Seward Cross Country Skiing

Bear Lake is a pop­u­lar des­ti­na­tion for cross coun­try ski­ing (both skate and clas­sic), ski­jor­ing, skat­ing, and snow­ma­chin­ing. Groomed entire­ly by vol­un­teers, the trail fol­lows along the perime­ter of the lake and amounts to rough­ly 5 miles.

An annu­al New Year’s Eve tra­di­tion, the Lumi­nary Ski is a free com­mu­ni­ty event on the Divide Ski Trails (at Mile 12 of the Seward High­way). The trails are lit by can­dle­light, and you can walk, snow­shoe, or ski, depend­ing on your pref­er­ence. Hot cocoa, cider, and a camp­fire are provided.

Most of the loops in the camp­ground are groomed for cross coun­try ski­ing. Start­ing with the main road into the camp­ground and cross the bridge to see beau­ti­ful win­ter views up and down the riv­er. To access the trails, park before the first road clo­sure gate just off of the Seward Highway. 

Known to locals as the Divide Ski Area, this trail was built by ded­i­cat­ed com­mu­ni­ty vol­un­teers from the Seward Nordic Ski Club.

This is a triathalon event (not race) that takes place in Seward every spring. It begins with a 3km sec­tion at Mile 12 ski area. For this sec­tion par­tic­i­pants can either snow­shoe, use clas­sic skis or skate skis. Next is a 15 km bicy­cle ride to Seward from Mile 12, end­ing with a 6 km run to a spec­i­fied loca­tion on the Water­front Trail for a picnic.