Another interesting article I found, dated Oct. 21, 1997

"Nothing has been finalized and it’s several years away even if they decide to do it, but Whistler/Blackcomb is considering a tram which would cross the Fitzsimmons Valley and connect the two mountains."

Several years away indeed! Ground wasn't even broken for 10 years. And of course, the details were different.

In addition to mentioning the then-new Emerald chair, the article discusses planned new lifts, including a high-speed upgrade to the Peak Chair, a chair in Symphony bowl, and the Garbanzo chair. Most interestingly, though, it goes on to say:

"Probably farthest in the future is a series of lifts up the backside of the mountain from the Cheakamus River area."

Are they talking about what I think of as the backside, namely the currently out-of-bounds area on the other side of Whistler peak, which so many visitors find too beguiling to resist, and wind up getting lost in?

(link: http://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/whi...nt?oid=2141023)