For the first time, the title alcohol 3 was unambiguously detected as a transient intermediate leading to ditropylether (6) in a cation–anion reaction between the tropylium ion (5) and hydroxide ion in an aqueous solution by NMR spectroscopy. It was also found that 6 gives 3 as a transient product in acid-catalyzed disproportionation of 6 into a mixture of tropone (4) and 1,3,5-cycloheptatriene (7)