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Other stories in "Skiing, cross-country"

• Ski or snowshoe by candlelight
  On a cold winter's night, follow the twinkling lights.
• Winona with snow
  Snowstorms that blanket the southern woods bring skiers with them.
• Skiing the North Shore
  On snow-laden trails, skiers glide on cloud nine.
• The best days of winter
  On the Gunflint Trail, skiers find snow that sparkles into April.
• Winter in Wausau
  There's skiing, dining and sightseeing right in this modest paper town.
• Cross-country in Duluth
  When snow falls, skiers fly onto a splendid system of trails.
• Itasca in winter
  From cozy hostel, guests ski out the door onto park trails.
• Bayfield in winter
  On a snowy Wisconsin peninsula, everyone heads for the hills.
• From yurt to B&B on the Gunflint
  In a snowy Minnesota wilderness, guests get the best of two worlds.
• Snow asylum
  In northeast Wisconsin, Afterglow Resort stays on top of the heap.
• Happy days at Maplelag
  Winter is as good as it gets at a friendly cross-country ski resort in northwestern Minnesota.
• Full throttle in Eagle River
  Around this snowy Wisconsin town, there's a trail for everyone.
• Ironwood the reliable
  When most of the Upper Midwest is brown, cross-country skiers know where to find snow.
• Minocqua's white magic
  A forest full of snow delights skiers and snowmobilers.
• A Giant advantage
  For novice nordic skiers, Iron Range resort rolls out the red carpet.

Ski out the door

From cozy north-woods lodges, guests glide into a world of white.

In a blizzard, nothing is better than holing up with an expert cook, a bottomless cookie jar, a steam room, a big hot tub and one of the best ski-trail groomers in the Midwest.

One January, the stars aligned in the heavens and I found myself in the best possible place to be during a blizzard: Maplelag.

This ski resort in northwest Minnesota is renowned for many things — all-you-can-eat meals, personable owners, hundreds of stained-glass windows and signs from defunct train depots — but it’s most famous for its ability to conjure a bit of snow into world-class ski tracks when the rest of Minnesota is bare.

On this weekend, however, no alchemy was necessary. As my husband and I drove west, snow began to fly, and by the time we nosed the car into Maplelag’s drive, a foot had fallen. Another foot was on the way, making trail-grooming wizard Jay Richards the happiest man in the Great Northwest.

“This is the kind of snow you dream about,’’ said Richards, an avid skier and the son of Maplelag founders Jim and Mary Richards.

There was nothing to do but ski, eat, read, play ping-pong, sit in the steaming hot tub and sleep — in short, everything we wanted to do. As soon as we stowed our bags in the Norwegian Log Cabin, we set out on the Sukkerbusk Trail to Twin Lakes, stopping only when we realized dusk was falling with the flakes.

Then we came back for a meal of marinated flank steak, potatoes, green beans and blueberry pie with whipped cream, sharing the dining room with a charter-school ski team from the Twin Cities, a family with three young sons and a bunch of English and French professors from Concordia College in Moorhead, who didn’t seem too upset they had to stay an extra day.

During the night, Jim Richards drove to the Amtrak depot in Detroit Lakes to pick up three women from Chicago, and after that, they became our dinner companions, regaling us with tales of their various adventure trips with girlfriends, daughters and, occasionally, husbands. For six years, they’d been making the 12-hour train trip to Maplelag from the Chicago area.

“Our husbands ask if we can’t find someplace closer,’’ said Carol Schumacher of Palatine, Ill. “Every year we consider not coming, but then we think, no, we have to come.’’

It was their winter break, and, like us, they found nothing more relaxing than a day of skiing and eating, with a midafternoon break for peach tea and a snickerdoodle, then an aprés-ski soak in the steam room or hot tub. Jay and Jim Richards kept the Pisten Bully going on the resort’s 64 kilometers of trails, and we followed them, stopping once so Jay could snap our picture amid the snow-flocked boughs.

Then we had to leave. Feeling a little blue after we got home, we checked the resort’s web site and found Jay had posted our photo and 24 others of the big snowfall.

“I thought I would make a photo album because I will always remember this day in my head,’’ he wrote. “It will be nice to have the visual when it is 90 degrees in the middle of July and I will be sitting in the cab of the Pisten Bully dreaming about this day.’’

For skiers, Maplelag is as good as it gets. But not everyone can afford a vacation there, and luckily, there are many other lodges and housekeeping cabins where guests can ski right from their door.

