Fernie has been blessed with the creation of the The Fernie Nordic Society. They had their big Grand Opening day early December and managed to get approximately 10 kilometers of trails at the Fernie Golf and Country Club groomed for both classic and skating including a nice oval for beginners and lessons. The day was absolutely perfect—lots of new snow and not a cloud in the sky.

Big Blue, their fancy brand new snowmobile was sitting in the parking lot for the whole world to admire—that is when he wasn’t out running around sprucing up the trails.

They had lots of different levels of skiers—skaters and classic skiers, novices and experts. We had a few snowshoers who ran around the skating lane as well.

They still have a long way to go in getting our trails and programs into full swing, but we have come a long way this year and everyone in the Elk Valley is pretty excited about the progress.

They even got a congratulatory note from Beckie Scott, who is on the advisory committee. (She wanted to know who “Big Blue” was.) The Fernie Noridc Society would like to ask anyone interested in Cross Country Skiing Groomed trails in Fernie this winter 2006/2007 to purchase a membership and if you can provide a donation.

Since opening day lots of new terrain has been groomed including track and skating at Island Lake Lodge. Combining this new effort with Fernie Alpine Resort’s trails elevates Fernie to the status of a x-country destination.

For more information visit www.fernienordic.com