Instantly east of Salt Lake Metropolis, the towering Wasatch Mountains rudely rise like a protection wall, guarding a wilderness refuge of granite partitions, alpine trails, and pristine snowfields. Little Cottonwood Canyon, carved over millennia, is the crown jewel of this vary—a sanctuary for skiers, climbers, and hikers. Now, it stands at a crossroads. A proposed gondola threatens to separate its ridges with metal towers, erasing its wild character to serve two ski resorts. For Howie Garber, a photographer and conservationist, the canyon is greater than only a panorama. It’s a place to struggle for, a battleground the place the stakes are as excessive because the peaks themselves.
Garber’s newest undertaking, Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon, Jewel of the Wasatch Mountains, is a ebook born of urgency. The proceeds from its sale will fund lawsuits to dam the gondola, a undertaking Garber calls “a theft of public lands for personal revenue.” The ebook, a collaboration with 10 photographers and 12 authors, is each a celebration of the canyon’s magnificence and a rallying cry to reserve it. For Garber, it’s the end result of many years of labor within the Wasatch, the place his digicam lens and his activism have been instruments to guard what he calls “one of many final actually wild locations close to a metropolis.”
The gondola proposal from the Utah Division of Transportation (UDOT) is likely one of the most controversial infrastructure initiatives in latest Utah historical past. Pitched as an answer to Little Cottonwood Canyon’s infamous site visitors congestion, the gondola would stretch practically eight miles, connecting the bottom of the canyon to the Alta and Snowbird ski resorts through large 250-foot towers. Nevertheless, critics like Garber argue that the undertaking prioritizes revenue over individuals. “This gondola isn’t about fixing site visitors issues; it’s about making ski resorts and land builders richer,” he says. “It’s stealing a exceptional place from the residents of Utah.”
The gondola, which might value taxpayers over $500 million, has sparked fierce opposition from environmentalists, native residents, and out of doors fans. Past its staggering price ticket, opponents level out that the gondola would primarily serve Alta and Snowbird skiers, providing little profit to backcountry customers, hikers, or climbers who additionally cherish the canyon. Its large metal towers would completely alter the canyon’s iconic views, whereas its building may have extreme environmental penalties.
Some of the urgent considerations is the impression on Little Cottonwood Canyon’s watershed. The canyon provides a good portion of Salt Lake Metropolis’s consuming water, and critics fear that building may disrupt the fragile ecosystems that keep water high quality. The Salt Lake Metropolis Water Division and the Metropolitan Water District have already filed lawsuits in opposition to UDOT, arguing that the Environmental Influence Assertion (EIS) for the undertaking didn’t adequately research its potential results on the watershed. In keeping with Garber, the gondola towers aren’t simply an eyesore—they might jeopardize the water that sustains this metropolis.
The opposition to the gondola just isn’t merely about aesthetics or native inconvenience. It raises basic questions on public land use, fairness, and environmental stewardship. Whereas gondola proponents spotlight the potential for decreased automobile site visitors, critics level out that the system is unlikely to considerably alleviate congestion throughout peak ski days, because it doesn’t tackle the amount of vehicles headed to trailheads or different locations within the canyon. Moreover, the gondola would primarily profit two personal resorts, elevating considerations about whether or not taxpayer funds ought to be used to subsidize a undertaking with such slender utility.
For Garber, the gondola proposal represents a broader pattern of prioritizing short-term financial positive factors over long-term conservation. “This isn’t nearly Little Cottonwood Canyon,” he says. “It’s about how we worth our pure areas and who will get to determine their future.”
Garber’s struggle in opposition to the gondola is deeply private. A backcountry skier and photographer for over 5 many years, he has spent a lot of his life exploring and documenting the Wasatch. His connection to Little Cottonwood Canyon runs significantly deep; it’s the place he first reduce his tooth as a photographer within the Nineteen Seventies and the place he has returned 12 months after 12 months to seize its unparalleled magnificence.
“This place has formed who I’m,” he says. “It’s greater than a panorama—it’s part of my life.”
The concept for Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon, Jewel of the Wasatch Mountains was born out of this connection. When Garber first heard in regards to the gondola proposal, he knew he needed to act. Drawing on his expertise with earlier conservation campaigns, together with a profitable effort to cease a ski raise connecting Large and Little Cottonwood Canyons, he determined to create a ebook that would each have fun the canyon’s magnificence and help the struggle to guard it.
The result’s a collaborative masterpiece. The ebook options over 35 years of Garber’s images alongside contributions from eight different photographers and 12 authors, Garber included. The essays cowl a variety of subjects, from the historical past of snowboarding and climbing in Little Cottonwood to the canyon’s ecological significance and the potential impacts of the gondola. Contributors embody avalanche professional Bruce Tremper, former Salt Lake Metropolis mayor Ralph Becker, and climber Alex Schmidt, every bringing their distinctive views to the undertaking.
