PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — When the desert heat gets too hot in Palm Springs, it’s not uncommon for people to take refuge on top of Mount San Jacinto State Park where temperatures are often 30 to 40 degrees cooler, but one of the only ways to get there is to ride on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.
The 12-minute tram ride is your fast track ticket to visiting California’s highest state park. The tram is also the world’s largest rotating tram, which takes you up the Chino Canyon. Along the way, you will glide by rocky cliffs and fast-moving water, and thanks to the rotating floor passengers get a 360-degree view of the mountain and Coachella Valley.
“It takes you through five climactic zones all the way to Alpine, where the mountain station is at 8,516 feet,” said tram spokesperson Greg Purdy.
The view is spectacular but the tram is also an engineering marvel that dates back to the Depression era.
“It was dubbed Crocker's Folly because a lot of people didn’t think it would happen,” said Purdy.
Francis Crocker was an electrical engineer. On a hot day sweaty day back in 1935, he got the idea to build a tram to the snowy peak of Mount San Jacinto. His dream would take him decades to not only convince the state but overcome war rations and various political roadblocks, but finally in 1960, the project took off! Literally.
“It was all built with helicopters and tens of thousands of trips,” said Purdy.
Francis Crocker’s tram was nicknamed the “Eighth wonder of the world”. Without roads, the project took 23,000 helicopter flights and required workers to sleep on the mountain, but in 1963, the tramway opened and not only attracted thousands of riders but a long list of movies and TV shows.
“Filmmakers, TV shows, all the way back to Manicks, Mission Impossible, up to Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, even The Bachelor,” said Purdy.
The tram itself often catches Hollywood’s focus, but the true destination for tourists is Mount San Jacinto State Park and if you are lucky, State Park Interpreter Nick Garduno will show you around.
“Other than a long hike,” said Garduno, “the tram is effectively the one and only way down into the state park wilderness.”
Although winter really is a great time to go to San Jacinto, the snow that is falling now provides water for the forest of Jeffry Pine trees and all the animals that live up here. “We are transported into what we call a biological island in the sky,” said Garduno.
Snow is special in the Palm Springs area. At the bottom of the tram is a hot arid desert. Garduno said when it snows, views on the park’s live web cam increase drastically and everyone is watching this picnic table.
“That is a very famous picnic table,” said Garduno. “Don’t touch it, don’t even think about it.”
Turns out the picnic table is a sort of snow gauge for people who are watching the web camera and want to go sledding.
Had it not been for Francis Crocker, the hot and sweaty engineer, visitors may not have had the opportunity to cool down or experience a snowstorm in the deserts of Palm Springs.
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