Crocker’s Folly

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The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway has been a fixture in Riverside County's Coachella Valley for 60 years. Its history, both official and otherwise, has until now been a vastly oversimplified story of one man's desire to make a quick getaway to the mountains in 1935, followed by its opening in 1963.

Crocker's Folly shines a light on the fascinating history of this unique tourist attraction, mostly from the standpoint of the groundswell of opposition to the project. Seeking to turn Long Valley and the upper San Jacinto Mountains into a winter sports wonderland, the backers of the Tram battled a varying group of conservationists who sought to stop what they perceived to be the commercialization of a State park and Federal wilderness areas. What ensued was a 15-year campaign that became Riverside County's first large-scale conflict based on environmental issues - one of hundreds to play out over the next decades.