Slow at work today....Muir weather readings

121 mph!?!?!? I bet it would be quite an experience to be in the hut for that. Ah well, maybe next storm cycle....

Isn't Crystal what was ultimately built in lieu of the proposed lift from Paradise to Pan Point (or higher)

Yes. The initial scouting effort focused on Corral Pass. The surveys shifted to Silver Basin (Crystal Mountain) in about 1956. Crystal Mountain opened in November 1962. More details here .