Trails and Grooming

Largely because of our vibrant Nordic skiing community, Fairbanks is blessed with abundant trails for all skiing techniques, with trails for novice, intermediate, expert, and elite skiers. Here are links to maps for trail systems you can explore:

• Birch Hill Recreation Area – Site of most of NSCF’s activities, with trails for every ability and technique. Groomed by NSCF. Read more about the Birch Hill Facilities and the Jim Whisenhant Trail System. New for 2017: Check out the Birch Hill Sunnyside Trail Map for the new trail that takes off from the Outhouse Loop Trail in the southwest part of Birch Hill and goes to the base of the Sonot Connector in the Ft. Wainwright ski area.
• UAF West Ridge/Skarland Ski Trails – Part of the historic Skarland ski trail system, trails for every ability and technique. Groomed by UAF.
• Goldstream Sports Ski Trails – One of many local businesses that support Nordic skiing, the company grooms a set of three classic skiing loops on the west end of Goldstream Valley north of Fairbanks.

Birch Hill Trails Map App

Get the Trailforks app in your favorite app store (there is a free version). Once installed, search for “Birch Hill Recreation Area” or navigate using the map. Select “Nordic Ski” under activity type dropdown menu. Or use the QR code here to go to the Birch Hill page on trailforks.com.

The annual cost of our trails program to the Nordic Ski Club of Fairbanks is over $100,000 including the costs of labor, fuel, equipment maintenance and depreciation, equipment rental, etc. That money is NOT government money, but is money raised by the NSCF from its membership and from corporate sponsors and donors. The Nordic Ski Club has approximately 300 memberships annually, accounting for a total somewhere around 800 members (there are normally multiple members in a single family membership). If you do the math, you can see that it is important that our club members make meaningful donations to cover these costs.

Skiers in the lower 48 pay substantial fees for day passes and season passes. You can ski at Birch Hill without having to purchase a day pass or a season pass, or wear a ticket on your clothing. However, if the high-quality trail system is to continue to exist, and if the superb grooming we have all come to expect is to go on into the future, those things have to get paid for.

Below are the donation amounts suggested by the NSCF Board of Directors. These donations are based on the actual costs of operating our trails program. A survey of what people pay at commercial and club trail operations in the Lower 48 and Canada where fees are charged confirms that these amounts are typical, or even on the low end, for a ski center the size and quality of Birch Hill. Keep in mind that for most operations outside of Alaska, the ski season is 1/2 to 2/3 the length of a typical Fairbanks ski season. The cost of our grooming operations is a direct function of the length of our season:

• Individual Season Pass / Youth (younger than high school) – $90
• Individual Season Pass / Junior-Student (high school or college student – $150
• Individual Season Pass / Adult – $200
• Couples Season Pass / Adult – $300
• Family Season Pass (includes children through high school) – $400

Sustaining donor levels:

• Tracksetter – $500
• Trailblazer – $1000

As you are making your donation decision, please keep these numbers in mind . . . so that we can keep enjoying the great trails and grooming for which Birch Hill is justifiably renowned.

Please donate today!