Cross-Country Skiing

If you don't plan to pound down the backcountry powder on telemark skis, but you want to get out in the snow, cross-country skiing can be practiced on any relatively flat, open meadow or plain where there's snow on the ground, or along old roads in the region's forests. Scores of guest ranches now groom trails for both track and skate skiing, and almost every ski resort in the region has a trail. If you don't want to pay to ski, Forest Service logging roads are typically used for cross-country trails. Many golf courses are also regularly groomed for track skiing; some are even lighted for night skiing. The best place to cross-country ski in Montana is West Yellowstone, training ground of U.S. Nordic and Biathlon ski teams; in Wyoming, the Jackson Hole area and Grand Teton National Park.