Reporter Jeannette J. Lee of Associated Press, has written an
informative article in HeraldNet, about the Alyeska Ski Resort in Girdwood, Alaska, and the efforts by its wealthy owner, John Byrne III, a self-professed ski junkie from Utah, to encourage snow lovers to abandon the classic slopes of Whistler, Deer Valley and Aspen and head to the far north.
Jeannette J. Lee reports that this long-time niche venue for locals and adventure skiers, is undergoing a $25 million expansion, including refurbished guest rooms, to lure larger groups of winter vacationers, particularly families, to its peaks.
Negotiations are underway to open hundreds of acres of raw terrain in the Chugach Mountains to skilled off-piste or backcountry skiers and snow-boarders but beginners are also being catered for, with a new conveyor-belt lift and snow-making machines. It seems the competition on the slopes is getting hotter.
Labels: Alaska, Canada, Chugach Mountains, Girdwood, ski, skiing, snowboarding