Taos Upgrading Lift 4 to Detachable Quad, Replacing Pioneer Lift
Lift 4 at Taos, New Mexico in April 2022.
Taos will be getting two new lifts for the upcoming 2023-24 season, as first reported by Ski Area Management Magazine. The northern New Mexico resort is replacing its Lift 4 chair with a high-speed quad, while the Pioneer bunny hill lift will be replaced by another, more modern fixed-grip triple. The new Lift 4 chair will remain in the same alignment as the outgoing lift, while the upgraded Pioneer chair will be extended downhill for easier village access.
These projects are the first of several ambitious projects to be realized in Taos’ Master Development Plan.
Our Take
Lift infrastructure is currently a significant Taos drawback. Lift 1 is currently the resort’s only high-speed lift, and while this lift does provide a critical service as the only true out-of-base lift, most of its lappable terrain is advanced or expert in nature.
Upgrading Lift 4 to a detachable quad will greatly improve the experience for lower-ability Taos visitors, finally offering high-speed service within a terrain pod that’s designed for beginners and intermediates. The outgoing Lift 4’s ride time is nearly 9 minutes long, and by halving that, the resort will make for a much better guest experience in this area.
The Pioneer lift’s upgrade should also bring about a notable experience improvement for true beginners. The current setup is fairly annoying, especially for those learning—to get to the current Pioneer chair from the base, one essentially has to either hike uphill or ride a magic carpet first. Realigning the lift to start right at the base will make the learning experience much better.
Will upgrading Lift 4 to a high-speed lift make the terrain pod more crowded? Maybe, but these upgrades likely aren’t the last that Taos will see in the coming years. The resort also has replacements for Lifts 2, 7, 7a, and 8 in the pipeline, as well as a planned “base-to-base” gondola that would connect the main base with the Lift 4 base. Should all these be implemented, Taos will be almost completely unrecognizable compared to today.
For more on Taos, check out our full mountain review and our Rockies resort rankings. Additionally, check out our Taos video review below.