If you want to save money on meals, bring a crockpot and a pot roast, and you’ll be greeted by tantalizing aromas after a long day of skiing.

Below are some of the best resorts for skiing out the door.

Maplelag Resort, Callaway, Minn.: This resort is one of a kind. Sitting on a slight rise where hardwood forest meets prairie, it’s the first spot to catch snow from the Rockies, and its proprietors keep trails impeccably groomed even in marginal conditions.

There’s a big three-level lodge, where dances are held on weekends, and a variety of accommodations, from rustic pioneer cabins to Great Northern cabooses. Meals are served family-style in the dining room.

Guests bring their own sleeping bags, pillows and towels, though they can be rented. Ski equipment in all sizes can be rented, as well as snowshoes and kick sleds for hauling small children. Call 800-654-7711. 

Cascade Lodge, Grand Marais, Minn.: Between Lutsen and Grand Marais on the North Shore, this 1939 lodge alongside the Cascade River maintains the western section of the 51-kilometer Cascade-Deer Yard Lake system with a Pisten Bully; Cascade River State Park is responsible for the eastern half.

Guests can stay in the lodge, the motel or in cabins. There’s a restaurant, too. 800-322-9543.

Active Backwoods Retreat, Ironwood, Mich.: This ski area, on the outskirts of Ironwood along the Montreal River, has the most reliable snow in the region by far, and skiing usually continues into April. It has 60 kilometers of beautifully groomed skating and striding trails and a 4-kilometer snowshoeing loop on more than 600 acres.

ABR doesn’t have a lodge, but it does have two houses along the trail. The Hilltop House has three bedrooms, two baths, a Jacuzzi and fireplace and  sleeps up to 14. The three-bedroom River House has a fireplace and electric sauna and sleeps 10.

Three rustic cabins are right on the trails, accessible only by ski or snowshoe. Two sleep six, and one sleeps eight. Guests can use a wood-fired sauna with hot shower. 906-932-3502.

Afterglow Lake Resort, Phelps, Wis.: This cabin resort in northeast Wisconsin, not far from the Michigan border, has 11 miles of well-maintained trails that are groomed six times a week. Snow is reliable, and it’s a good place for families, with downhill tubing (the owner tows people back up the hill by snowmobile) and lighted ice skating. There’s a game room, whirlpool and sauna.

Housekeeping cottages have wood-burning fireplaces and two to five bedrooms apiece. Sheets and towels are not provided. Call 715-545-2560. For more, see Snow asylum.

Poplar Creek guesthouse, cabins and yurt, Gunflint Trail, Minn.: In the middle of the Gunflint Trail, near the Trail Center, Ted and Barbara Young offer accommodations along the 29-kilometer Banadad Trail, from which guests can ski or snowshoe into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Their Poplar Creek Guesthouse is very attractive and has a housekeeping suite and two B&B rooms, one with two beds and one with a double whirlpool. The B&B rooms share a common area with a gas fireplace and kitchenette.

Nearby, the Little Ollie Lake Cabin sleeps six and has two bedrooms, one with three beds. The new, two-bedroom Poplar Creek Retreat Cabin sleeps six and has a double whirlpool.

The Tall Pine Yurt, a round canvas hut with a kitchen and wood stove, sleeps four. A sauna is nearby. Another yurt is available as an overnight stop. Call 800-322-8327. For skiing and yurt adventures, check Boundary Country Trekking. 

Telemark Resort, Cable, Wis.: This large resort with pool in northwest Wisconsin has 65 kilometers of beautiful striding, skating and snowshoeing trails. There's also an ice-skating pond and a tubing and snowshoeing hill with rope tow.

There are rooms and suites in the lodge as well as condos. The resort caters to snowmobilers as well as skiers. Call 877-798-4718.

Giants Ridge Lodge and Villas, Biwabik, Minn.: This alpine-ski resort on Minnesota's Iron Range also has 60 kilometers of well-groomed cross-country trails, and skiers can use the lifts to get to the top of trails for long, gradual downhill glides (see A Giant advantage).

The all-suite Lodge at Giants Ridge is at the cross-country trailhead; guests can stash their skis in the waxing room at ground level.

Next door, the Sports Dorm has 24 motel rooms, each with two bunk beds and a private bath. There’s a meeting room and lobby, each with TV, and a common kitchen. They're a great value but hard to get on winter weekends, because groups reserve them far in advance.

Villas are across the road and have kitchens and fireplaces. For details, call Giants Ridge at 800-688-7669.

