Juneau, Alaska — Eaglecrest Ski Area is set to celebrate a major milestone this winter, which will serve as a nice distraction from the difficult past few years.
Last Saturday, Eaglecrest Ski Area hosted a party to kick off its 50th anniversary festivities. The festivities included an auction of historical items at Eaglecrest, a live band, food, and more.
On January 16, 2026, Eaglecrest will host a 50th anniversary celebration. General Manager Craig Cimmons told the Juneau Independent that it will sell $7 lift tickets, just as the ski area did during its opening season in 1976. They also plan to have Friday Night Lights that night. This is a new program that brought back a consistent night skiing schedule for the first time since at least 2020. That’s a lift ticket deal that’s worth flying out for.
Locals are hoping this winter will be a better one, as a lack of snowfall led to a below-average 2024-25 season. It was also impacted by a series of dramatic events during the prior offseason, which included the resignation of the General Manager of Eaglecrest due to unspecified reasons. The ski area, which is owned by the City and Bureau of Juneau, has been losing money in recent years. There’s hope on the horizon if they can figure out how to install a used gondola that’s waiting to be built.
This summer wasn’t without its own difficulties, as two board members resigned from the board, including the chair, Mike Satre. Ultimately, Mike claimed that he no longer had the time to work on solving the ski area’s issues.
According to the Juenau Independent, here was part of his resignation statement:
“While I have attempted to balance volunteering with family and work, it is simply no longer possible to give the Eaglecrest Board and the Eaglecrest staff the time and attention they deserve…
The board and staff have also worked hard to address the significant challenges that remain at Eaglecrest. Our aging infrastructure and deferred maintenance backlog are significant hurdles to overcome, but I have confidence that it is being addressed in a safe and systematic manner that will benefit all users in the long term.”
The Gondola
Purchased back in 2022, Eaglecrest has envisioned putting a gondola from the base area to Pittman’s Ridge. If constructed, it would grow the lift-serviced skiable acreage, along with allowing Eaglecrest to become a summer destination that appeals to the cruise ship crowd. Juneau acquired the gondola from an Austrian ski resort a few years back, but it has yet to be installed.
The project received a boost from Goldbelt (a Juneau-based government contractor), which pledged $10 million in 2023 to build the lift. In return, they would get some of the revenue generated by the gondola. However, if the project isn’t completed by May 2028, Goldbelt can withdraw its support from the project. According to the Juneau Empire, their new goal is to open the new gondola in May 2028. However, that timeline has been moved back multiple times in the past.
The other issue is with the existing main chairlifts. The Black Bear chairlift didn’t operate last winter, and Eaglecrest announced that it’s closed for good. The other chairlifts are on the older side and are in need of repairs. In order for Eaglecrest to repair its lifts and pay its employees more, the ski area will carry a multi-million dollar deficit in the years to follow. Maintenance work has been ongoing this offseason on the operational lifts, so it sounds like these lifts will be good to go for the 50th anniversary season.
If they can get through this tough stretch, the potential is there to make Eaglecrest a four-season destination. Here’s what Jim Calvin, the board chair of the non-profit Eaglecrest Foundation, told KTOO about its potential:
“I think it’s hard to understate the value of Eaglecrest. It’s hard to measure the value of Eaglecrest to the community, but it really is one of the things that makes Juneau a special place to live…I think many of us see that summer development opportunities are part of the equation, part of the solution as we move to the next generation of Eaglecrest and we’re working hard to make that happen.”
Image/Video Credits: Eaglecrest Ski Area
