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Roger Lohr

Art And Nordic Happenings In Jackson, NH, XC Capitol Of The East

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Up To The Minute Trip Report From Roger Lohr, Publisher Of XCSkiResorts.com.

Jackson’s famous covered bridge, a symbol of this charming New England town.
Credit: Jackson Ski Touring Foundation.

[Editor Note: SeniorsSkiing.com thanks Roger Lohr for this update.  XCSkiResorts.com is the premium resource for nordic ski vacation and resort information in North America.]

We excitedly planned a weekend trip to Jackson, N.H., because it is a true Mecca for Nordic skiers. This is the quintessential New England Nordic (XC) skiing experience with a covered bridge, white steepled church, brookside trails, and the accompanying village with all of the trappings.

Many of the trails lead right to the doors of local inns, shops, and restaurants. It’s no wonder that Jackson Ski Touring Foundation has been rated the top cross country ski area in the United States by America’s Best Online and is recognized in numerous polls as a favorite destination.

Abstract art in the woods, a natural gallery creating an unusual setting for art appreciation.
Credit: Roger Lohr

The Foundation is a non-profit organization chartered to maintain XC ski trails in and about the village of Jackson. There are about 76 landowners that allow trails to cross their property. Country inns are spaced throughout the region, and the base lodge is a golf country club located on the village loop. This full service ski center has its own parking area and houses the ski school, rental equipment, and a retail shop run by Gorham Bike & Ski with XC ski equipment, clothing, and accessories. The center has a fireplace with couches and tables and seating. Snacks and drinks are available in the lodge, too.

The Cocoa Cabin is a warming hut serving hot cocoa on the weekend, located three km from the center on the gentle Ellis River Trail. This is a popular trail often with many cautious yet courteous skiers. Snowshoers can take a rustic narrow marked snowshoe trail from the center to reach the Cocoa Cabin, and this trail avoids the ski trail.

Our accommodations were at the Christmas Farm Inn & Spa, which is set on a hillside overlooking Jackson Village. It has the personal touches of a country inn with the amenities of an upscale modern resort. The inn has a full service spa, restaurant and pub, fitness room, indoor pool, family rooms, spacious suites, and handcrafted cottages. We had breakfast there during our visit and scheduled massages at the Inn’s Aveda Spa for some earned relaxation after skiing. After skiing and some massaging, we dined at the Christmas Farm Inn for a scrumptious dinner and dessert.

The next morning, we skied down to town, stopped by the Jackson Ski Touring Center and heard about the Art Along the Trails exhibit staged on trees behind the lodge near the Jackson covered bridge. The lodge was bustling, and we passed hundreds of skiers and snowshoers along the Jackson trails, who were friendly and saying hello as they passed. The art exhibit featured two local abstract painters in a their works displayed with nature. Instead of a white walled art gallery, in its place were “walls” made from snow, hemlocks, and birch, all places for paintings to hang from, and the beneficiaries were on snowshoes and cross country skis.

During the four-hour show, Art Along the Trails was enjoyed by hundreds of cross country skiers and snowshoers, who were instilled with the energy of culture experiencing the avant-garde gallery in nature that included more than two dozen paintings installed on tree trunks and limbs. Prices of the different paintings (some as big as three-by-four feet) ranged from $125 to $2,900. The exhibit had titles such as “Illuminated Icefalls” and “Cosmic Wash”.

We lunched on soup and salad at the Wildcat Inn Tavern in downtown Jackson and stayed for some live music and libations. The tavern walls display classic ski posters and some antique gear such as snowshoes and a pair of red Jarvinen XC skis. The seats in one of the rooms were built to look like double chairlifts, and there were soccer jerseys from around the world pinned to the ceiling.

We browsed at some local retail establishments in Jackson including Flossie’s General Store & Gift Emporium, which has a potpourri of gifts, candy, and local keepsakes.

