Lay of the land: Where to get your cross-country ski on in Manitoba

It isn't always easy motivating yourself to get outdoors in the middle ofManitoba's chilliest months, but there's certainly no shortage of options when it comes to embracing the cold through cross-country skiing.

There are about 100 groomed trails across 13 provincial parks, andabout 40 othersites with their own networks of cross-country ski loopsscattered around Manitoba, including sixin Winnipeg municipal parks and several more within or near city limits.

"There's lots of ski trails in Manitoba and they're easy to find," saidKarin McSherry, executive director of the Cross Country Ski Association of Manitoba. "Every place has its own flavour."

The network of trails snaking through Birds Hill Provincial Park gets the most traffic by far, McSherry said, followed by theWindsor Park Nordic Centre.

The latter functions as the ski association's hub, where newbiescan rent equipment andtake lessons to get the basicsdown.

Closer to the outskirts of Winnipeg, Beaudry Provincial Park,just west of Headingley, offers a tour throughforests of tall and gnarly cottonwood, basswood and maple trees along the edges of the Assiniboine River.

La Barriere Park offers a similar glide through trees and over the frozen La Salle River, just to the south of the Perimeter in the rural municipality of Ritchot.

Boreal bogs of the east

Farther afield, manyski trails offer entry to places that aren't accessible in the summer, said Sloan Cathcart.

"You get a totally different perspective ona park in the winter," said Cathcart, head of interpretation for Manitoba parks.

"You get into some really unique backcountry."

Those backcountry excursions take skiers across frozen borealbogs of the Canadian shield in eastern Manitoba like on the trails in Whiteshell Provincial Park, Falcon Ridge, Whitemouth Falls and Seven Sisters or over ice-covered wetlands in the southwestPrairie pothole region.

Rustic overnights in the west

The west includes the lone national park in Manitoba with a network of trails at Riding Mountain.

In southwest of the province includes two longer trails for anyone wanting to brave the cold and overnight in a rustic cabin.

One such cabin is aboutseven kilometres down the James Lake trail in Turtle Mountain Provincial Park, nestled next to the U.S.-Canada border, while another is located 20 km down a trail just to the northeast in Spruce Woods Provincial Park.

Both cabins have wood stoves to keep warm, but skiers have to pack sleeping bags and cooking utensils, said Cathcart.

The Pembina Valley offers a variety of terrain for those wanting to get a little elevation.

Shannondale, Ski Birch and Pumpkin Creekall have hills to climb and valleys to coast down. The same goes for Bittersweet.

"That's one of the reasons people want to go there, because they do get kind of tired of going on the straight, flat trails."

Northern exploring

Those in the north orwanting to venture out that way will find trails near The Pas at Clearwater Provincial Park,asfar north as Paint Lake Provincial Park just south of Thompson as well assomecommunity trails north of the city.

There aresome hilly sections through more Canadian Shield inCranberry Portage,and trails in Flin Flonrange in difficultyfrom easy to advancedand include a 2.3 km loop that is lighted for night skiing.

Accessible and affordable

McSherry said there are many great reasons to take up skiing in a place like Manitoba. It's great exercise, and the learning curve isn't that steep.

"You canjust go out for a shuffle, but if you want to go hard and fast it is a very difficult sport, so there's that physical challenge that's appealing," said McSherry.

"There's not too many places where if you go there, you best be expert if you're goingthere at all."

For beginners, a single ski lesson can go a long way, andthey're offered at Windsor Park, McSherry said.

Getting gear is also pretty cheap in the long run:you can buy a basic set up of equipment poles, boots, skis and ski wax for about $300, said McSherry.

"I still have a pair of skis that I raced on 20 years ago,I still have them,they still work just fine," she said. "You can literally buy yourself a pair of skis and have them for the rest of your life."

Ski equipment can also be rented at some trailheads in the city including Windsor Park and Harbourview as well as throughmanysporting goods stores.

For the beginners out there or anyone who hasn't strapped onskis for years,McSherry said the easiest thing to do when starting out is to find a friend, invest in some new or used equipment and find a trail that's near you.

"Then just get out there and you'll realize what you've been missing, and the winters will seem that much more pleasant."

A list oftrails is available on the Cross Country Ski Association of Manitoba website.

Tips for cross-country skiing in Manitoba

5 years ago

Duration 3:19

CBC Manitoba's Riley Laychuk gets a lesson in staying active outdoors in the winter with Karin McSherry, executive director of the Cross Country Ski Association of Manitoba.