Basic Cross Country (Nordic) Skiing

This course is for brand new skiers and experienced skiers who want to improve their skills and confidence. The course consists of a day-long classroom session and two required field trips. The optional social ski will be used as a make-up field trip if one of the other field trips is canceled. If not needed as a make-up, the social ski will be an optional, fun ski day for practicing what you learned. Please save the date to your calendar in case it becomes a required field trip!

Field trips: During the two field trips, our volunteer instructors will teach skills needed to ski comfortably on groomed tracks in moderately hilly terrain.  Field trips will be at White Pass Nordic Center, which has ski rentals, a warm yurt for our lunch break and enough elevation for reliable snow conditions. 

Requirements: In addition to completing the lecture and field trips, graduation requires successful completion of one Mountaineers-led cross country ski outing and completion of an approved Avalanche Awareness course, which you can take in-person or online, free of charge, through the Mountaineers. 

Graduation qualifies you to pursue a trip leader and/or instructor role for this course in future years. We welcome new instructors and leaders--we provide training and encouragement!

A NOTE ABOUT FITNESS: Classic cross country skiing requires a level of fitness equivalent to a moderately strenuous hike, but requires more leg, arm and core strength. You must be able to get up off the ground comfortably (you will fall at least once), climb moderate hills with some ease and use poles to support your weight. If you have questions or concerns about your fitness, please contact one of the leaders. 

One of the best ways to prepare for ski season is to hike on moderate to strenuous trails with elevation gain, and add in strength training a couple days per week. Here are some strength exercises you can do to make your learning experience on skis more enjoyable:

The 5 Best Exercises for Cross Country Skiing

Basic Dryland Exercises to Increase Your Balance and Stability for Cross-Country Skiing

Additional Costs: In addition to the course fee-- trail pass for each field trip and, if needed, ski rental. Costs last year at White Pass were $25 for the trail pass (group rate) and $33 for ski rental.