Cross-country skiing, also known as Nordic skiing, is great exercise, easily accessible, relatively easy to learn, and a wonderful way to get some vitamin D in the winter. Most people start with classic skiing, where your skis stay parallel within groomed tracks/grooves. Been there, done that? Try skate skiing, which is a more rigorous version similar to in-line skating, where you push off with one leg and then the other. Or head out at night on a lighted trail for a new adventure. Many Twin Cities parks rent skis and offer lessons for beginners (with real-time trail conditions posted online), including Theodore Wirth Regional Park, Hyland Lake Park Reserve, Elm Creek Park Reserve, and the Vasaloppet Nordic Center. Ready to make a trip of it? Head to Maplelag Resort, north of Detroit Lakes, which boasts more than 70 kilometers of skiing trails and a beautiful, remote location where you can glide along in peace. Callaway, maplelag.com, 218-375-4466
This article originally appeared in the December 2023 issue of Mpls.St.Paul Magazine.
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