Colorado’s Arapahoe Basin began rotating its iconic Pallavicini lift, also known as “Pali,” today, December 5th. The Pallavicini Lift at Arapahoe Basin (commonly known as A-Basin) is named after the challenging Pallavicini Run, which in turn is named after the Pallavicini Couloir on Austria’s Großglockner, the highest mountain in Austria. This steep and iconic couloir is famous among mountaineers and skiers and its name was adopted to reflect the similarly steep and difficult terrain served by the lift at A-Basin.

The Pallavicini Lift provides access to some of the resort’s most advanced terrain, including steep moguls, glades and two black diamond runs, making it a worthy tribute to its namesake. Pali is open with access to Slalom Slope, Grizzly Road, Powder Keg, Scutter, Challenger and Radical. Additionally, mountain operations will offer limited openings from the east side of the lift, including Pallavicini to Rock Garden. With limited hours, the ski area opens slopes a few hours a day to ensure they do not become overcrowded and mountain operations can continue to safely manage the slopes while skiers and riders can enjoy new terrain.

Pali has a vertical climb of 1,329 feet, the ride takes about seven minutes and reaches a summit elevation of 12,130 feet. The original Pali lift was built by Yan Lifts in 1978 and replaced in 2020 with a Leitner-Poma double chair with the same hourly capacity. While the lift remained a double, fixed-grip lift, the Pallavicini lift received some much-needed improvements, including a safety bar and a silver steel finish. From the lift, riders have spectacular views of Keystone, Highway 6 and Loveland Pass.

The Pallavicini area is A-Basin’s legendary front-side intermediate and expert area. The predominantly double-black Pallavicini slopes are big mountain ski slopes that can be reached with a single lift ride directly from the valley station. The area has also been the venue for the A-Basin Enduro for 30 years. During the event, teams of two ride and ski as many descents as possible from the “Pali Chair” for ten hours to raise funds for a community member in need.

The Pallavicini is now open for the 2024-25 season.

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