In keeping with Bruce Tremper, former Director of the Utah Avalanche Middle, Little Cottonwood Canyon is taken into account one of many world’s premier snowboarding locations on account of a novel mixture of things. Its famously mild, dry snow outcomes from storms dropping moisture as they go over mountain ranges earlier than reaching Utah, creating excellent powder. Alta averages over 500 inches of snow yearly and sees about 18 days per season with greater than 10 inches of snowfall, far surpassing different locations like Colorado’s Berthoud Move. It’s an ideal combination of high quality and amount.
The terrain is ideally various, with above and below-treeline choices that swimsuit all climate and avalanche situations. Utah’s sunny local weather usually gives clear skies between storms, and LCC’s avalanche hazard, whereas current, is comparatively forgiving in comparison with different components of the Rockies. Coupled with extremely detailed forecasts from the Utah Avalanche Middle and unmatched accessibility from Salt Lake Metropolis, LCC provides a winter expertise that’s troublesome to rival. Nevertheless, its recognition raises vital questions on easy methods to steadiness entry with preserving the canyon’s distinctive magic.
Ralph Becker, former mayor of Salt Lake Metropolis and long-time advocate for the Wasatch, displays on the mounting pressures going through the Central Wasatch Mountains in his part of the ebook. For over 50 years, these peaks have been his solace and his yard, however the rise in inhabitants and leisure demand has outpaced minimal infrastructure enhancements. Becker describes how unsustainable use ranges have led to elevated site visitors, strained rescue assets, and a diminished customer expertise.
Regardless of debates over the perfect options, Becker emphasizes the shared understanding that transportation, useful resource safety, and customer administration are interconnected challenges. He argues for an inclusive course of, the place specialists, group members, and decision-makers come collectively to weigh many years of analysis and discover a sustainable path ahead. Whereas authorized battles over proposals just like the Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola proceed, Becker insists that this era ought to be used to collaborate on options that respect and defend the Wasatch for future generations. For Becker, any transportation determination have to be considerate and enduring, making certain that this cherished panorama stays accessible whereas preserving its pure integrity.
The ebook’s launch occasion on the King’s English Bookshop in Salt Lake Metropolis introduced collectively a lot of its contributors and supporters who share Garber’s imaginative and prescient. The occasion was full of attendees keen to fulfill the authors, hear their tales, and buy signed copies of the ebook. The environment was celebratory however tinged with urgency, as proceeds from each sale went on to funding the lawsuits in opposition to the gondola. Garber addressed the group with a heartfelt plea to guard the canyon. “This isn’t nearly snowboarding,” he stated. “It’s about water, wildlife, and the legacy we go away behind. As soon as you set up 250-foot towers on this canyon, you’ll be able to’t take them down.”
The lawsuits funded by the ebook are only one a part of a broader motion to protect Little Cottonwood Canyon. Organizations like Mates of Alta and Save Our Canyons have been on the forefront of this struggle, drawing on many years of expertise advocating for the Wasatch. Their efforts have already led to vital victories, together with stopping Snowbird from constructing a curler coaster on Mount Superior and stopping the development of extra chairlifts in White Pine Canyon.
The ebook additionally serves as a reminder of what’s at stake. Little Cottonwood Canyon is not only a leisure paradise; it’s an important ecological and cultural useful resource. Its granite partitions are acknowledged by the Library of Congress as a historic climbing space, whereas its snow-covered slopes draw skiers and snowboarders from around the globe. For Salt Lake Metropolis residents, the canyon is a refuge from the summer time warmth and a supply of unpolluted consuming water. “This canyon is a lifeline for the group,” Garber says. “It’s not only a vacation spot—it’s a necessity.”
Along with its environmental and leisure worth, the canyon holds deep private significance for many who have spent their lives exploring its trails, ridges, and couloirs. For Garber, the struggle to save lots of Little Cottonwood is about preserving that connection for future generations. “This place has given me a lot,” he says. “This ebook is my means of claiming thanks—and my means of combating to guard it.”
Regardless of the challenges forward, Garber stays optimistic. He factors to the power of the Wasatch group, which has efficiently resisted comparable growth initiatives prior to now. He additionally highlights the rising consciousness of the gondola’s flaws, from its excessive value to its restricted utility. “Why ought to the general public pay for one thing that serves such a slender curiosity?” Garber asks.
Because the occasion on the King’s English drew to a detailed, attendees lined as much as have their books signed by Garber and the opposite contributors. Many lingered to share their very own tales of Little Cottonwood, underscoring the deep connection so many really feel to this particular place. Garber hopes the ebook will encourage others to hitch the struggle. “This can be a pivotal second,” he says. “We’ve to determine what sort of legacy we wish to go away. For me, it’s easy: I wish to go away a canyon that’s as wild and exquisite as I discovered it.”
Buy Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon, Jewel of the Wasatch Mountains at friendsofalta.org to help the struggle to protect Little Cottonwood Canyon.
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