AUBURN – The Auburn Nordic Ski Association and Lost Valley Ski Area have announced the opening of cross-country skiing trails at Lost Valley. For the past 3 years, volunteer members of the ANSA have been upgrading and expanding an 8-kilometer cross- country skiing system at the ski area.

“The Lewiston-Auburn community has a long history of producing excellent cross- country skiers,” said Jim Wilkins, an ANSA member. “Our goal is to keep that tradition alive by creating a local skiing venue for children to learn to cross-country ski and for our local winter sports athletes to have a convenient place to train. With the addition of the new cross-country trails, Lost Valley is able to provide a broad range of skiing experiences for families.”

“Parents can now send their children off to the slopes or the snowboard park and they can go out and enjoy the peace and quiet of the cross-country trails,” offered Diane Moreau, vice president of Lost Valley. “Afterwards, everybody can meet back in the lodge and enjoy something to eat or drink or just to warm up after being outside.”

The Auburn Nordic Ski Association and Lost Valley have a unique partnership. ANSA members provide the labor for creating and maintaining the trails and Lost Valley provides the land and the business support needed to run a ski area. The trails are also groomed by ANSA members with equipment owned by the club and maintained by dues paid to the club. “We groom both a skating lane and a traditional track for classic cross-country striding,” Wilkins said. “We will groom whenever the snow cover makes it possible. This past weekend was our first time out with the whole system packed and tracked for the skiers.”

Auburn Nordic has received almost $10,000 in donations from various organizations and individuals in the Lewiston and Auburn community.

This past fall, both the Auburn/Lewiston Breakfast Rotary and Mechanics Savings Bank contributed $1,500 for the club to purchase and install a fence for a cross-country ski lane that takes skiers to the trail on one of the alpine slopes. The L-A Fund contributed $3,500 so that ANSA could rent an excavator and bulldozer for trail improvement. Club volunteers widened and leveled about 2 kilometers of trail the weekend before Thanksgiving.

The trails are open to the public and skiers can purchase day passes at the ticket counter in the Lost Valley Lodge.

Skiers can also obtain grooming updates on the Lost Valley Web site at www.lostvalleyski.com.