Granby's cross-country ski season starts on Monday, Nov. 23, at the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center. From then until early April, most of the dates worth putting on a calendar come from two places: YMCA of the Rockies, which runs the trails, and Grand Nordic, a local nonprofit that organizes the clinics, relays, kids' teams and races on them.
That makes for an unusual winter calendar. You don't need a downhill pass or a lift ticket to join in. Many of the events are open to first-timers, some cost nothing, and the proceeds from several go back into youth skiing in Grand County.
Opening day starts at the shop counter
YMCA of the Rockies says the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center opens for the 2026/27 season on Monday, November 23. The trails open when there is enough snow, and the retail shop opens either way. That means if the ground is still bare on the 23rd, you can still come in for waxing, gear and early-season questions. Grand Nordic calls Nov. 23 the tentative opening day for the trails, depending on snow, and lists a tentative closing day of April 4.
Once the snow arrives, there's plenty of ground. The Nordic Center page lists more than 80 kilometers of groomed track and trail across 5,100 acres. About 40 kilometers of the Nordic and snowshoe trails are open to dogs, which have to stay leashed on the designated routes. Posted hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center publishes its grooming report through Nordic Pulse, and its Nordic and snowshoe trail maps carry 2026 updates.
Every skier and snowshoer stops at the Nordic Center to buy a trail pass on arrival.
What a day on the trails costs
These are the single-day trail pass prices the Nordic Center currently lists. One pass covers cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or fat-tire biking.
- Adults, 13 and up: $29
- Children, 6 to 12: $14
- Children, 5 and under: free
- YMCA of the Rockies members and overnight guests: free
If you ski more than now and then, the five-visit punch card is the better buy. It costs $120, which works out to $24 a visit, $5 less than a single adult day pass. Family members can share it, so one card can cover a parent and a teenager on the same morning, or five separate outings for one person. Fat bikes aren't allowed on every trail and can't be rented, so the Nordic office at 888-573-9622 is the place to ask before you bring one.
The pass gets you onto the trails. Grand Nordic supplies most of the reasons to show up on a particular day.
The nonprofit that sets the dates
Grand Nordic posted its season-ahead calendar on Sep. 15, 2026, and it says all times, dates and events may change. Its season opened before the snow did, with the annual Nordic Ski Swap & Expo on Oct. 24 at the Campers Hub and Nordic Center at Snow Mountain Ranch. Here are the events still ahead:
- Free Nordic Ski Clinics, Sunday, Dec. 13, and Jan. 30. Classic and skate lessons for adults and kids at the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center, taught by instructors from Grand Nordic, the Winter Park Competition Center and Colorado Nordic Masters. Grand Nordic members get trail passes and rentals free for the clinic. Non-members pay the regular fees.
- Red Barn Relay, Friday, Jan. 1. The second year of this race, with 5K and 10K relay options and team categories for adults, kids and parent-child pairs. It's open to all ages, abilities and ski styles.
- Ranch 2 Ranch XC Ski Trek, Saturday, Feb. 6. Skiers start at the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center and finish at Granby Ranch. Anyone who wants double the distance can turn around and ski back.
All proceeds from the Red Barn Relay and the Ranch 2 Ranch trek go to Grand Nordic's youth programs. The Dec. 13 clinic is the first lesson day on the calendar, three weeks after the Nordic Center opens.
A race series that moves between three ranches
The Ranch 2 Ranch trek covers the ground between two venues on skis. The Grand County Nordic Race Series uses three venues, moving each weekend among Snow Mountain Ranch, Devil's Thumb Ranch and Granby Ranch, with eight races from January through early March 2027.
| Date | Race | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, Jan. 9, 2027 | Grand Nordic 15k Skate Race | Snow Mountain Ranch |
| Sunday, Jan. 10, 2027 | Snow Mountain Classic | Snow Mountain Ranch |
| Sunday, Jan. 24, 2027 | Stagecoach Classic | Devil's Thumb Ranch |
| Sunday, Jan. 31, 2027 | Governor's Cup | Devil's Thumb Ranch |
| Saturday, Feb. 13, 2027 | Sweetheart Skate | Snow Mountain Ranch |
| Sunday, Feb. 21, 2027 | Skate Race | Granby Ranch |
| Saturday, March 6, 2027 | Snow Mountain Stampede, skate | Snow Mountain Ranch |
| Sunday, March 7, 2027 | Snow Mountain Stampede, classic | Snow Mountain Ranch |
Five of the eight races are at Snow Mountain Ranch. The Granby Ranch race on Feb. 21 runs on the Nordic trails at the golf course. The series begins and ends with back-to-back weekend races at Snow Mountain Ranch, Jan. 9 and 10 and then March 6 and 7. That leaves the Devil's Thumb and Granby Ranch dates in the middle of the season.
For kids, much of the season is free
Kids get the most out of this calendar for the least money, and the youngest skiers pay nothing at all. Children 5 and under ski on a free trail pass. Grand Nordic and the ranch add three programs on top of that, all at the Snow Mountain Ranch Nordic Center:
- Grand Nordic Gliders, Sundays, Jan. 3 to March 7, 1 to 2:30 p.m. This is Grand County's youth cross-country team for 3rd to 5th graders. Kids learn classic and skate skiing through games, technique work and time on the groomed trails, and they don't need any racing experience. The program costs $100, an optional season ski rental is $35, and scholarships are available.
- Free Friday Kids Lessons, Fridays, Jan. 8 to Feb. 26, 2027, 1 to 2:30 p.m. For ages 5 to 10, from first-timers to more experienced skiers, with classic, skate and never-ever groups capped at 25 to 30 kids in total. The program finishes with a Nordic Ski Festival and prizes for everyone. Parents who help out get a trail pass and equipment for the lesson. Online pre-registration is required and usually opens in November or December.
- Barneløpet, Saturday, Feb. 20. A free children's cross-country event at Legett Hall with 1 km, 2.5 km and 5 km courses for ages 0 to 16. Check-in is at 9:30 a.m., the event starts at 11:15 a.m., ski rentals from the Nordic Center are free, and there are refreshments afterward.
The Friday lessons are capped and require registration, so it helps to know the registration window before winter break. A child who starts with the free Dec. 13 clinic, joins the Friday lessons in January and skis Barneløpet in February can have a full season of instruction and a race for very little beyond the Gliders fee, and that fee is optional.
A professional team on the same trails
New this season, the Nordic center is also connected to professional skiing. Sky-Hi News reported on Oct. 6, 2026 that YMCA of the Rockies Snow Mountain Ranch is now the presenting sponsor of SNØ Racing, a professional cross-country ski team based in Minneapolis. According to Sky-Hi News, the partnership supports the team's athletes, training and events and connects the team with Snow Mountain Ranch's Nordic facilities in Granby. The ranch will also appear in the team's marketing throughout the season.
So the same trails that host Barneløpet's 1 km course for toddlers and the Free Friday never-ever group now carry the name of a professional team, too. Those trails are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. for anyone with a $29 day pass, a share of a $120 punch card, or a child's free pass.
In Granby, the Nordic season starts on Nov. 23, the shop opens that day whatever the snow is doing, and Grand Nordic's calendar fills in the dates through April. If you're weighing Grand County property and trail access is on your list, Erin Life can tell you how close a home sits to Snow Mountain Ranch, Granby Ranch and the trails between them. Start Your Grand County Search.
