Cross Country

Cross-country aficionados will find more than a dozen ski areas offering in excess of 1,000 kilometers of machine-set track.

They include Royal Gorge Cross-Country Ski Resort, the nation's largest single maintained trail system, which is situated on the famous Donner Summit. Other great trail networks are at Kirkwood, Lakeview, Tahoe Donner, Northstar-at-Tahoe, Hope Valley, Squaw Valley, and Eagle Mountain. Besides developed resorts, trail systems exist at several state parks, including Donner Memorial, Sugar Pine Point, and Plumas-Eureka, which also offers a small alpine hill. In the central Sierra, south of Lake Tahoe, Mammoth Mountain and its sister resort, June Mountain, are the twin titans of skiing along Hwy. 395.

These areas are almost equidistant from Los Angeles and San Francisco, and have accommodations in hotels, motels, and condominiums. On the western slopes of the Sierra, popular ski areas include Bear Valley, Dodge Ridge, and Badger Pass (Yosemite National Park), accessible from colorful towns in the historic Gold Country. Farther south, Sierra Summit offers good skiing near the city of Fresno.

Almost all these regions have opportunities for cross-country skiers. Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks are laced with magnificent trail networks that meander past granite peaks and frozen waterfalls. In the northeastern section of California, Mount Shasta Ski Park near Redding gives skiers a chance to explore an extinct volcano.

At nearby Lassen Volcanic National Park, fumaroles and mud pots are still bubbling, providing unique sights for both cross-country skiers and showshoers. Park rangers frequently conduct guided tours to the snowbound thermal centers. Proximity to a metropolis is the attraction of Southern California's ski areas. Although they're tucked away in the San Bernardino Mountains, they are within a short drive (90 minutes to two hours) east of downtown Los Angeles.

The major ski/snowboard resorts are Snow Summit, Bear Mountain, Snow Valley, and Mountain High. Smaller areas include Mount Baldy, Ski Sunrise, Kratka Ridge, Mount Waterman, and Big Air Green Valley, a unique, snowboard-only resort. Though most Southland skiers make day trips to the slopes, accommodations for overnight stays exist at the two mountain communities of Big Bear Lake and Lake Arrowhead.

Cross-country skiing is available at many of these areas, in addition to a most unlikely place - the desert spa of Palm Springs.

The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway takes Nordic skiers to a trail system on Mount San Jacinto at an elevation of 8,500 feet, where you can ski through pine forest and look down at golfers playing in the warm valley. California's ski resorts have embraced snowboarding in a big way, and several offer dedicated snowboard parks with half-pipes, jumps, and obstacle courses.
Even if you don't ski or ride, you can still explore the snowy backcountry.

At Lake Tahoe, for instance, you can take dog-sled rides, any number of guided snowmobile tours, and horse-drawn sleigh rides. Some people like to strap on snowshoes and trek through parks or cross-country ski areas, several of which have set up special lanes for snowshoers. Sledding and tubing hills are just about everywhere, often next to designated Sno-Park areas.

And ice-skating is a popular family pastime, especially at Lake Tahoe and Yosemite. In the Sierra, ski season may last for six months, depending on the winter. A handful of resorts typically stay open into May or even later, thanks to their high elevation and northern exposure. This allows some interesting combinations: skiing and golf, skiing and sailing, skiing and - well, you fill in the blanks.

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