The Strathspey and Badenoch Herald announces that Save the Ciste campaigners are to meet with Natural Retreats (the new operator on Cairn Gorm) next week regarding the Coire na Ciste Chairlifts:
Strathspey and Badenoch Herald: Cairngorm chairlift campaign group welcomes talks
NR are to be commended for agreeing to meet and discuss the issues with the campaign team, and we look forward to entering a positive dialogue with them.
We will explain why there is a campaign and we will explain to them our case for Coire na Ciste. On behalf of our ~3000 petition signees and the economy of Strathspey as a whole, we will then ask Natural Retreats to commit to Coire na Ciste *now*.
We will tell Natural Retreats that our aim is to see the reinstatement of the two chairlifts in Coire na Ciste. We cannot expect this to happen immediately, and so for next season we will ask them to commit to operating the West Wall Poma whenever possible; last winter the lift was operated for just ~16 days, despite the runs being skiable for over 5 months.
To ensure a maximum possible length of the ski season in Coire na Ciste without aid of the chairlifts, we will ask them to commit to a short-term plan of reinstating the boardwalk leading out of the Ciste Gully which was removed this summer. We will ask them to conduct essential snowfencing repairs with some urgency where vital links have fallen down and presently act to shorten the ski season (i.e. the fencelines out to the East Wall Gullies, and the fencelines which border the West Wall Poma uptrack).
Above all, at the meeting on 8th July 2014 we will be asking Natural Retreats to commit to an open and transparent examination of the economic viability of bringing the chairlifts back into life. We believe very truly that this study will point towards the reinstatement of the two chairlifts in Coire na Ciste as being the only sensible economic way forward.
As ever, I encourage people to sign the e-petition:
www.savetheciste.com :: e-petition to reinstate the Coire na Ciste chairlifts on Cairn Gorm