Cross country/nordic skiing
 

I plan to head to the USA or Canada for the last week of February and first week of March 2009 to do some cross-country skiing, snow shoeing and the like. Complete novice, so instruction and gear hire will be necessary. At 61 comfortable accommodation is a requirement - preferably avoiding "family" oriented resorts. I have no particular area preference and would aprpeciate any suggestions as to where to head.

The Methow Valley just below the North Cascades in Washington is a top-rated XC ski area with (usually) great weather. There is an extensive groomed trail system linking the valley floor and some of the surrounding hills.

I'd suggest a stay at Freestone Inn, a lovely upscale resort right on the trails:

http://www.freestoneinn.com/recreation.html

http://www.freestoneinn.com/freestonebandbinn.html

You can rent gear and take lessons right there, or at several other locations around the area:

http://www.methownet.com/skischool/index.html

The whole area is always booked solid for President's Day weekend, but after that you should be fine. I would go late February over early March; on one occasion we had hot weather and slush there in early March!

Very useful, thank you.

If you want an easier place to get to, you could try Blue Mountain in Canada. You can fly into Detroit or Toronto and drive:

http://www.bluemountain.ca/

It looks like there is a separate Nordic center (Nordic is the word you are looking for with cross-country skiing, etc.) called Scenic Caves:

http://www.sceniccaves.com/

http://www.sceniccaves.com/winter/sk...nowshoeing.htm

Blue Mountain might be a bit family for you, but it is a beautiful area. On the links from the Scenic Caves place they list several B&B's that might be more your speed:

http://www.sceniccaves.com/winter/links.htm

I cross-country skied at Blue Mountain about 15 years ago and it was very peaceful.

Blue Mountain/Scenic Caves looks nice, but they have only 22 km of trails, not nearly enough to keep ryetee happy and busy for a week.

I am mainly an alpine skier, but I love Nordic for the exercise and tranquility. I think enzian's suggestion is the best. I live not far from Winthrop/Mazama and have enjoyed a number of days of Nordic skiing there without ever skiing the same trail twice. There are people there who live for the skiing, and you will find great professional instructors, as well as a variety of terrain. And it is a beautiful area with great snow lots of sunshine, even in the winter.

To get there, fly into Spokane and rent a car for the easy drive over.

Other places to consider (places that specialize in Nordic skiing and have plenty of trails and facilities) would be Royal Gorge near Lake Tahoe, California, with 308 km of groomed trails:

http://www.royalgorge.com/Default.as...p;fv=9&b=5

Or the much smaller but very scenic Lone Mountain Ranch in Montana (fly into Bozeman and take a shuttle):

http://www.lmranch.com/winter/

If you are going for several days or a week, you want a place that is truly dedicated to Nordic skiing, not a place that has a few miles of groomed trail tacked only an area built mainly for alpine skiing or other uses. The Nordic areas will have snowshow trails as well.

I would think that 22 km of trails would be plenty for a 61 year old complete novice.

Hey---I'm 61 and 22 km (13 miles) of level track would keep me busy for about 2 hours.

I don't mean to sound critical of your suggestion, but it just doesn't seem like the kind of place where one could ski for a whole week (or two? can't tell).

Nordic skiing is not at all difficult to learn (until you get to the hills), and even a novice, if reasonably fit, should be able to achieve a level of skiing that would pretty much cover those trails in a day or two.

I still think if he is going to devote a week to this, he wants a real Nordic resort, with complete facilities and instruction, and lots of trails to choose from. The Winthrop/Mazama area offers over 200 km of trails and a number of upscale (and adult-oriented) lodging opportunites, and attracts outdoors-oriented people from all over. There is also a nice little town to explore.

Sun Mountain Lodge, above Winthrop, would be another nice place to stay, but it is up on the hilltop, and while there are a few begiinner trails, many of them involve drops and climbs and are better for intermediates.

http://www.sunmountainlodge.com/winter/index.html

The main thing to look for in lodging, I would think, is a place right on the trail system, with rentals and instruction on-site. And comfortable rooms and good food. Freestone and Sun Mountain offer all of the above. There are also a couple of good places in the "town" of Mazama.

Methow Valley is the kind of place that can easily fill a week if you like. Heck, half the people I know dream of retiring and spending the rest of their lives there.

I guess alan can decide what kind of place he would like.

Thank you both! Plenty of helpful suggestions there - Nora, I'm especially grateful for your comment that 22km would keep you busy for 2 hours. That is one thing that has had me thinking. We don't have too much ski-ing of any sort in Hong Kong...

If you are coming from Hong Kong, then it would be best to go to Washington. It would be silly to travel further for a smaller resort. I thought you were coming from Europe and I was trying to save yourself an extra 5 hours on a plane!

Happy skiing.