Skinning the Dartmouth Skiway Before the Lifts Start Turning

Until opening day, the Dartmouth Skiway in Lyme sets no hours for anyone climbing Holt's Ledge on skins with a valid uphill pass. Once the lifts start, daytime climbing has to fit around the lifts, on designated uphill routes or open runs. Right now, the only rules are about where you can climb and what you can bring. For someone who lives ten minutes from the base lodge, this is the least restricted part of the Skiway's winter. It costs a small fraction of a lift pass.

What the policy actually says about the shoulder season

The Skiway's Uphill Travel Policy gives two separate windows. In the first, you can skin whenever you like. In the second, you have to work around the lifts.

"Uphill travel is also allowed (i) anytime during the 'shoulder' seasons, and (ii) outside of the Skiway's Operating Hours during the ski season."

During the season, the policy defines operating hours as the Skiway's posted open times, usually 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. In those hours, uphill skiers have to stay on designated uphill routes or open runs. Before the season starts, the policy sets no hours, though uphill travel is still limited to designated routes. A pass is still required either way. The policy calls for an Uphill Season Pass with a signed Release of Liability, or a Daily Uphill Ticket. It also prohibits uphill travel outside designated routes and lets the Skiway close routes at any time.

The Skiway's mountain page says opening day is Friday, December 18. December 18 is a Friday this year, but the page prints 2027 next to it, so check that page before you plan around the date. Whatever the final date, the stretch between now and opening day is the part of the year when the uphill policy has no clock.

The math on an $85 pass

For 2026–27, the Skiway sells an uphill-only season pass, an uphill add-on for lift passholders, and uphill day tickets. Here is how each compares with paying by the day.

For comparison, the general-public adult lift pass is $499 early bird and $599 in season. The early-bird uphill pass is about a sixth of the early-bird lift pass. If you already hold a lift pass, the $25 add-on lets you use the same hill on mornings when the lifts aren't running.

Peak day-ticket rates apply on weekends and holidays, including December 26, 2026 through January 3, 2027, January 18, and February 15 through 19, 2027. If most of your climbs fall on Saturdays, the $85 pass costs less than three peak uphill tickets. The uphill-only pass also gives 10% off retail, rentals and Wicked Tasty. As of mid-October, the pass page lists early-bird and in-season prices but doesn't give a date when early-bird pricing ends.

The rules that apply in every season

The shoulder season removes the time limit, but the rest of the uphill policy still applies. The policy lists these requirements:

1. Travel single file on the edge of the trail.
2. Don't stop in high-traffic areas or anywhere skiers coming down can't see you.
3. Follow the Skier Responsibility Code.
4. Use only skis, snowshoes or splitboards. Sleds, tubes, saucers, snowmobiles and fat bikes are not allowed.
5. Leave dogs at home. They are not allowed at any time.
6. Stay off any trail where snowmaking or grooming equipment is present, and keep clear of areas where mountain operations staff are working.
7. Wear a headlamp and reflective gear or lights when visibility is low and at night. The Skiway encourages this.
8. Call 911 for any emergency outside operating hours.

The policy also says uphill skiers may run into grooming and snowmaking machines at any time, particularly outside operating hours. In practice, that means the hours the shoulder season opens up, such as dawn and evening, are the hours most likely to put you on the same slope as a grooming machine. The no-dogs rule matters most to anyone who hikes the Lyme hills with a dog the rest of the year.

Fall is also when the lifts are inspected. Skiway director Mark Adamczyk told The Dartmouth that the Skiway runs daily mechanical checks and gets a full inspection from the state Tramway Board each fall. In the same article, the paper reported that after a lift failure on January 29, the lift was repaired, passed an additional Tramway Safety Board inspection and reopened January 31. Boston.com identified that lift as the Winslow Mountain Quad. Until the lifts run, skiers at the Skiway are climbing on their own power.

The regional pass, and why October 31 matters

If you skin at more than one hill, there's a second option with a deadline this Saturday. Uphill New England, which describes itself as a local nonprofit, sells a multi-mountain uphill season pass that the Skiway accepts in place of its own uphill pass. The 2026–27 adult pass is $184.90, down from its $215 regular price, with the preseason discount available through October 31. It covers uphill travel only and does not include chairlift access.

The comparison with the Skiway's own pass is simple. At the preseason price, the regional pass costs $99.90 more than the Skiway's $85 early-bird uphill pass. That gap is worth paying only if you plan to climb somewhere other than Holt's Ledge. Partner areas within reach of the Upper Valley include Whaleback Mountain, Saskadena Six and Tenney Mountain. The pass also includes three uphill days at Bolton Valley, two day-pass vouchers and member discounts. Uphill New England offers special pricing for full-time students 18 and older and for ski patrollers. Those rates appear when you select a pass type on the product page.

Both the Skiway pass and the Uphill New England pass require signing a liability waiver. This post is general information, not legal advice, so read either waiver in full and take any questions to a qualified professional before you sign.

Holt's Ledge after dark: the Nunnemacher Cabin

The shoulder-season rules also make it easy to plan around the Nunnemacher Cabin, which sits on Holt's Ledge at the Skiway. Dartmouth Outdoors lists it as open to everyone, sleeping up to 20, about 10 miles from Hanover and a three-quarter-mile uphill hike from parking. The Skiway's uphill policy asks cabin visitors to hike in on the Appalachian Trail.

Bookings are first come, first served. Current Dartmouth students can reserve six weeks ahead, and everyone else four weeks ahead. If you want a December night before the lifts start turning, booking opens in early-to-mid November for non-students. The cabin rules include capacity limits, no tenting and no unauthorized outdoor fires. Pets are allowed, with owners responsible for them. That is a different rule from the Skiway's own no-dogs policy, so check which property you'll be on before you bring a dog.

Coffee on the way down

For a dawn climb, the timing works with the Lyme Country Store on the Common. Its posted winter hours start at 6 a.m. every day, closing at 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 5 p.m. on Sunday. It also bakes bread daily and serves lunch. Climbing at first light and getting to the store when it opens is easy without lift schedules to work around. Once opening day comes, the 9-to-4 lift hours take over again.

If you're wondering what it would mean to live a short drive from Holt's Ledge, or what your Lyme property is worth to buyers looking for that access, Alan DiStasio can help with that. Request a complimentary market assessment and we'll talk it through.