The Jackson Ski Touring Foundation maintains 154 km of varied and breathtaking XC ski and snowshoe trails and is about two hours north of Boston. Foundation trails connect with A.M.C. trails in Pinkham Notch and White Mountain National Forest backcountry adventure trails.

Here’s a New England classic.  Christmas Farm Inn has a warm, welcoming old-school ambiance as well as many modern touches.  
Credit: Roger Lohr

 

Roger Lohr

Lifts And Shuttles For Cross-Country Skiers

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Getting Uphill Is Easier With A Lift Or A Ride. Then Gravity Takes Over.

[Editor Note: XCSkiResorts.com Publisher Roger Lohr provided this article from his publication on where you can get a lift or shuttle ride to cross-country ski.]  

Great Glen Snowcoach shuttle drops skiers at the trail head.
Credit: XCSKiResorts.com

When it comes to cross country (XC) skiing, the theory of what goes up must come down may be going out of style. Nowadays, many people really enjoy the fun of just going downhill on XC skis, but they’d prefer avoiding the need to laboriously trudge uphill to earn that fun. Ski areas that provide lifts and shuttles can help older cross country skiers go further, stay outdoors longer, and save their energy.

Lifts

At Bretton Woods in New Hampshire’s White Mountains there is a $31 High Country lift ticket that gets you up near the summit to the Mountain Road by way of a chair lift, for a seven kilometer ski back down. The trail is easy enough and skiers can ski in the groomed tracks or on the flat skate lane.

New for 2013-14 season: 3-5km Nordic Terrain on Mt. Stickney

The Bretton Woods lift ticket provides one ride on the high speed detachable quad (which slows down upon egress) and unlimited use of a T-bar, just down the trail. The T-bar provides access to upper elevations of Mount Stickney and the Stickney Cabin, which has snacks, beverages and a place to hang out with indoor seating or outside by a stone fireplace. Skiing back to the Mountain Road offers some choices including a groomed trail or skiing through the glades (trees) with options for different levels of difficulty. The Mountain Road is one of the most fun trails to be had on XC skis in New England!

At 49 Degrees North Mountain Resort, WA,  there is a lift-served XC ski trail that is accessed near the top of Chewelah Peak. It descends and winds around the mountain for 12 km. On a clear day one can see all the way to Montana.

Other XC ski trails that are accessed by chair lifts can be found at Giants Ridge ,MN, with a free lift ride when you purchase a trail pass. Boyne Mountain, MI, has the Cold Springs Downhill trail. Royal Gorge, CA, has two surface ski lifts for practicing downhill turns and also having accelerated fun.

Shuttles

At Garnet Hill Lodge, North River, NY, there’s a shuttle ride from the bottom of a long downhill back to the lodge that has been offered since the early eighties. It originated when the lodge owner picked up skiers in his car and was then upgraded to a van and now it’s a mini-bus.  Shuttles are offered daily and three to five times a day on weekends and holidays.

The Great Glen Trails Outdoor Center, Gorham, NH, is adjacent to the Mt. Washington Auto Road and offers an uphill ride to achieve “treeline status” in the SnowCoach, a tracked van. The comfortable heated tour takes folks to the 4,000 foot elevation up Mount Washington where the views are breathtaking. Intermediate and advanced skiers can handle skiing down this road, a thrilling four mile decent back to the base lodge. There are various price options for the SnowCoach.

Craftsbury Outdoor Center, VT, has a free shuttle on the weekends that delivers skiers to the Highland Lodge for a 20 km return trek. There’s a net drop of about 300 meters on the groomed trail, which traverses hill top pastures, farmsteads, and quaint Vermont villages. A shorter five km shuttled ride brings skiers back to the lodge from Craftsbury Village at the general store and deli.

At Lone Mountain Ranch, Big Sky, MT, there’s the Upper Trail Shuttle that takes you a couple of miles away from the facility and leaves you with a mostly downhill ski back to the lodge for about 10 km.

