Ely, MN Cross-Country Skiing

MN Ski Pass

You’re invited! Here in Ely, our cross-country ski season is longer than anywhere else in Minnesota, so our trails are open before other areas even have snow! The Ely area offers a unique blend of trails with machine groomed or user-tracked trails, and several area  l odges offer direct cross-country ski trail access. Visit Ely this winter to ski one of the wooded wilderness trails, shoreline trails, Nordic trails, or break your own trail across the hundreds of lakes in the area. With an average annual snowfall of 84 inches, our ski season starts in early December and lasts through to April!

Ely, Minnesota Cross-Country Ski Trails

The Ely area offers some of the finest cross-country ski trails in Minnesota. Several local trails include terrain inside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). Here, a cross-country skier will leave the pace of everyday life behind as they experience the pristine splendor of our wilderness trails. Skiers will be compelled to pause on the trail and simply take it all in.

North Arm Ski Trail – 42km
North Junction Ski Trail – 13kmSouth Farm Ski Trail – 8km
Hegman Ski Trail – 3km

The Ely area also offers several groomed ski trail systems offering classic and skate-style skiing. The diverse terrain varies from groomed shorelines to winding and rolling trails through towering birch and pine trees.

Bear Island 25 – km
Hidden Valley – 15kmHidden Valley Extension – 8km
Trezona – 6.5km

Ely Trail Guide

Trail Name

Distance from Ely

Trail Length

Activities

Angleworm  +

17

14*

Bass Lake

6

6*

Bear Head State Park  #

Varied

Birch Lake Plantation/Birch Trail

3

Farm Lake  +

16*

Fenske Lake

11

1

Fire & Ice - Meander Lake Trail

1/8

Flash Lake

20

2

Flathorn - Gegoka

16*

Hanson Lake

11

4

Hegman Lake  +

15

2

Hidden Valley Trail

1/2

Varied

Jasper Lake

19

Varied

Kawishiwi Falls Trail

1

North Arm

14

32*

North Junction

7

17*

S. Kawishiwi River  +

10

1

Secret-Blackstone

20

5*

South Farm  +

7.5

7.5*

Thomas Lake  +

22

21

Trezona Trail

1/2

4

NOTE: All distances are in miles. If multiple loop options are available, an asterisk*will be shown by the trail miles.

# A state park sticker or day pass is required to access trails within Bear Head Lake State Park.

+ Some trails travel into or through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and may require a day use or overnight travel permit.  Click here for more details on the permit process