The Beauty of the Woods in Winter

by Suzie Laskin

I Love Cross-Country Skiing! The woods are so quiet.  A sublime feeling of joy and contentment overtakes me when I’m gliding along the white woods in winter.   It’s been said that if you can walk, you can ski, and I do believe that’s true.  Trust me, you don’t have to be an athlete to get the hang of it rather quickly. 

Cross country skiing, also known as Nordic Skiing,  is one of the reasons why I love winter! I’m a classical skier; I get into my head with the rhythm of the kick and glide; kick and glide. Some people prefer skate skiing which is much like ice skating on skis. Working up a good sweat, getting some aerobic exercise and staying perfectly warm and comfortable is so satisfying and rewarding.  What makes it even better is that it’s relatively inexpensive and the dogs come along and enjoy the day too. They get so excited! As soon as they see me putting on my ski boots, they impatiently prance by the door with absolutely no time to wait for me to tie my shoes or find my gloves.

There are a multitude of places where you can cross-country ski–or snowshoe–in the Mt. Washington Valley. With proper equipment, you can go into the National Forest and use the hiking trails. These trails are not groomed, so if you’re not experienced you will probably want to learn to ski first at one of the ski touring centers where the trails are groomed and tracked.  All the touring centers offer rental equipment and lessons. Or, go into the woods with a pair of snowshoes, practically anywhere that you can walk.  Safety note: don’t forget to let your friends know where you are going and when you expect to return.

Some of the ski touring centers include Bear Notch Ski Touring Center in Bartlett, Jackson Ski Touring Foundation , Mount Washington Valley Ski Touring and Snowshoe Foundation in North Conway and Intervale, and Great Glen Trails in Pinkham Notch.

You may bring your dogs along to enjoy the fun at Bear Notch and Whitaker Woods, which is in the North Conway section of Mount Washington Valley Ski Touring.  Of course they must be supervised and please don’t forget to bring  plastic bags so you can pick up after them. 

Here is a wonderful Townhome that is absolutely perfect for anyone who loves Nordic or Alpine skiing. Situated right on Mt. Cranmore, it is across the road from the Kandahar Trail, and it is also within walking distance to the Nordic Trails at Whitaker Woods.

Gorgeous Townhome For the Alpine or Nordic Skiier

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 5th, 2010 at 10:42 pm and is filed under Skiing, Vacation Homes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.