Roger Lohr

Milestones of Modern XC Skiing In the US

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Remember Skiing On Wooden Skis With A Pine Tar Base And Lathered In Klistervox? Wasn’t That Long Ago.

Norway-born Snowshoe Thompson learned to ski in Telemark, his home town.

Editor Note: XCSkiResort Publisher Roger Lohr has catalogued the main events that propelled XC skiing from a peculiar sport with a small following in the US to a major recreational and racing enterprise with a huge following.  Thanks, Roger, for tracing the trail.

Since wooden skis were found in a peat bog in Sweden dating to 2,000 BC, there have been many milestones that brought xc skiing to where it is today. In the US, the forefathers of xc skiing include legends like Snowshoe Thompson, who delivered the mail in the Sierra Mountains of California and Jack Rabbit Johannsen, who xc skied in northern New York.

The editors of XCSkiResorts.com researched the milestones of modern XC skiing in order of significance:

1. Development of synthetic xc skis in 1974.
2. Development of the waxless based ski in the early 1970’s, most notably the Trak ski with synthetic fish scales on the ski base to eliminate the need for ski waxes. The waxless base gave the recreational skier grip on uphill travel while also allowing gliding downhill.
3. Integrated xc ski binding systems, which provided substantial improvements in simplicity of boot/binding interface and control in the mid 70’s.

4. Bill Koch won the Olympic silver medal in 1976  at Innsbruck and at the World Cup in 1982, the first American to ever win at that level. The Nordic Track exerciser used the Koch image as a fitness icon in advertisements for years. In 2010, there were US Olympic medalists in Nordic Combined and in 2012 there was a World Cup winner in women’s sprint.
5. The onset of the commercial xc ski area concept began in 1968-69 at Trapp Family Lodge. This brought designed, groomed, and maintained trails making xc skiing easier and safer for the average person.
6. The skating technique proliferated for a faster paced and higher performance form of recreation.
7. Revolution Skis developed by Fischer led the way to shorter skis, which were easier to use and consolidated ski sizing and simplified ski selection.
8. New, lighter clothing with synthetic and breathable materials made XC skiing more comfortable; company brands such as Mother Karen led the way in the late 1970’s.
9. Other technological advances such as the 2 Wax System that offered one wax for cold temperatures and one for warm temperatures simplified ski waxing.  BackCountry binding systems provided a beefed up boot/binding system that provided substantially more support and control for backcountry recreation.

New NIS bindings link boot with ski using a plate.

10. Will the Nordic Integrated System (NIS) developed in 2005 change the ski/binding interface? This system combines the ski and binding at manufacture rather than at the retail store.

 

Roger Lohr

Snow Sports Leaders: Reese Brown, X-C Ski Area Association Exec

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New Ideas For X-C Skiing With New Director.

New CCSAA Exec Director Reese Brown brings energy. Credit: Roger Kohl

New CCSAA Exec Director Reese Brown brings energy.
Credit: Roger Lohr

Reese Brown is taking over the reins at the Cross Country Ski Areas Association (CCSAA) as Executive Director after a long run by former leader, Chris Frado. CCSAA is a nonprofit organization founded in 1977 with about 350 ski area members in North America and is dedicated to promoting growth and improving the quality of the cross country (XC) ski area operations.

The XC ski area members of CCSAA include businesses including resorts and inns, and public facilities such as parks and club-run trail systems that offer skiers groomed trail XC skiing, instruction, ski clinics, lessons and programs, and so much more. The organization coordinates conferences and member services such as a website directory, snow conditions reporting, and educational support.

As the new executive director, Reese Brown is charged by the organization board of directors with reinvigorating the group and increasing the value of membership with tangible benefits. Additionally, Reese serves as the Nordic Director of Snowsports Industries America, the trade association of product suppliers recently moved to Park City, UT.  He is involved with a US Ski Team committee and runs the Winter Trails introductory program. He’s a personal interlocking directorate for cross country skiing.

