Up in the Air (11/28/23)

Another too many photos day, so this is the first of two blogs for today. We began our busy day with a trip to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway that opens at 10 am. The tramway provides a 10 minute, 2.5 mile ride for up to 80 people in the world’s largest rotating tramcar. The tramcar itself doesn’t rotate, but the floor does, so you are provided with a 360 degree view as you move through five different life zones — from the Sonoran desert to the Alpine wilderness. It also allows you to visit and hike through the San Jacinto State Park at the top of the ride.

The station at the top also has a bar, restaurant, museum, and shows two 19 minute films, one of which discusses the creation of the tramway, which was completed only with the use of helicopters and their pilots which were required to haul both workers and materials up the mountain in order to build the tramway.