Skiing the North Shore Reviews
2007 Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards (NEMBA)
honorable mention:
An excellent guide to 35 groomed cross country ski trails along the Lake Superior shore, this volume stands out in its concise and vivid presentation. A wealth of information for the trails includes directions, maps, difficulty ratings, fees, lodging, and links to other resources. The format is highly portable, well illustrated, and easy to read, as the author shares his obvious delight in this quintessential northeastern Minnesota activity.
— Judges' statement, May 2008
From Minnesota Monthly magazine:
If there’s a better guide to cross-country skiing the North Shore, we haven’t seen it yet. Duluth resident Andrew Slade provides the skinny on 35 skinny-ski jewels along Minnesota’s ersatz coast—from urban skiing on lighted trails along the Lester River to remote destinations along the Gunflint, where hard-core adventurers on the Banadad Trail can overnight in a yurt. In addition to maps, trail-access information, and difficulty ratings, this easy-to-navigate guide includes Slade’s top picks for trails that have the “best grooming,” trails that are “absolutely free,” and—our favorite—“trails my mother would like.”
— Joel Hoekstra, November 2007
From Silent Sports magazine:
Here at last, in a single slim volume, is a guide to the more than 700K of groomed trails between Duluth and Grand Marais. That's 44 detailed maps, directions to and difficulty ratings for 35 trail systems.
Slade edited the original Guide to the Superior Hiking Trail and authored White Woods, Quiet Trails, so you know you'll be in good hands.
From the Cook County News-Herald:
Andrew Slade has written a great guide to area cross county ski trails…and just in time. As one who typically falls down as soon as I slip into skis, I gave the book to one who is an avid skinny skier. The review was glowing.
Slade's guide excels with both overview and detail trail maps as well as good narrative on what to expect for conditions along trail sections. He manages to make sense and easy access to the over 700 kilometers of groomed trails criss-crossing the Lake Superior region.
This definitely is one of those "don't-leave-home-without-it" guides—and a perfect gift for anyone on your list who skis cross country, beginner or advanced.
— Jay Andersen, November 2007
From Duluth XC Ski Club (www.duluthxc.com):
…It's a small little paperback full of great maps and directions to some awesome areas, but even better, it describes the trails so you can assess in advance if you think they might work for your family's skiing abilities.
— Patty Harvieux, November 2007
From Mike Link, Full Circle Superior
How to choose among the options? How to find a trail that meets your skills? It is a challenge. However, Andrew has done the work for you and put the trails and the details in a book that is small enough to go in your pack, is not filled with more than you want to know, and captures the entire Minnesota shoreline. There is only one recommendation I can make: buy it and use it.
Bryan Hansel, North Shore photographer www.bryanhansel.com
Skiing the North Shore is THE guide to cross country skiing on the North Shore of Lake Superior. I’ve lived in the area for the past six years and still come back to the book to find new places to ski or tips about which trails are the best. With the enormous amount of skiing in the area--over 400km in Cook County alone — it’s nice to have a guidebook along that includes everything. A great book to keep in the glove compartment.
Beth Gauper, MidwestWeekends.com, the guide to travel in the Upper Midwest
Skiing the North Shore is just the kind of guide I like — it’s got lots of detailed maps and useful how-to information. I’ve skied many of the trails Andrew Slade has included in this book, and his descriptions are right on. They’ll be especially useful for people who don’t know much about the trails and are trying to decide which ones to pick. It’s hard, since there are so many beautiful trails! This guide definitely is worth the money.
Adam Harju, Grand Marais, North Shore guide
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