economy and tourism industry. The ski season in New Zealand starts in mid June and in good winters can run through to
270-749: The ski resort restaurant to be the highest restaurant in the world. Scientists at the Mount Chacaltaya Laboratory started measuring the Chacaltaya glacier in the 1990s. Predicted at that time to survive until 2015, the glacier melted at a faster rate than expected. By 2009, it had been reduced to a few small patches of ice and snow near the top of the mountain. Many Bolivians on the Altiplano and in two of Bolivia's main cities — La Paz and El Alto — depend on melt water from Andean glaciers for part of their water supply during
288-413: The slopes themselves, with ski-in and ski-out access allowing guests to ski right up to the door. Ski resorts often have other activities, such as snowmobiling , sledding , horse-drawn sleds , dog-sledding , ice skating , indoor or outdoor swimming and hot tubbing , game rooms, and local forms of entertainment, such as clubs, cinema, theaters and cabarets . Après-ski (French for after skiing )
306-638: The start of November. Most of the skifields are in the South Island , with four in the North Island . There are both major commercial resorts, and smaller intrepid and club skifields which provide access to affordable skiing for club members. There are also specialist backcountry skiing areas such as Mount Potts and Invincible Snowfields which provide heliskiing and snowcat skiing for adventure-seekers. New Zealand has competed at most Winter Olympics since 1952 , when Sir Roy McKenzie led
324-499: The various trails. Rope tows can also be used on short slopes (usually beginner hills or bunny slopes). Larger ski areas may use gondola lifts or aerial tramways for transportation across longer distances within the ski area. Resorts post their trail map illustrating the location of lifts, trails, services and the ski area boundary, and during the ski season issue a daily snow conditions report listing open trails, operating lifts and weather status. Ski areas usually have at least
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