News

STATE OF CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

Route Closure – Skyline Route
Mount San Jacinto State Park and Wilderness

February 1, 2022
Inland Empire District

Whereas: Skyline Route conditions are unsafe above 5800’ within Mt. San Jacinto State Park due to dangerous ice accumulation.

Therefore: Skyline Route is closed until further notice from the 5800’ State Park Boundary to its intersection with the Desert View Trail as seen below highlighted in red:

PALM SPRINGS, CA (March 2, 2022) Jerry Ogburn, retired urban planner and designer, has been elected chairman of the Mount San Jacinto Winter Park Authority (MSJWPA), governing body of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. Ogburn was appointed to the Authority by the Palm Springs City Council in 2006 and previously served as chair in 2009 and 2017.

For over four decades, Ogburn worked as an urban planner and designer in both the public and private sectors leading interdisciplinary teams of specialized consultants. Most recently, he served for five years as a senior designer for The Planning Center in Rancho Mirage, and then another five years for MSA Consulting, Inc., also in Rancho Mirage, as a senior planner. In January of 2017, he formally retired from the latter and continues to serve as a member of Desert Roundtable.

“As we approach the completion of the multi-year remodel of the Mountain Station in the coming months and the 60^th anniversary of the Tramway in 2023, we look optimistically towards the future,” says Ogburn. “It is an honor to serve as the 2022 chair alongside my fellow board members and the truly extraordinary staff members of the Tramway and our restaurant operations.”

Ogburn succeeds 2021 Chair Bary Freet, a 2015 Riverside County MSJWPA appointee. Other officers elected for 2022 are Vice Chair Brian Conley, Secretary Jeff Ohlfs and Treasurer Sandra Magana-Cuellar.

The current Authority members are: Jerry Ogburn and Nancy Stuart appointed by the Palm Springs City Council; Bary Freet and Brian Nestande appointed by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors; and Brian Conley, Sandra Magana-Cuellar and Jeff Ohlfs appointed by the Governor.

PALM SPRINGS, CA (February 11, 2022) The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway will observe special holiday hours during Presidents’ Day Weekend February 19-21, 2022 with the first Tram car up each day at 8:00 a.m., the last Tram car up at 6:30 p.m. and the last Tram car down at 8:00 p.m. Tram cars depart at least every 30 minutes.

Enjoy a day or evening above the desert floor exploring the 14,000-acre Mt. San Jacinto State Park & Wilderness and be awed by spectacular Coachella Valley vistas from the Mountain Station.

Tram admission is $28.95 for adults and $16.95 for children ages 3-10. After 4:00 p.m., Twilight Tickets are $25.95 for adults and seniors, and $13.95 for children ages 3-10.

PALM SPRINGS, CA (January 11, 2022) The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway will observe holiday hours during the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Weekend January 15-17 with the first tram up each day at 8:00 a.m., the last tram up at 8:00 p.m. and the last tram down at 9:30 p.m. Tram cars depart at least every 30 minutes.

At the Mountain Station, visitors may enjoy viewpoints, dining, a gift shop, a natural history museum, over 50 miles of hiking trails and two documentary-style movies about the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway and the Mount San Jacinto State Park.

Tram admission is $28.95 for adults and $16.95 for children ages 3-10 years.

Special discounts and packages are available after 4:00 p.m. Twilight Tickets are $25.95 for adults and seniors, and $13.95 for children ages 3-10. Ride ‘n’ Dine, which includes tram fare and dinner at Pines Café, a cafeteria-style restaurant, is $38.00 for adults and seniors, and $24.50 for children ages 3-10.

PALM SPRINGS, CA (December 14, 2021) The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway’s Annual Snow Guessing Contest officially ended on Tuesday, December 14 with one inch of measurable snow at the Tramway’s Mountain Station as of 11:30 a.m.

