Uphill policies, and what an uphill ticket actually is
Skinning up a ski area is not the same as coming down one, and every resort handles it differently. Here is how it works at our four mountains, and how to find out for any resort anywhere.
What an uphill ticket is and why it exists
An uphill ticket, sometimes called an uphill pass or uphill access pass, is permission from a ski area to travel up the mountain under your own power. It is usually much cheaper than a lift ticket and sometimes free. It exists because you are on private land, using trails the resort grooms, patrols and insures, often while snowcats and snowmaking equipment are working.
It is worth understanding that uphill access at a resort is a privilege that individual mountains extend, not a right, and that it gets withdrawn when people abuse it. That is the whole reason etiquette matters, and it is why we are strict about it on our programs.
The four mountains we run programs at
Mt. AbramGreenwood, MaineHours 5:00am to 9:00pm daily
What you need
One of: an uphill season pass, an uphill day ticket, which is available online at all hours, a regular season pass, or a lift ticket for the day. The policy does not publish a price for the uphill season pass.
Hours
Uphill travel 5:00am to 9:00pm, every day. The resort defines operational hours as one hour either side of the lifts, which run 8:00am to 5:00pm.
Route
Three designated routes only. Roundabout to Sweeper. Lower Easy Rider to Upper Easy Rider, or Skyline Drive from Westside. The Uphill Trail. On top of that, there is no uphill travel at any time on Boris, Fearless Leader or the Cliff, the Cliff is never open outside operating hours, and the T-Bar line is never open for downhill travel at any time.
The rules they state
Travel on the far side of the trail at the tree line. Never more than two side by side, and single file as often as possible. Avoid the inside of corners and do not stop below a headwall. A headlamp is required outside daylight hours. Follow the current Trail Report and all posted signage: trails are closed as if you were traveling from the top of the main chairlift, and knowing what is open is your responsibility. If a groomer or snowmobile is present, uphill traffic stops and steps off the trail until it passes, and nobody skis over snowmaking hoses. A skier who is not independent needs their own equipment and a retention system controlled by another skier: being carried by hand, carried in a backpack or towed in a sled is not permitted.
Dogs
Yes, outside operating hours, which are 8:00am to 5:00pm, with conditions. A dog without solid recall must be leashed, and keeping it away from mountain equipment is your responsibility. Every dog must be leashed by the time you reach the bottom of your run, and no dog may be off leash at the base area or in the parking lots at any time. Clean up after your animal. The resort states plainly that this is at your own risk.
Season
Not stated as fixed dates.
Uphill New England pass
Yes. Mt. Abram is an Uphill New England partner mountain.
Read 6 August 2026, from the resort's own published winter uphill policy. Every one of these resorts states that it can change the policy at any time, so check before you go: Mt. Abram's uphill policy.
CranmoreNorth Conway, New HampshireHours 7:00am to 3:30pm, varies by route
What you need
An uphill day ticket or an uphill season pass. Day tickets are sold at the main ticket office on the day of arrival, until 2:00pm, and must be worn somewhere visible. Passholders are given an armband, either through Uphill New England or at the Cranmore Ticket Office, and Cranmore asks that the armband is worn on the front of your body with your physical pass on you as well. A Cranmore season passholder who wants uphill access at Cranmore can pick up an armband at the Ticket Office during operating hours.
Hours
By route, and each route has its own window. See Route below.
Route
Four designated routes, each with its own hours. South Slope, 7:00am to 3:30pm, extending to 7:30pm when the mountain is open for night skiing. Lower Skimeister to Skimeister to Summit, 9:00am to 3:30pm, opening at 8:30am at weekends and in vacation weeks. Lower Beginner's Luck to Lower Gibson to Easy Street, 7:00am to 10:30am. Cranmore Mountain Road, also called the Summit Access Road, 7:00am to 3:30pm, open once natural snow coverage allows.
The rules they state
Uphill travel is permitted only on the designated routes during their designated hours. Read the resort's snow report before you go. Cranmore states that the policy is subject to change at any time for weather and resort operations.
Dogs
No. Not permitted at any time.
Season
Not stated as fixed dates. The road route opens once natural snow allows.
Uphill New England pass
Yes. Cranmore is an Uphill New England mountain, and an armband can be issued through Uphill New England directly.
Read 6 August 2026, from the resort's own published winter uphill policy. Every one of these resorts states that it can change the policy at any time, so check before you go: Cranmore's uphill policy.
Dartmouth SkiwayLyme Center, New HampshireHours 9:00am to 4:00pm, and outside them too
What you need
An uphill season pass with the associated Release of Liability signed, or a daily uphill ticket. Skis, snowshoes and splitboards only: no sleds, tubes, saucers, snowmobiles or fat bikes anywhere at the Skiway.
Hours
During operating hours, which the Skiway posts daily and which are typically 9:00am to 4:00pm, and also outside operating hours during the ski season and at any time in the shoulder seasons.
