Cross Country Skiing

Skiing is a wonderful way to travel in the border country.  Gliding across a smooth lake or flying down a portage trail onto a lake is great fun.  The main advantage to skis over snowshoes is that you can glide with skis where snowshoes do not glide.  This makes skiing more efficient when conditions allow for good skiing.  

When do skis work well?

Skis work well on packed surfaces or trails.  When the snow gets really deep snowshoeing is often easier because the properly sized snowshoes can help you float on top of the snow better than skies.  In deep snow skis often dive into the snow and are hard to handle.  However, on a windswept lake or when the snowpack is right skis are a great way to travel in the border country.

What type of skis should we use?

There are many different types of skis on the market for many different types of conditions.  The most common cross country skis are thin skis made for groomed cross country ski trails.  These thin skies sink into the snow easily and are not good for most of the backcountry skiing in the border country.   You should try to find a wider pair of skis which are usually refereed to as backcountry skis.  These are wider and will help you float on top of the snow.  If you are going out for the day normal ski boots will work fine.  However, if you are going to be camping I would suggest using a special binding called a berwin binding.  This binding allows you to use a pack boot, mukluk, or other warm winter boot instead of a normal ski boot.   This will help keep your feet warm in extreme cold and will allow you to easily switch from skis to snowshoes.

How should I pick a pair of skis that are right for me?

The best way to buy skis is to follow a few simple steps.

Decide what type of conditions you will be using your skis in.  Backcountry day trips, camping, groomed trails, ect.

Do some research on your own about different types of skis so that when you go to buy skis you know a little about the different types of skis available.    There are many good books available and also a lot of info on the web.

Many places rent skis and it is a good idea to rent skis a few times before you buy just to make sure you enjoy skiing, and to help you pick a type of ski.

Now you are ready to buy a pair of skis.  You can often find good deals on the Internet, at the end of the season, or even some good used skis.  For your first pair of skis you do not need the top of the line racing ski.  Try to get a good middle of the road ski and if you end up skiing a lot you can buy a nicer pair of skis and use your other as rock skis or back up skis.

Waxable verses waxless skis? 

You will need something to get you ski to stick to the snow to provide traction for you to push off of.  There are two ways this is accomplished.  Some skis are smooth along the total length of the ski.  The skier applies kick wax to the bottom of the ski under the foot.  When the skier puts weight on the ski the wax sticks to the snow and allows the skier to push off.  Waxable skies are faster than waxless skies under most conditions.  However, you have to use different types of wax for different temperature ranges and snow conditions.  If you are going to use your skis for backcountry travel most of the time and plan to do some camping or mostly camping with your skis I would suggest getting waxless skis.  They are less hassle to deal with and you do not have to bring along a bunch of different kick waxes when you go out.   However, if you like tinkering with you skis and think that you will really get into skiing you might want to get Waxable skis.  Especially if you will we doing some skiing on groomed trails, because they will be faster on a groomed trail.

Waxless skis have little "fishscales"  under the middle of the ski.  When you press you foot down the scales catch the snow and allow you to push off.

What about poles and boots and all of the other stuff?

You will need poles to go along with your skis.  I usually use poles that are up to my chin.  Again you don't need the super light high tech poles.  My poles are aluminum poles from the mid-80's!  The most important thing is that they are the correct size and have straps for your wrists.

You will also need a pair of boots.  If you will be doing a lot of camping I would suggest a berwin binding and the boots that you wear for camping.  If you want a more performance oriented boot and binding there are many to choose from.  I would choose a backcountry boot and binding which will give you a little more warmth and a stiffer boot for most border country travel.  However, if you will be sticking to the groomed trails most of the time then a standard classic cross country ski boot and binding will work well for you.  There are several different types of boots and bindings available.  It is important to get the same style because some boots do not work with other bindings.

I would recommend getting a good book about cross country skiing, having a friend or instructor who is a good skier take you skiing, and then you just have to get out there and ski, ski, ski!  Be careful, I know many people who have had their lives taken over by skiing and it soon becomes an obsession.