Cross Country Skiing

When there are at least a few inches of snow covering the trails of Northwest Indiana, it's time bundle up and experience the winter beauty of the Midwest with cross-country skiing! Keep active this season while trekking across the snow-covered landscapes throughout the South Shore. Find places to rent skis or great locations to use your own below.

Where can you rent cross-country skis?

This year, cross-country ski rentals are available at Oak Ridge Prairie in Griffith on select weekends from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Please call 219-769-7275 or 219-884-7238 before coming out. 

The Paul H. Douglas Center in the Indiana Dunes National Park have cross-country skis or snowshoes you can check out (adult and kids sizes) on a first come-first served basis to use only on the Douglas Trail. Call 219-395-1824 to get a snow update or for more information.

Bring your own cross-country skis

If you have your own, there are trails at the Indiana Dunes National Park to go cross-country skiing on. One is the Ly-co-ki-we Trail. The 6.4 mile trail is a series of interconnecting loops through gently rolling wooded dunes. The park recommends the Glenwood Dunes Trails or - especially for advanced skiers - the Tolleston Dunes Trail. The trails at Indiana Dunes State Park in Chesterton are great for skiing and snowshoeing, too.

Enjoy cross-country skiing and sledding at Hammond's Lost Marsh Golf Course every day of the week (if there are 2"-3" of snow on the ground and weather conditions permitting). Bring your own equipment, check in at the Club House and have fun!

In Valparaiso, head out to Sunset Hill Farm or Forest Park Golf Course.