Gunflint Trail resorts: In far northeastern Minnesota, lodges share 200 kilometers of groomed trails and snow that's the most reliable in Minnesota. On the Central Gunflint Trail, Bearskin Lodge has very nice traditional cabins and lodge suites. There's a large Hot Tub Hus. 800-338-4170.

From Bearskin, skiers can glide over for hot chocolate and cookies at Golden Eagle Lodge, which has a mixture of older and new cabins, some with whirlpools, and a 1945 lodge. A naturalist leads excursions and activities. 800-346-2203. Both resorts have nice lighted loops.

In the Upper Gunflint, Heston's, Gunflint Pines, Moosehorn Lodge, Gunflint Lodge and Old Northwoods Lodge are among other good places to stay. Call 800-338-6932.

Mississippi Headwaters Hostel, Itasca State Park in northern Minnesota: This Hostelling International lodge is a great place for skiers on a budget. It's just off Lake Itasca and the ski trails that wind through the park.

The six bedrooms are shared, and guests bring their own bedding and towels. There's a well-designed and -equipped kitchen and a cozy living area with stone fireplace. Cost is $23-$27 per person, $10-$12 for children younger than 14, and $20-$24 for members of Hostelling International and nonprofit groups of 10 or more. Call 218-266-3415.

Palmquist Farm, Brantwood, Wis.: This resort in north-central Wisconsin is a good place for beginners and children: Its 10 miles of trails, groomed for striding and skating, are gentle, with bypasses cut around the man-made hills. There's also an ice-skating pond and sledding hill, snowshoeing and sleigh rides behind two Belgian draft mares.

A wood-fired Finnish sauna has a reading room. Lodging is in cabins, a new inn and the farmhouse, where everyone gathers for meals. Call 800-519-2558.

High Point Village near Ogema, Wis.:  This resort in north-central Wisconsin, across Bass Lake from the state's high point, is just off Timm's Hill National Trail, part of a 50-kilometer network of ski trails.

It rents five attractive chalet cabins with loft and full kitchen. There's a coffee shop on the premises that sells pastries, soup and panini. 715-767-5287.

Heartwood Conference Center & Retreat, Minong, Wis.: Guests at this attractive conference center, about 40 minutes west of Hayward, can ski out the door on 25 kilometers of groomed trails. The center rents rooms to individuals as well as groups in hotel rooms, cottages and duplexes. Ten Pine Village duplexes sleep up to 14 each and have kitchens and fireplaces. Meals are available for groups.

Formerly the Schwan Center, it's now owned by Thrivent Financial, and members and Lutheran groups get a discount. Call 800-577-4848.

Spirit Mountain Villas, Duluth, Minn.: Just across the road from the alpine slopes, Spirit Mountain maintains 22 kilometers of double-tracked trails, groomed frequently. The treehouse-like Mountain Villas are nearby, with two bedrooms, two baths, gas fireplaces and kitchens, 800-642-6377, Ext. 543.

National Forest Lodge, Isabella, Minn.: The Flathorn-Gegoka trail system outside this lodge, 30 miles up Minnesota 1 from Silver Bay, has one of the most reliable snow covers in northeast Minnesota and often is used by skiers from the North Shore. The trails are owned by the U.S. Forest Service and maintained by Andy Fisher of National Forest Lodge, whose guests can ski out the door, across Lake Gegoka and onto a 30-kilometer series of loops through pine forest.

Lodging rates include three meals a day, served in the simple but comfortable lodge. Guests stay in a modern house or rustic cabins. There’s a wood-fired sauna and a large outdoor hot tub. 877-353-0707.

Bear Paw Outdoor Adventure Resort, Langlade, Wis.: This whitewater-kayaking resort amid northeast Wisconsin’s vast Nicolet National Forest also is a good place for skiing, on 15 kilometers of groomed trails, and snowshoeing anywhere.

In winter, guests can stay in two chalet units, each with a gas fireplace and kitchen. There are also six cabin rooms.

The shop rents ski and snowshoes, but the restaurant is closed in winter.  Guests can eat at the Woodshed in Langlade or pick up groceries in Antigo, 20 miles west. 715-882-3502.

Gooseberry Trailside Suites, Castle Danger, Minn.: Just outside Gooseberry Falls State Park on the North Shore, Gooseberry Trailside Suites has four very attractive two-bedroom suites, each with wood-burning fireplace and full kitchen. A big sauna and a ski-waxing room are outside. Guests can take a short spur trail to trails in the state park, where grooming can be spotty. Call 800-715-1110.

Last updated on February 11, 2010