Route
Designated uphill routes, or open runs, at all times during operating hours. Travel single file on the edge of the trail. Uphill travel without a valid pass, outside those hours or off those routes is prohibited, and the Skiway can prohibit it inside them at any time.
The rules they state
Do not stop in high traffic areas or anywhere you are not visible from above, and observe the Skier Responsibility Code at all times. Grooming and snowmaking machinery can be working at any time and is more likely outside operating hours: do not enter a trail where either is present, and keep clear of mountain operations staff. A headlamp and reflective clothing or lights are encouraged when visibility is low and at night. In an emergency outside operating hours, call 911. Visitors heading to the Nunnemacher Cabin are asked to hike in via the Appalachian Trail rather than up the ski trails.
Dogs
No. Not permitted at any time. The policy asks that pets are left at home.
Season
Tied to the ski season rather than to fixed dates.
Uphill New England pass
Yes. An Uphill New England pass is a valid uphill season pass at the Skiway.
Read 6 August 2026, from the resort's own published winter uphill policy. Every one of these resorts states that it can change the policy at any time, so check before you go: Dartmouth Skiway's uphill policy.
BromleyPeru, VermontHours Dawn to dusk only
What you need
An uphill access season pass, obtained in person at the Bromley ticket office, where staff go through the policy with you and take your signature. $75 for the season, or free if you already hold a Bromley season pass. The pass is worn on your arm while you are skinning.
Hours
Dawn to dusk only. After dusk the mountain is strictly off-limits and Bromley treats being there as trespassing, with night security recording vehicle details. Bromley can limit or restrict uphill access whenever conditions, terrain or weather warrant.
Route
Three designated routes, and you keep to the trail edges. Lower Twister to Upper Twister. Lower Thruway to Upper Thruway to Runaround 1. Lower Boulevard to Shincracker to Run Around 2 to Upper Thruway to Sunset Pass to Upper Twister. Foot, snowshoe or ski are all permitted on these three.
The rules they state
Vermont law puts the inherent risks of the sport on the participant, and Bromley states that your uphill travel and the descent that follows are at your own risk. Stay clear of all snowmaking and grooming, including winch cable grooming, which may be running. Closed trails are off-limits. Read the snow report first, and treat it as a guide rather than a guarantee outside normal lift hours, because it is not always obvious from the bottom of a trail whether it is open.
Dogs
No. Not permitted. This is a recent change to the policy, effective immediately, after misuse of the previous allowance for leashed dogs.
Season
Winter policy as above. The trails are open to hiking in the other seasons, and specific trails close when maintenance, mowing or other work would make them unsafe.
Uphill New England pass
Yes. Bromley is an Uphill New England participant. Multi-mountain season passholders wear the UNE pass in a visible location and follow Bromley's own policy. Bromley also accepts the UNE Uphill Day Ticket Voucher, which is redeemed during operating hours at the Bromley Ticket Office for a Bromley uphill day ticket.
Read 6 August 2026, from the resort's own published winter uphill policy. Every one of these resorts states that it can change the policy at any time, so check before you go: Bromley's uphill policy.
Questions go to the Bromley Ticket Office on 802.824.5522 extension 710, or ticketoffice@bromley.com.
Uphill access at our program mountains. A ticket is one way in and an Uphill New England season pass is the other, and the pass is valid at all four.
Mountain
Where
Uphill access
How you get it
Mt. Abram
Greenwood, ME
$15 ticket, or a pass
Online in advance or at the ticket window that morning
Cranmore
North Conway, NH
$19 ticket, or a pass
At the ticket window that morning
Dartmouth Skiway
Upper Valley, NH
Free for our participants
Nothing to buy on a program day
Bromley
Peru, VT
$20 ticket, or a pass
At the ticket window that morning, and the $20 applies toward a full lift ticket
On a program day with us, our $20 fee does not include the uphill access, because that money goes to the mountain rather than to us. Our fee is the part we can waive, and we waive it in full with the code inclusive. How that works.
If you uphill regularly at more than one mountain, an Uphill New England season pass covers the uphill access at every mountain we partner with, and at a long list of other resorts. It pays for itself quickly.
Finding the policy at any other resort
Two lists do this job better than anybody else and we are not going to duplicate them.
One habit worth having: check the policy the day before, not the morning of. Policies change between seasons, hours change with snowmaking, and routes close. The most common way a good day goes wrong is arriving at 8:00 to find the route shut until 4:00.
The rules that are actually about safety
Most resort uphill rules boil down to three things, and all three exist because of machinery and darkness rather than because anybody wants to be difficult.
Stay on the designated uphill route. It is designated because patrol knows people are on it and grooming operations plan around it.
Stay off closed trails and out of closed areas. A closed trail at a resort usually means winch cats, which use a cable you cannot see and cannot outrun.
Be visible, especially early and late. Dawn and dusk are when grooming happens and when you are hardest to see.
The full version of how to behave on a skin track, including the social parts, is on the etiquette page.
