Industry News
One of the most visually stunning and perhaps improbable chairlifts ever constructed, Forcella Staunies, once steeply ascended a wide couloir in the middle of Cristallo, one of Cortina d’Ampezzo’s most imposing peaks. Located at Cortina’s Faloria ski area, the lift closed in 2016 due to mechanical failures.
Staunies included a mid-station, where the majority of skiers unloaded. Only those with a guide were allowed to continue to the top. On the rare occasion when the resort groomed the piste from the top via a winch cat, all skiers could continue to the top. The lift provided access to some of Cortina’s most famous couloirs, including the aesthetic Staunies Nord and the various routes of the Cresta Bianche.
Currently, there are plans to replace the old chairlift with a funifor, a cable car with a pair of carrier cables on either side of the cabin. Faloria’s piste map now includes a dotted line indicating the plans to replace the lift. The plan is part of upgrades throughout the area before the Milan-Cortina ’26 Olympics. Cortina is slated to host the alpine events, although the events will fall on the Tofana side of the resort. Regarding the lift replacement, time will tell if such an ambitious project will proceed. While the replacement may be welcomed by many, avid backcountry skiers who enjoy the backside may have become accustomed to the long skin deterring most from making the trek.
