(from Wikipedia article on Mineral King Ski Resort and Country Bear Jamboree)

Walt Disney Ski Resort

Disney's Mineral King Ski Resort was a project developed by Walt Disney and Company in the late 1950s and 1960s. Disney had become interested in skiing around this time, and decided to build a ski resort in Mineral King Valley. At the time, many skiers believed this to be the largest potential resort in all of California. Disney's bid won out over those of other developers, with plans made to build 27 ski lifts, serving an expected 2 million annual visitors, by 1973.

The ski resort was never built though, due to environmental concerns raised by a coalition of preservationists, led by the Sierra Club^[6]. After years of legal battles between pro-development and preservationist groups, the Mineral King Valley was annexed into Sequoia National Park in 1978 by an act of Congress. That legislation effectively stopped the plan to ever develop the area into a ski resort.

Country Bear Jamboree Originally to be at Mineral King Ski Resort...

The Country Bear Jamboree was originally intended by Walt to be placed at Disney's Mineral King Ski Resort which he was trying to build in the mid 1960s. Walt knew he wanted some sort of show to provide entertainment to the guests at the resort, and he knew he wanted the show to feature some sort of bear band. The project was assigned to imagineer Marc Davis.