Ermine Skate

Ermine Skate is an Alaskan brand of Nordic ice skates and wild-ice skating equipment, founded in 2021 and based in Anchorage. The company describes itself as the launchpad of North America's homegrown Nordic skate industry, having introduced the original Alaska Skate™ in 2021. Its mission is to make Nordic skates in Alaska that are beautiful, durable, and designed for local conditions. Since its founding, Ermine has grown steadily and is now recognized as an international leader in the Nordic skate industry. Ermine's product line centers on Nordic skates — long-bladed skates used for skating on frozen lakes, rivers, and other natural ice — along with related ice tools such as ice poles, rescue picks, and ropes. The company has pursued a path of creativity and innovation, claiming several industry firsts: the first Nordic skate with an ultra-wide 1.57mm blade, the first Nordic skates compatible with Xplore and alpine touring bindings, and the first ever Nordic skate for kids, called Kit™. The flagship Alaska Skate™ is built to a high standard, and the Kit™ is built to the same high standard while its binding mount pattern and sizing are optimized for smaller adventurers. Ermine Skate operates as a small team and sells directly to customers through its online shop, shipping within the United States and internationally. The company imports and sells what it describes as the finest ice tools available on the market today. Its work and passion have earned recognition in National Geographic, the New York Times, CNN, and more. The brand is closely tied to the Alaska community and to the promotion of Nordic skating as a sport. The company's origin story begins in 2016, when founder Paxson Woelber purchased his first pair of Nordic skates from Alaska Mountaineering and Hiking. His first time on the skates, at Oceanview Bluff Park in Anchorage, was life-changing and led to two ideas: that more people needed to know about Nordic skating, and that Nordic skates should be made in Alaska. In 2017, Woelber and Anchorage cinematographer Cale Green co-produced Wild Ice – Backcountry Skating Alaska, a short film showcasing wild ice skating around the state. The film was picked up by National Geographic, Outside Online, and the Washington Post. Ermine Skate was founded in 2021 with the launch of the Alaska Skate™. Ermine Skate LLC offers a limited lifetime warranty for Nordic skates it manufactures, covering defects in material and workmanship for the natural and customary lifetime of the product. The company accepts returns shipped within thirty days of receipt and allows one exchange within thirty days, with customers responsible for return shipping. Items returned with signs of use may incur a 30% secondhand merchandise fee or be returned at customer expense. The brand remains active and continues to develop new finishes, materials, binding mounting patterns, and manufacturing processes.

Ermine Skate was founded in 2021 in Alaska with a straightforward mission: to make Nordic skates in the home state of its founder that are beautiful, durable, and designed for local conditions. The company launched North America's homegrown Nordic skate industry with the original Alaska Skate™ in 2021. Since then, Ermine has pursued a relentless path of creativity and innovation, growing steadily and becoming recognized as an international leader in the Nordic skate industry. The brand's origin story predates its founding. In 2016, founder Paxson Woelber purchased his first pair of Nordic skates from Alaska Mountaineering and Hiking. His first time on the skates, at Oceanview Bluff Park in Anchorage, was life-changing. It immediately led to two ideas: that more people needed to know about Nordic skating, and that Nordic skates should be made in Alaska. In 2017, Woelber and Anchorage cinematographer Cale Green co-produced Wild Ice – Backcountry Skating Alaska, a short film showcasing wild ice skating around the state. Despite Woelber's questionable skating technique, the film was quickly picked up by National Geographic, Outside Online, and the Washington Post, and was accepted into film festivals. This exposure helped build awareness of Nordic skating and set the stage for the company's launch. After founding in 2021, Ermine focused on product development and innovation. The company introduced several industry firsts: the first Nordic skate with an ultra-wide 1.57mm blade, the first Nordic skates compatible with Xplore and alpine touring bindings, and the first ever Nordic skate for kids, called Kit™. The Kit™ is built to the same high standard as the Ak1, while its binding mount pattern and sizing are optimized for smaller adventurers. Ermine's commitment to innovation has led it to continually experiment with new finishes, materials, binding mounting patterns, and manufacturing processes. Ermine Skate operates as a small team based in Alaska. It sells its products directly through its online shop and also imports and sells ice tools such as ice poles, rescue picks, and ropes. The company's work and passion have earned recognition in National Geographic, the New York Times, CNN, and more. It remains active and continues to advance the sport of Nordic skating while contributing to its Alaska community.

• 2021

  Ermine Skate is founded and launches the original Alaska Skate™, initiating North America's homegrown Nordic skate industry.

• 2017

  Woelber and Anchorage cinematographer Cale Green co-produce Wild Ice – Backcountry Skating Alaska, a short film picked up by National Geographic, Outside Online, and the Washington Post.

• 2016

  Founder Paxson Woelber purchases his first pair of Nordic skates from Alaska Mountaineering and Hiking; his first skate at Oceanview Bluff Park in Anchorage is life-changing and inspires the idea to make Nordic skates in Alaska.

• Ermine introduces the first Nordic skate with an ultra-wide 1.57mm blade.

• Ermine launches the first Nordic skates compatible with Xplore and alpine touring bindings.

• Ermine introduces Kit™, the first ever Nordic skate for kids.

Handmade, innovative Nordic skates and wild-ice equipment made in Alaska; positioned as an international leader in the Nordic skate industry.

• Alaska Skate™

  The original Nordic skate launched in 2021, described as the foundation of North America's homegrown Nordic skate industry.

• Kit™

  The first ever Nordic skate for kids, built to the same high standard as the Ak1, with binding mount pattern and sizing optimized for smaller adventurers.

• Xplore-compatible Nordic skate

  The first Nordic skate compatible with Xplore bindings.

• Alpine touring binding-compatible Nordic skate

  The first Nordic skate compatible with alpine touring boots and bindings.

• Ice tools

  Ice poles, rescue picks, ropes, and other products imported and sold by Ermine Skate.

1. 1Ermine Skate - Exceptional Nordic skates, handmade in Alaskaermineskate.com
2. 2Our Story - Ermineermineskate.com
3. 3Company Policies - Ermineermineskate.com
4. 4Ermine Skate - Wikidatawikidata.org