Image courtesy PRWeb
Work is underway on what might be Colorado’s tallest indoor rock-realistic climbing wall, running directly up the front of the new Limelight Hotel in Snowmass, Colorado. Towering 16.4 m (54 ft) high, the climbing attraction is part of the $600-million Snowmass Base Village project.
The massive climbing wall is encased in a five-story glass tower. Its granite-like surface will mirror featured climbs near Snowmass, including the popular Grotto area on Independence Pass.
Boulder-based Eldorado Climbing Walls designed and is constructing the wall. It is designed to challenge climbers of all levels, with an auto-belay system, three different lanes, and six routes.
“It’s pretty unique to have this size of wall anywhere. When unveiled it will be an amazing piece of climbable art and a hub of activity for Base Village,” said Christina Frain, Eldorado’s director of sales and marketing. “Experienced climbers will be impressed and want to climb this rock, while beginner and intermediate climbers will be able to use their imagination and climb per their skill level.”
The installation process has been strategically planned as the work is taking place in an active construction site. Forty-seven wall shapes made in Boulder were shipped to Snowmass to act as the skeletal structure for the wall, which is being built onsite. Approximately 17.5 m3 (23 cy) of concrete was sprayed to create the actual structure.
Eldorado’s wall artists and iron workers shaped and molded the wall into its rock-realistic form. This includes brushing and scraping to create holds and other features. The rock has been painted to look like local granite rock. To create a system of climbing holds to allow for a variety of routes, 725 holes/nuts will be placed up the wall. The final piece will be the installation of the auto-belay system and flooring, which will occur prior the Limelight Hotel’s opening.
The wall is the brainchild of East West Partners’ managing partner Andy Gunion and vice-president of sales and marketing John Calhoun. When they began work on the Limelight Hotel and Residences building they recognized the opportunity to do something spectacular that ties both the Limelight Hotel and the larger Snowmass Base Village project to the surrounding environment.
“Working on a climbing wall this tall has its challenges anywhere,” said Eldorado project foreman Wayne Collins. “Working on such a structure in an active construction site has added complexities, but we’ve enjoyed every minute.”
The climbing wall is scheduled to open to the public at the Snowmass Base Village and Limelight Hotel grand opening celebration on December 15, 2018.
The Snowmass Base Village project is a collaboration of three Colorado-based players in the mountain resort business: East West Partners, Aspen Skiing Company, and KSL Capital. Located at the a base of Snowmass Ski Resort, the project includes the Limelight Hotel; the Lumin Residences; One Snowmass, with 41 residences spread across two buildings; a community center building; and the new Base Village public plaza.
