Historic 1939 single-chair ski area
A modernized digital home for one of Alaska's most iconic historic ski areas — preserving the old-school single-chair character while making operations, conditions, and visitor info effortless to find.
+884%
Unique visitor growth in the first month
450 visitors/mo pre-launch → 4,430 one month post-launch
4,430
Unique visitors in the first month post-launch
+500%
Faster page load speed vs. the previous site
+200%
Faster image delivery vs. the previous site
The story
The challenge
Mt. Eyak is operated by Mt. Eyak Foundation with operational support from Sheridan Alpine Association — the heart of skiing in Cordova, anchored by a beloved 1939 American Steel and Wire single chair lift. The previous web presence wasn't doing the mountain justice. Visitors couldn't easily find lift status, ticket info, or trail maps, and the brand voice felt corporate rather than community.
What we built
A conditions-first, photography-driven site built around how people actually use it on operating days — lift status, Indy Pass and Reciprocal Pass purchasing, and trail info all within one click of the homepage. Built as part of a coordinated three-site ecosystem alongside sheridanalpine.com and mteyakfoundation.com — same visual language, same community, each site with its own distinct job.
What happened
In the first 30 days post-launch (March → April 2026), unique monthly visitors went from a pre-launch baseline of 450 to 4,430 — +884% growth, nearly 10× in a single month. Direct ticket, conditions, and trail-info traffic now drive the bulk of pageviews on operating days.
Traffic since launch
Conditions-first information architecture
Visitors hit lift status and weather within one click of the homepage on any device — the metric that actually moves the needle for a small ski area's revenue and community goodwill.
The site itself
What this involved
Next project
Mesa County Fair
A full event site for the Mesa County Fair — carnival wristband sales, downloadable event schedules, sponsor and vendor listings, buyer registration, and a livestream hub for the 4-H and FFA livestock shows.