After years of planning, organizers prepare to open Hatcher Pass downhill ski area

It’s been 5 years of planning and fundraising, but the non-profit group, Hatcher Alpine Xperience, is poised to open a ski area in Hatcher Pass, that they’ve named “Skeetawk”.

Skeetawk, which translates to “where we all slide down” in Dena’ina, is set to open in just two months.  The ski area will provide about 10-12 groomed runs, a ski patrol and a day lodge for patrons.  Board Member, Andrea Frost elaborates on what the public can expect.

 We’re at mile 10.6 of Hatcher Pass Road.  You turn left into the parking lot and go through our gate, and it’s kind of hidden from the road, but once you go through our gate and up the hill, it opens up into our parking lot and you have just a beautiful view of the mountainside there with our outbuildings.  So you’ll see we have a big snow cat house and then we have a pretty big yurt that we use for our day lodge.  We have just finished building a triple chair, so we have one chair that’s got three seats on each chair, and thirty skiable acres.  There’s a couple places where you could say that it’s more intermediate, but for the most part its a pretty good family spot with green and blue runs.”

Since this is their first season, no ski rentals will be offered on site, but the group hopes to offer ski rentals in the future.  Also in the extended plan are ski lessons, lighting and snow making, but those additions will require more funding.

The organization had plans to open last December, but a delay in shipping parts for the chairlift pushed the opening to March, and then the pandemic hit.

This winter, following a COVID mitigation plan, outlined by the Pacific Northwest Ski Area Association, Skeetawk is preparing to open.

“Our target opening day is December 5th, pending snowfall, and then we’re also planning to have a grand opening, somewhere around December 19th.  So that’s really exciting and we want to celebrate this new amazing feature brought to the Mat-Su Valley.”