XCSkiResorts.com asked Brown about his perspectives on CCSAA and XC skiing on a number of issues. He wants to help XC ski areas raise their game, and he intends to increase the educational benefits for ski area members.

Regarding older skiers, who represent 12.4% of the XC ski population, he said, “cross country skiing and snowshoeing are the perfect forms of recreation for seniors because they are low impact activities that can be done into the later ages. With cross country skiing and snowshoeing, seniors can go at their own pace, get some exercise, join with like-minded people, and just enjoy the scenery.” He points out that senior skiers and snowshoers can socialize with friends or a group of people at the Nordic ski areas on midweek days when there are no crowds. Many cross-country ski areas coordinate specific senior programs with a short outing on the trails, a snack, coffee or hot chocolate and some company to enjoy it with on the same day each week.

After decades under the same CCSAA leadership, the new executive director and CCSAA’s rejuvenated working board is taking ownership of the organization’s efforts to revamp. For example, at the CCSAA spring conference Brown and some Board members orchestrated educational programs on grooming, snowmaking, and website effectiveness. These programs were parlayed with one-on-one sessions that were tailored to attending individual ski areas. These tailored sessions were scalable to the different ski areas so a small area could apply specific information at a lower level of commitment be it for a snowmaking investment or enhancing a website.

Brown is working on educational programs such as effective snow condition reporting, dealing with fat bikes on the trails, making rental equipment inventories more productive, and financing. “We intend to up the level of cross country ski providers’ games, which will benefit the skiers.”

When meeting with XCSkiResorts.com, the energetic Reese Brown reported that he had recently met with a company to work on an Internet-based ski trail ticket program.  Then, he was on his way to a snow gun company in the area to discuss biathlon ideas. This level of adrenaline at the association can only help the cross country ski areas and in turn provide better service to cross country skiers.

Roger Lohr

Women-Only Snowshoes: Vive La Difference!

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Special Thanks to Roger Lohr, Editor and Publisher of XCSkiResorts.com for allowing us to post this article which first appeared on that site.

About half of all snowshoers are women, who snowshoe to experience nature, to exercise with friends and family, for backcountry access, and to have outdoor fun throughout the winter. The various snowshoe companies have been catering to this market by offering a broad selection of women’s-specific snowshoe technologies recreation and fitness, but do the women’s snowshoes go beyond just a change in cosmetics?

Woodstock Inn attracts women snowshoers who can step along in women-only gear. Credit: Woodstock Inn

Woodstock Inn attracts women snowshoers who can step along in women-only gear.
Credit: Woodstock Inn

Tubbs Snowshoes pioneered the development of women’s-specific snowshoes by offering patented binding technologies that custom fit women’s boot sizes and by ergonomically engineering frames that are tapered at the tip and tail to accommodate women’s shorter strides. The result was lightweight, comfortable, high-performance snowshoes and many of the other brands have followed suit.

There are a few differences between Tubbs’ men’s and women’s snowshoes. On average, women have a narrower stance and shorter gait, so women’s snowshoes are narrower in width. Women’s average weight range is both more light weight and a smaller range than men’s, so they provide snowshoes in a shorter size for women, longer for men. The Tubbs men’s and women’s bindings differ, providing the optimal fit for the average women’s boot size and volume range, versus a larger average men’s boot size and volume range. Foot size also affects the optimal position for the heel lift, so the placement of the heel lift on men’s snowshoes varies from the placement on women’s snowshoes.

The Atlas Snowshoes Company conducted gait studies and biomechanics research to create snowshoes that enable women to hike and run with the most natural stride possible, while making the snowshoes both comfortable and lightweight. The research revealed that women have a greater Q-angle (at the knee where the thigh bone angles in from a woman’s wider hips) and abducted gait that create specific issues when snowshoeing. Women also tend to pronate (collapsing arches) pointing to the need for bindings to support the arch of the foot.