The first ten contestants who submitted the correct date are:

1. Ben Broyles, CA
2. Janet Shutak of Palm Springs, CA
3. Phillip Merriam of Highland, CA
4. Bruce Palmer of Palm Desert, CA
5. David Butts of Anchorage, AK
6. Matthew Sarmiento/Edward Ramos of Palm Springs, CA
7. Scott Nevison of Palm Springs, CA
8. Curtis Conant of Palm Desert, CA
9. Stewart Arledge of Santee, CA
10. Geri Pederson of Arleta, CA (tie)
11. Aurora Pedroza of Thousand Palms, CA (tie)

The winners will receive four regular Tramway admissions plus a Tramway-embroidered baseball cap. The contest began October 1 and 717 entries were received.

Extended Hours and Holiday Dining

PALM SPRINGS, CA (December 13, 2021) The Tramway operates a special holiday schedule from December 25, 2021 through January 2, 2022. The first tram up each day is at 8:00 a.m., the last tram up is at 8:00 p.m. and the last tram down is at 9:30 p.m.

On December 25, 2021 and January 1, 2022, Ride ’n’ Dine tickets—which include Tram admission and dinner at Pines Café (a cafeteria-style restaurant)—are available for purchase beginning at 8:00 a.m. Dinner service begins at 11:00 a.m. and ends at 8:00 p.m. Combination tickets are $38 for adults and seniors, and $24.50 for children (ages 3-10).

Peaks Restaurant serves the regular lunch menu on December 25 and January 1 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and, on January 1, the regular dinner menu from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. Reservations are recommended and may be made by either calling 760-325-4537 or via Open Table on the Tram’s website (www.pstramway.com/dining).

PALM SPRINGS, CA (November 19, 2021) The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway will operate a special schedule during the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend from Thursday, November 25 through Sunday, November 28. The first tram up each day will be at 8:00 a.m., the last tram up will be at 8:00 p.m. and the last tram down will be at 9:30 p.m.

On Thanksgiving Day, November 25, Ride ’n’ Dine tickets—which include Tram admission and dinner at Pines Café (a cafeteria-style restaurant)—will be available for purchase beginning at 8:00 a.m. Dinner service begins at 11:00 a.m. and ends at 8:00 p.m. Combination tickets are $38 for adults and seniors, and $24.50 children (ages 3-10). The holiday menu includes a mixed greens salad; a choice of oven-roasted turkey, Beef Burgundy or vegetarian lasagna; a selection of side dishes; and old-fashioned carrot cake or pumpkin pie. Dinner roll along with a small fountain beverage, coffee or tea are included.

Peaks Restaurant will serve the regular lunch menu from 11:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Reservations are recommended and may be made by calling 760-325-4537 or by visiting https://pstramway.com/dining/ .

This Thanksgiving, take a ride on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, stroll the majestic forests of Mt. San Jacinto State Park, and then dine while enjoying the most spectacular views in the entire Coachella Valley.

Shutdown Concludes with Refurbishment and Comprehensive Testing

PALM SPRINGS, CA (October 8, 2021) The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway will reopen on Monday, October 11, 2021 after its annual maintenance closure. The first tram up will be at 10:00 a.m., the last tram up at 8:00 p.m. and the last tram down at 9:30 p.m. Tram cars depart at least every 30 minutes.

Completed projects this year include repositioning of track ropes; changing pendant ropes, and the liners and bushings of pendant rope sheaves; and comprehensive mechanical and electrical testing of Tramway systems.

“Guest safety is always our number one concern at the Tramway,” says General Manager Nancy Nichols, “and our annual maintenance shutdown is critical in ensuring that.”

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway Continues Annual Tradition

PALM SPRINGS, CA (September 28, 2021) Fall has just arrived and, with it, the start of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway’s Snow Guessing Contest. This annual event runs from October 1 until the first measurable inch of snow falls at the Tramway’s Mountain Station, elevation 8,516 feet.

The first ten entries received with the correct date of snowfall will win four Tram admissions plus a special Tram gift memento. In the event there are more than ten correct entries, the earliest postmarks will prevail.

To submit an entry, simply write down your best-guess date on a postcard and mail it to: Snow Guessing Contest, 1 Tram Way, Palm Springs, CA 92262. Participants may enter as many times as they would like, but only one date per postcard. See below for contest rules.

It won’t be long before snowflakes are falling just a few minutes from the desert floor. There’s never been a year when someone didn’t win the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway’s Snow Guessing Contest.