Welcome to the Minnesota Cross Country Skiing destination of the Gunflint Trail! This is where Minnesota XC skiing starts!

Golden Eagle Lodge Nordic Ski Center, a silent-sports-only resort, is located on the Central Gunflint Ski Trail System. This well-marked network of more than 70 km of trails, groomed and tracked regularly with Kassbohrer Pisten Bully Snowcats, begins curving away into pristine beauty right from your cabin’s doorstep. Our trail system has been specifically built for skiing and all trails are tracked for traditional skiing along with a large portion for skate skiing.

Enjoy the romance of night skiing on Wolf Point, a 1.5 km loop near the lodge. This loop is lit 7 nights a week with electric lanterns. The Aurora Borealis even kicks in every now and then for a dazzling late-night light show.

More information about other winter activities is available on Golden Eagle Lodge’s website, under Nordic Skiing. We have ski and snow shoe rentals for all sizes. View our complete list of winter rentals there as well, or on the main menu above.

Click HERE to see our WebCam of ski trails in the winter-December 1 to March 31.

The Gunflint Trail boasts the largest cross-county ski area in Minnesota, and even the Midwest, covering 100 square miles along the Gunflint Trail. These nationally renowned nordic ski systems offer some of the best cross-country skiing-with approximately 176 kilometers of marked and groomed tracked trails, lit for night skiing, and many trails groomed for skate skiing. The Central and Upper Gunflint Ski Trail Systems offer double tracked trails and single tracked with skating lanes. Connecting these two trail systems is a 29 kilometer single tracked BWCAW wilderness trail, the Banadad. The World-class grooming of this area is provided by three Kassbohrer Piston Bully Snowcats.

At the height of the Laurentian Highlands, this three-million acres of pine, birch, balsam and aspen of the Superior National Forest are white-capped with an average annual snowfall exceeding 100 inches. Snow cover is deep and dependable from early December through the end of March most years. This terrain provides a wide variety of challenge, from the beginner to expert skiers. You’ll discover wildly scenic trails, some that traverse winter moose yards, others that follow stunning overlook ridges, and some that follow old trapper trails and railroad beds. The Sawtooth Mountain Range and the vast surrounding Boundary Waters backcountry make the Gunflint Trail one of the most natural and complete cross-country ski destinations in North America.

Rental equipment for all ages and lessons are available at several Resorts.