MSR snowshoes for women balance a naturally narrower gait and the need to “float” on the snow. Credit: MSR

According to the people at MSR, the studies conducted by Tubbs clearly showed male/female anatomical differences. However, when these differences are translated into physical products the design changes are not as noticeable. For example, women generally walk with a narrower gait than men. Therefore, a very narrow snowshoe would suit women better, but the snowshoe width has a direct impact on flotation so the final design can’t be too narrow. The ideal width snowshoe for women is a balance between very narrow to accommodate gait and wider for adequate flotation.

MSR believes that it is important to look beyond the measurements and understand how the snowshoes feel. Thousands of hours of field testing showed that subtle differences are noticeable. The major male/female differences with men’s and women’s versions of MSR are with decks and bindings. The women’s deck shape is optimized for snowshoe performance (traction & flotation) and a female gait. The bindings are sized to meet the proportions of a women’s footwear. There is also specific MSR technology such as Axis™ Gait Technology (Women’s Lightning Ascent Snowshoes), which allows women to compensate for varying degrees of toe-out or toe-in. This technology provides laterally adjusting the bindings independently of the frame, ensuring efficient, parallel-tracking snowshoes regardless of a women’s natural toe-out or toe-in stance. This means that the binding itself can swivel on the snowshoe to adjust for varying degrees of natural toe direction allowing binding alignment with your natural stance rather than forcing you to point your feet directly ahead.

Yukon Charlies Snowshoes has the YC Pro II Series women’s snowshoes, which are designed with features specific to the needs of the female snowshoe enthusiast. The rockered V shape tail enhances performance and allows for a more natural stride. These snowshoes are lighter, stronger and more reactive than any of the company’s other women’s snowshoes.

Yukon Charlies’s Advanced Series for women is a feature-packed “go anywhere” snowshoe is designed by women, for women. The rocker V tail allows for a natural stride from a walk to an aerobic sprint, while the integrated heel lift and the axle system makes Yukon Charlie tout them as their best women’s snowshoe ever.

Redfeather Snowshoes has three styles of Hike snowshoes with the SV2 pull handle binding. There’s also a choice to get the snowshoes in a kit with poles and a bag. The Redfeather Hike has sizes of 22, 25, 30 (inches) for women up to 150, 175, and 200 lbs.

Tubbs Snowshoes and Atlas Snowshoes have shown the greatest commitment to women’s snowshoe products and they are probably the largest snowshoeing product brands. Tubbs Snowshoes has 11 models for women (in seemingly every snowshoe category) including Flex ESC, Flex TRK, Flex ALP, Flex RDG, Flex Vrt, Wilderness, Mountaineer, Frontier, XPlore, and Xpedition.

Atlas Snowshoes has six options for women including the Electra 8 and 9, Endeavor, Fitness, Race, and Run.

Few of the snowshoe companies invest in marketing directly to women but the Tubbs Snowshoe event “Romp to Stomp Out Breast Cancer” Series, is very popular focused on women. This year’s event at Frisco Nordic Center in Colorado was attended by more than a thousand people! The series, which has been hosted at sites across North America has raised funds and awareness since 2003 bringing in more than $2.8 million for the fight for a cancer cure.

Whether the trail conditions are light fresh snow, crust, slush or ice, women want to trust their snowshoes for all-condition durability, excellent traction, flex for control, and comfort. Women are coming to expect that their snowshoes are specific to their needs and built to withstand frequent use offering many seasons of recreation, fitness and adventure.

Roger Lohr

“Road Scholars” Flock To Winter Learning Programs

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XC Skiers mug it up at Craftsbury VT's Outdoor Center. Programs include Yoga, Film, Music & Dance, Credit: Roger Lohr

XC Skiers mug it up at Craftsbury VT’s Outdoor Center. Programs include Yoga, Film, Music & Dance,
Credit: Roger Lohr

XC and Snowshoeing Plus Study Opportunities From Lapland to Oregon.

