Greenland
Though considered more maritime than "North American", Greenland is an off-track XC lovers paradise. Sporting a once-in-a-lifetime multi-day race, Greenland has plenty of snow and plenty of touring opportunities. Access is a hassle but hey, you wanted adventure right?!
Canada
Canada has XC options in every province featuring a wide variety of terrain and settings. In the East, Quebec is king with a wealth of commercial areas and public parks featuring hundreds of kilometers of powdered tracks.
The mid-section is dotted with "hot-spots" from Ontario to the Alberta plains including Thunder Bay, Ontario host of the 95' Nordic Worlds.
Into the West and the Canadian Rockies feature Canmore, Alberta home of the 88' Olympics and some of the most spectacular scenery on Earth. Options continue all the way to the Pacific Coast. For those wanting just a bit more adventure, skiing options abound well into the Yukon Territory and out into the Eastern Maritimes.
United States
Alaska & Hawaii
Further afield still, Alaska not only has some of the most rugged and spectacular touring in the world but also world-class groomed trails in Anchorage, Fairbanks and many smaller towns.
Even Hawaii offers limited XC options on the peaks of the major volcanos as well as what former Olympic silver medalist Bill Koch describes as the best sand skiing beaches in the world. (Note: Sand skiing is exactly what you think...taking old XC skis onto firm, wet sand and using the classic stride motion. On good sand the glide is equal to slow snow and plenty of fun can be had in the most unusal of places.)
Skiing In Anchorage, Alaska
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Western U.S.
Western U.S. options follow the populations and the snow line. Nearly every western mountain range--in particular the Rockies, the Sierra Nevada, Utah's Wasatch, and the Pacific Northwest Cascades--provide a host of XC options on and off track. Some of the more unknown areas with groomed skiing are northern New Mexico and Arizona, the San Gabriel Mountains overlooking L.A., and the Black Hills of South Dakota. In addition, some of the very best touring and backcountry skiing in the world can be found in hidden ranges throughout the U.S. west including such places as Nevada, southern Utah, Wyoming and extreme Northern California.
Midwestern U.S.
Once you climb northward into the Great Lakes region and Minnesota you enter the heartland of the U.S. Nordic population. Skiing options are everywhere as are plenty of events, shops, and public interest.
Eastern U.S.
New England has a lengthy tradition in Cross Country Skiing from upstate New York to Maine. Plenty of skiing is available further down the Appalachians but the consistency varies--even by Eastern standards. Plenty of seasonal touring options are available as far south as North Carolina but groomed facilities are few and far between. The Mid-Atlantic and Ohio Valley states fair a bit better for consistent snow but primarily skiing is limited to parks and hilly areas.
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