Brews, Bathrooms and Slope Lights Coming to Skeetawk for 2022-2023 Season

The Valley’s only groomed ski area is getting slope lights, indoor plumbing and beer on tap ahead of the 2022-2023 ski season, thanks to a series of grants, fundraising and new permits.

Skeetawk, located between miles ten and 11 of Hatcher Pass Road, hosts one triple chair lift moving skiers up groomed slopes. Managed by the community-based nonprofit Hatcher Pass Xperience, the lift was completed in June, 2020. But the area is a work in progress, and the slopes have in the past only been open for use during daylight on weekends and some borough school holidays, while beverage sales were relegated to bottled non-alcoholic drinks or coffee and visitors had to use outhouses.

But all of that is changing this season, said Megan Justus, the ski area’s general manager. Open hours are more than doubling, thanks to the installation of lights, a project that is happening now. Illuminating the slopes means instead of closing by 4:30 p.m. the lift can run after dark, she said. That means they’ll be newly opened Thursday and Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. to allow for after school skiing, and from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the weekends. A new permit means on-tap brews. And bathrooms plus showers for staff are under construction now.

Those amenities, however, do bring a higher price tag for pass purchases. For the 2021-2022 season, for example, adult season passes ran $390 and a youth pass $200. This year those costs have gone up to $449 and $259, respectively. And Justus expects the price to increase again next year as even more perks are added, which she says increases the area’s value.

“We do anticipate it going up again, but it won’t just be on a whim,” she said. “It will be comparable to the added services that we’re providing.”

One such service is snowmaking, an addition that will guarantee the ski area can stay open even in unstable weather or if the infamous Valley wind sweeps through and blows out all the naturally occurring snow. That was a big problem for the 2021-2022 season when a warm spell followed by a wind storm wreaked havoc on the area’s snowpack, first delaying opening and then leaving the area mostly closed through January.

“That’s a huge push for us,” she said. “If we can get snowmaking in, I can have a lot more reliability and consistency for our passholders.”

It will also make hosting the Arctic Winter Games in 2024 much simpler, since instead of transporting many athletes higher up the mountain to compete on natural snow, they can guarantee that the snow in the already groomed area is good to go.

The games occur every two years, and are expected to attract thousands of athletes and support to the Mat-Su.

The ski area pays its basic operational bills through pass and ticket sales, Justus said, but expansions rely on fundraising and grants. She said they’ll be meeting soon with a group of major donors in hopes of securing cash for the snowmaking operation. Eventually the area plans to also add additional lifts to move skiers farther up the mountain, but that effort is years and millions of dollars in future.

Meanwhile, other smaller expansions are already funded or are also in progress, but are a matter of construction time and priorities, she said. For example, next year the steep driveway leading from Hatcher Pass Road up into the ski area will be fixed to reduce the grade, which will allow buses to use it. That’s critical for the Arctic Winter Games, but also will allow Skeetawk to create after school programs with the Borough. A day lodge adjacent to the now under construction bathrooms will also eventually open, shifting visitors from hanging out in the warming yurt, where all sales, food and indoor seating is currently hosted.

Ski and snowboard rentals and lessons were added over last season and will continue this year, Justus said. And she’s hoping a food permit comes through so they make food on the premises, rather than re-selling previously made food or only hosting food trucks. In the summer users can visit and ride newly constructed mountain bike trails.

Justus is aiming to open the area for skiing this year in mid-December. But that date is highly dependent on the snowpack. When the snow is ready, she knows the users will come.

“This is a community effort,” she said. “We’re not a major corporation. We’re local.”.

Skiers and snowboarders can pre-purchase passes online or buy lift tickets during normal winter operating hours at Skeetawk. For 2022-2023, season passes are $449 for adults; $379 for military members and first responders or students age 13 to 18 (or with a student ID); $259 for youth ages six to 12; and free for those over 70 years old or under five.

Daily lift ticket prices for the 2022-2023 season have yet to be released. Last year they were $39 for adults or $32 for military or first responders; $32 for students ages 13 to 18 or with a student ID; $20 for youth ages six to 12; free for kids five and under or adults over 70.

Annual memberships are available now for $75 for a family and $35 for single users. Those memberships are both a fundraising tool and give holders 10% off any daily ticket sales.

Season passes are also good for discounts at local stores including Backcountry Bike and Ski and Aktive Soles; several days of free lift tickets at ski areas in Juneau and Fairbanks; and discounts and tickets at a wide variety of ski areas in the Lower-48.