From Roger Lohr, founder and editor at XCSkiResorts.com:

The Road Scholar program is a brand within the Elderhostel program intended for adults who want to travel and learn and stimulate discourse and friendship among other people for whom learning is the journey of a lifetime. This is an institution that attracts 97,000 participants on multiple-day travel programs enjoying a wide variety of subjects while providing comfortable and inexpensive lodging. This year there are 17 different winter outdoor adventure programs (Nordic and alpine skiing, snowshoeing, dog sledding, etc.) and participants can select from among domestic and international travel and scores of dates from January and March.

The Minnesota Winter Sampler (6 nights, $776, program #7933) has dog sledding, snowshoeing, and XC skiing, learning about the dynamics of wolf packs at the International Wolf Center and an overnight in a yurt.

The Trees For Tomorrow program (Road Scholar program #7310) has been offering natural resources education workshops to students, teachers, adults, and others in Wisconsin’s Northwoods in Eagle River, WI since 1944. Participants stay in rustic dormitories that have comfortable bedrooms, central bathroom facilities and a lounge with a fireplace.

This is a week of XC skiing and snowshoeing on trails, and ski instruction is provided for all skill levels. Naturalists will talk about how animals and plants adapt to the difficult northern winter conditions. Participants will visit a waterfall and learn orienteering skills on snowshoes. They’ll also visit the Kovac Planetarium, the world’s largest rotating mechanical globe-style planetarium.

Classic New England XC scene at Craftsbury Outdoor Center. Credit: Road Scholars

Classic New England XC scene at Craftsbury Outdoor Center.
Credit: Road Scholars

Annually there are many Road Scholar programs in Yellowstone National Park but the variety of Road Scholar programming is best exemplified at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center in Vermont (program # 20276). They’ve got three yoga programs (in January, February, and March) that incorporate daily outdoor activities such as XC skiing and snowshoeing. A program for Film & Fiction is scheduled with participants viewing a variety of film genres with a North Country theme and discussions following each film. The group will also read short fiction set in northern settings by contemporary authors ranging from contemplative to humorous with following discussions. A New England Music & Dance program is scheduled for early February to learn the history of traditional country dance and song from New England, the Canadian Maritimes and beyond with live music and a contra dance, too.

Road Scholars can visit Lapland where Auroras live. Credit: Road Scholars

Road Scholars can visit Lapland where Auroras live.
Credit: Road Scholars

There are winter trips to Colorado, Alaska, and Oregon but if you want to discover your inner Arctic explorer, there’s a trip to Finnish Lapland (11 nights, $6,500, program #21695) where reindeer outnumber the indigenous people by 10-1. You’ll drive your own dog sled team, spend a night in a glass igloo to bask in the aurora borealis show, and join the crew aboard an icebreaker.

Participant surveys show that 92 percent of the individuals on a Road Scholar trip learned something new and 20 percent fulfilled a lifelong dream. For more information about Road Scholar programs, call 800-454-5768, or visit www.roadscholar.org to view a myriad of programs to select among hundreds of national and international regions.

Roger Lohr

Eat Your Way To Fitness: Gourmet Ski Tours

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Lots of Chocolate: Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Events Collected By XCSkiResorts.com

From Roger Lohr, XCSkiResorts.com: Want a guilt-free way to indulge yourself with food while exercising? XC Skiing is one of the best forms of aerobic exercise but if you go on a “Gourmet Ski Tour” on your xc skis or snowshoes, you may very well eat your way to fitness at a number of trailside food stops. What a grand time so go ahead, eat, ski, and be merry – appetizers, wine, champagne, fondue, entrees, desserts, and more.

Here’s a cross section of the culinary XC ski events that are planned this winter across the country with a varied menu of fun and fine cuisine.

EAST

Smugglers Notch in VT has Sweets and Snowshoes every Wednesday night 7-9 PM for adults only. Hot cocoa, coffee, and desserts await snowshoers after a 30-minute trek to a pavilion and campfire. A warming meal of hot soup, bread and beverage at a trailside cabin is a destination for the Soup and Snowshoes guided trek mid-day on Sundays, and on Tuesday nights there’s a Snowshoe Adventure Dinner at the mountain summit.

