Following a partial opening last week, Eaglecrest Ski Area is experiencing some issues going into this weekend, including a broken water line, a delayed opening of the Ptarmigan lift and a pause in snowmaking efforts.
The ski area unexpectedly closed on Friday and will remain closed Saturday due to a large break in its main water line that supplies its lodges.
The ski area’s staff says they are working to get it fixed as soon as possible.
In a video shared Thursday evening, Craig Cimmons, the general manager of the city-owned ski area, also gave an update on the status of its chairlifts. Eaglecrest opened at a limited capacity earlier this month, with only its Porcupine lift running, which services the mountain’s easiest trails.
Cimmons said in the video that the ski area had hoped to have Ptarmigan up and running, but unexpected additional repairs are delaying its opening date. The Ptarmigan chairlift services the middle of the mountain.
“Because we chose to get that lift in its best possible working order, it’s just taking longer to get to that point,” he said. “But it’s going to be safer in the end, operating better than it has in a long time.”
He said the water line for Eaglecrest’s snowmaking system also froze over recently, meaning it isn’t able to make snow at the moment. Despite that, he said there is a lot of natural snow on the mountain, and its backcountry terrain is open for recreation.
Because of Saturday’s closure, Eaglecrest’s ski school is cancelled that day. Eaglecrest will make an announcement about Sunday’s lessons on Saturday.
Juneau is expected to see bitter cold temperatures and Taku winds heading into the weekend, and low temperatures into the next couple of weeks. The National Weather Service in Juneau issued a cold weather advisory and a high wind warning starting Thursday evening.
According to the National Weather Service, the coldest wind chill temperatures will be at higher elevations, like the ski area.
