Northern Arizona Skiing

The Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, is usually a boiling hot summer destination, not really known for skiing. Most people go to ski or try cross country at Brian Head in Utah. However, once the winter sets in and the crowds dissipate, parts of the backcountry become a prime place for skiing, though no current trails are specifically designated for the purpose.

Skiing in the winter is something that most people in Arizona love to do, as with anywhere, but Brian Head, Utah, is the closest one to the Grand Canyon National Park, and most people would never consider the park to be a place where any skiing could be done. However, experienced backcountry ski enthusiasts would be interested to learn that despite the lack of trails, cross country skiing is possible in the park.

The park becomes very cold in the higher levels, and it starts to resemble a real winter wonderland. Most people are not familiar with this view of the canyon, but the snow comes and in large amounts, exceeding in some cases one hundred inches in areas like the North Rim and the Kaibab Plateau. However, the majority of the park is inaccessible during these times, and these outer lying areas require some real ingenuity to reach.

The North Rim is by far the best spot, and considered very remote even during better weather. The advantage of this area is that its Kaibab Plateau has incredible terrain, that when snow covered, is ideal for cross country skiing. It is rough, steep and undulating, dotted with escarpments, valleys and dense forest. In fact there is one Nordic center located there, but it means skiing some eight miles from the park's entrance to reach it.

The center can only accommodate about sixty people in one go. Its facilities are very limited, but it is open to weekend visitors. Obviously, getting there alone is not for the short run skier and any clothing and other items have to be packed into a backpack and carried the whole way, but if one has the fitness level to cope with it, then it is well worth trying at least once.