Eastman (NH) Cross Country’s Nordic Nibbles in Grantham, NH on January 18 has a Scandinavian theme with a visit to a fire pit at each stop for cheese from a local smokehouse, Lindt chocolate, gingerbread cake and pastries, local dairy milk for hot coco, soup, and the main meal from 11 AM – 1 PM.

Munching along at Eastman's outdoor ski party. Credit: Roger Lohr

Munching along at Eastman’s outdoor Nordic Nibbles ski party.
Credit: Roger Lohr

The Valentine’s Day Destination S’Mores Station at Bretton Woods Nordic on February 14 with two self-guided tour for sweets from 10 AM – 4 PM. The shorter tour will be less than 2 km on easy trails so it’s great for the kids. Purchase S’Mores Kits at the center or at the station to make your own.

The Chocolate Festival at Mount Washington Valley Ski & Snowshoe Center in Intervale, NH on February 22 is an inn-to-inn affair at 10-12 stops to experience your chocolate fantasies including moose and fondue. Go on a tour of any length and actually gain calories, even if you ski as far as 20 kilometers. A shuttle is also available for those that have overindulged at the event dubbed the “Sweetest Day on the Trails.”

CENTRAL

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan in Ironwood features cuisine from local restaurants that can be purchased at a nominal fee along a designated route along the trails at the Taste of the Trails on the ABR trails on March 7 at 11 AM – 2 PM.

MOUNTAINS

Snow Mountain Ranch in Granby, CO hosts the Grand Huts.org Progressive Dinner on Feb 28 with a multi-course meal at outposts along the trail in a fundraiser for the huts.

Just Desserts Eat & Ski in the Enchanted Forest in Red River, NM on February 28 features goodies from 20 different local restaurants at three trailside stations with up to 100 desserts within a 4 kilometer loop. Their motto is, “It’s not a race, just a gorge fest.”

The Rendezvous Trails in West Yellowstone, MT features cuisine from local restaurants that can be purchased at a nominal fee along a designated route along the trails at the Taste of the Trails on February 7.

Crested Butte Nordic Center has has the Magic Meadows Yurt Dinners reached by a 2 km ski or snowshoe tour where 10 gourmet dinners are offered during the winter including the Saturday Yurt Dinners each month, and special dinners on Winter Solstice on December 20, New Year’s on December 31 and Valentine’s Day on February 14.

Look to the Galena Lodge in Ketchum, ID for the Full Moon Dinners on nights associated with the full moon, (Jan 3 & 4, Feb 3,4, & 5, Mar 5,6, & 7, Apr 3 & 4) whereby you can go ski or snowshoe ($5 snowshoe rental offered) and then return to lodge for a four-course dinner at $40 or half price for kids under 12. There are also special Wine Dinners, Holiday Dinners, and a Valentine’s Day Dinner.

Lone Mountain Ranch in Big Sky, MT has the Glide & Gorge event on March 8 from 11:30 AM-2 PM with trail luncheon stationed with appetizers, soups, entrees, desserts from the Ranch’s four-star kitchen, local brew, wine, music and shuttles.

WEST

Royal Gorge XC Ski Resort in Soda Springs, CA has the Royal Fondo Tour on Jan 25 with skiing or snowshoeing to various huts along the trails for snacks and lunch at the resort deck.

Tahoe Donner Cross Country Center in Truckee, CA has the Taste of Truckee presenting food from local restaurants along the trails on Mar 22.

Cypress Mountain outside of Vancouver, BC has Ladies Only Chocolate Fondue Snowshoe Tours on Friday and Sunday nights starting at 6:30 PM. Warm up with a mug of steaming apple cider before enjoying appetizers then a chocolate fondue Jan 9 & 23, Feb 6 & 20, and Mar 6. These programs include rental equipment, trail access, guides/instructors, and the appetizers.