National Geographic
Best For: Off the beaten path powder hounds with an aversion to glamour
A former gold mining town carved out of the forest at the foot of the famed Chugach Mountains, Girdwood has refashioned itself into Alaska’s premier ski town. Hippies and ski bums flocked here in the 1970s and, a luxury hotel at the ski area’s base notwithstanding, its laid back, frontier style ambience remains intact. Many roads are unpaved and Carhartt clothing is a popular fashion choice. Situated about 40 miles south of Anchorage (and its international airport), life in this humble hamlet of 2,000 revolves around skiing and snowboarding.
Rising up from the edge of town, Alyeska Resort is the largest ski area in Alaska. It has six lifts, two magic carpets, and a 60 person tram that climbs the mountain’s steep north face with views to the ocean. Tree line is low this far north, so the upper half of the mountain is wide open alpine, more like the open terrain of the Alps than a typical American resort. There are ample blue runs and a smattering of beginner runs near the base, but experts will get the most out of the mountain. If you’re not afraid of a little in bounds hiking, the ridges near Alyeska peak harbor an array of vertiginous chutes.
As you would expect in Alaska, crowds are nonexistent. There is also real deal Chugach heli and cat skiing available right from Alyeska’s base area. Best to visit in March, when there is an average of 12 hours of daylight, though lifts keep running through April and on weekends in May.
Ask a Local
Girdwood native Elyse Saugstad is a professional skier and the 2008 freeride world champion. Here are her recommendations.
Budget: The Alyeska Hostel is close to the resort. What it lacks in frills, it makes up for in flavor. It’s been around since 1980 and has a lot of history.
Swank: The Hotel Alyeska is the resort owned hotel. It’s really nice, has great dining, and they’ll even do a wake up call for the northern lights. Step right out your door and onto the tram.
Cheap: Coast Pizza, at the entrance of Girdwood, has quick slices of pie and one of the best grilled sandwiches around.
Gourmet: The Double Musky Inn is a Cajun cuisine restaurant for people who like to eat meat. Not only are the fillets the size of your head, they are cooked perfectly. And the gumbo is to die for. Really.
The Sitzmark, at the bottom of the mountain, is the classic ski bar that’s survived all the changes of the resort through the years. It has the perfect mix of food, booze, live music, a constant rotation of ski movies playing on TV screens, and a killer sundeck for the springtime when it warms up.
Head into Anchorage the "city" in Alaska that has a plethora of options and is only 45 minutes away.
Girdwood’s Classic Ski Run
Try the north face from Christmas Chute to the bottom. It’s the leg burner of the century when it’s a deep powder day, which is quite often with the amount of snowfall Alyeska receives.
Best For: Adventurous skiers with a hunger for the steep and deep
Though it serves up some of the most spectacular terrain and best snow in all of Canada, this historic mining hamlet of 4,217 people tucked into the far southeastern corner of British Columbia still somehow flies below the greater ski scene radar. Which isn’t a bad thing its wide open alpine bowls, knife ridges, and daredevil chutes are rarely crowded, and fresh tracks can still be found in afternoons on powder days. For many skiers and snowboarders it hits the Canadian sweet spot, with more consistent powder than Whistler and warmer temperatures than Banff.
Similar to its American cousin, Whitefish, a hundred miles to the south, Fernie is a small, funky town with a tiny yet charming downtown. Restaurants are eclectic and unpretentious, the old train station has been converted to an arts center, and ski bums abound. It’s the kind of town where old skis are turned into fences, benches, and coat racks. Thanks to new developments at the base of the hill and in town, lodging options at all price points abound, from hostels to luxury lodges.
Fernie Alpine Resort overlooks the Elk River Valley from 4.5 miles outside town, clinging to the sculpted faces of the Lizard Range. Its five distinct bowls will keep advanced skiers and snowboarders drunk on adrenaline all day, while the new chairlift to the summit of Polar Peak opens up hundred mile mountain views and 3,497 feet of vertical drop. Diehard powder addicts can head up to the Bear Lodge of Island Lake Catskiing, a few miles past the ski area, for world class cat skiing.
Ask a Local
Brian Bell came to Fernie in 1993, living in his van, to ski for a winter and never left. He’s been running the Mountain Adventure Skills Training Program at the Fernie Campus of the College of the Rockies for 15 years. Here are his recommendations.
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