I’m going to be completely honest here: as a kid, I thought cross-country skiing was just plain silly.
I grew up alpine skiing and lived for the downhill. The faster? The better. The scarier? Even better. That moment when you almost crash, somehow pull it together, set your edge, and keep charging as if nothing happened? Adrenaline rush!
But something shifted in my early 20s.
I was living in the small ski town of Girdwood, Alaska, surrounded by high-level cross-country skiers. My childhood best friend, Taylor, and I would borrow skate skis and rip around Girdwood’s 5k loop, laughing at ourselves as we tried to make tiny steps around steep turns with no edges on our skis. It turns out that skiing fast on skinny skis is its own kind of adrenaline rush. And the runner’s high that comes from cross-country skiing? That doesn’t really exist in the alpine world!
When I moved back to Utah, I brought my newfound love of cross-country skiing with me. I introduced my husband to it, and I found friends who loved it too. As an avid cross-country skier now, I wanted to share how to get started if you're new to the sport. I sat down with Jen Santoro from The Utah Nordic Alliance to talk about how beginners should approach the sport, from trail choices to technique to lessons. If you’re curious about getting started, here’s where to begin.
Where Should You Start?
Utah is packed with incredible cross-country ski trails, but for a first day, Jen recommends keeping it simple: choose a place where you can rent gear, take a lesson, and ski approachable terrain all in one location.
White Pine Touring Nordic Center in Park City is one of her top recommendations. It’s approachable, beautifully groomed, and has rentals and lessons onsite. White Pine Touring Nordic Center has deep roots in Utah’s cross-country skiing community and offers everything from private beginner tours to advanced race-prep coaching and even corporate retreats on skis. Last season, I took a private tour with Art, one of their seasoned instructors, and even as an experienced skier, I walked away a smoother and faster skier. We explored the farm trails near the historic McPolin Barn, and I was reminded how much there is to learn, even when you think you already “know how”.
Soldier Hollow, located in the Heber Valley, is another excellent option. An Olympic venue in 2002 and again in 2034, it has the most reliable snowmaking of any cross-country skiing facility in Utah. The trails are wide and confidence-building, and like White Pine, everything is centralized: rentals, lessons, and access to beautifully maintained terrain.
Closer to Salt Lake, Mountain Dell and Solitude Nordic and Snowshoe Center are both fantastic choices. Mountain Dell, operated by The Utah Nordic Alliance, is one of the most accessible cross-country skiing specific areas for people living in Salt Lake City. It offers a great mix of flats and hills to build confidence and skills. Solitude Nordic and Snowshoe Center, located between Solitude Mountain Resort and Brighton in Big Cottonwood Canyon, delivers high alpine views, a rental shop with hot chocolate and a fun atmosphere.
Classic or Skate?
Many people, myself included, first try cross-country skiing on skate skis. But Jen actually recommends starting with classic.
Classic skiing teaches full commitment from one ski to the other. It builds balance, glide mechanics, and efficient weight transfer. For adults, it can be deceptively challenging. It looks like walking, but to maintain grip and propel yourself forward, your weight must be centered and committed.
Learning classic first can make skate skiing easier and more efficient when you try it. It builds a better foundation that can be easily transferred to skate technique. If you’re curious about the differences between the two styles, you can dive deeper in my companion post breaking down Classic vs. Skate.
Take a Lesson!
If you take one thing from this article, let it be this: take a lesson!
During my conversation with Jen, she emphasized how difficult it is to undo bad habits once they’re ingrained. A lot of people think that all it takes to be a good cross-country skier is a high VO2 max. Cross-country skiing is more than just a cardiovascular workout; it requires finesse. Small adjustments in weight within your boot, or where you plant your poles, or what your hips are doing during the transitions, can make a huge difference in how far you can glide each stride.
The technique is one of the reasons people continue improving at cross-country skiing well into adulthood. Technique and finesse can offset natural changes in strength and muscle composition over time. People can continue progressing for decades, making it a lifelong way to stay healthy and enjoy the outdoors even after years of skiing hard moguls are behind them.
Through The Utah Nordic Alliance, adult programs keep small coach-to-skier ratios and offer everything from beginner clinics to women-specific groups and private instruction. The focus is skill acquisition and building a community of lifelong cross-country skiers.
White Pine Touring, Solitude Nordic and Snowshoe Center, and Soldier Hollow also offer lesson options ranging from private one-on-one sessions to group lessons and women’s ski clinics that create a friendly, non-competitive entry point into the sport.
A Winter That Gets More Diverse
For me, cross-country skiing will never replace downhill skiing, but it allows me to experience winter in a whole new way.
It gives me a way to get my heart rate up on a weekday after work or after a day of resort skiing. It’s a way for us to spend time as a family outdoors with our dog, making sure that she gets the exercise and attention she deserves. It’s a way to be silly with friends at Solitude Nordic and Snowshoe Center, falling into deep snow banks surrounded by pretty lights and the stars above Big Cottonwood Canyon.
If you’re cross-country curious, start somewhere approachable, try classic technique first, book a lesson, and enjoy Utah’s winter in a whole new way!
