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Adventure Skating

Skaters love to check out frozen lakes and ponds. In the early winter season there can be some amazing lake skating after it freezes and before much snow falls. Any kind of skate can work well. So-called "nordic skates" are popular among nordic skiers. And your feet are warmer in them than a normal skate. Also, the nordic skates tend to handle rough ice conditions better than standard skates. In Anchorage, these can be rented or purchased at Alaska Mountaineering and Hiking. AMH also rents standard speedskates, and supports our long track races and ice maintenance.

Where To Go

Popular locations for adventure skating include: Potters Marsh, Portage Lake (check out the front of the Portage Glacier), Eklutna Lake (10 miles one way), Beach Lake, Mirror Lake, Fire Lake, and Rabbit Slough. Contact Jim Renkert (562-3912) if you have any questions. Tim Kelley's website has some great photos of adventure skating. Check out the "blading the flats" section on that web page.

Skating Conditions?

Check the new ice skating conditions forum for reports on backcountry skating conditions, or add a report of your own!

Nordic Skates

These clip onto standard nordic ski boots. They are comfortable, warm outdoors, and cheap compared to standard speedskates, and you can go pretty fast. They are the cheapest way for someone to check out speedskating. Most people can skate straight pretty well with these on their feet. However, they do not have much ankle support, most people can't do turns at high speed, and they have a sloppy feel compared to regular speedskates. Still, they can be a lot of fun. The top competitors in our annual speedskate-skate ski duathlon have all used nordic skates. AMH both sells and rents nordic skates if you want to try them out.