In Colorado Springs, cross-country skiers seeking groomed trails might think of a distant ski area or a Nordic center. But when Mother Nature provides, they don’t have to go far. 

It’s not a Nordic center, but Mueller State Park grooms a few trails for Nordic skiing when conditions allow. The snowstorm earlier this month allowed just that — for corduroy to make its seasonal debut along the Black Bear Trail and looping paths around the Grouse Mountain and Conifer Ridge campgrounds. 

The region’s first significant storm of the year delivered more than a foot of snow to the state park in Teller County, according to a post on the park’s Facebook page. Over the years, UTVs have pulled tracks over those three routes after such storms. And skiers have been known to flock, filling up the parking lot at the Black Bear trailhead.

The Colorado Trail Explorer app maps a winter route incorporating Black Bear Trail and the looping Osborn Homestead and Geer Pond trails as a “difficult” 3 miles. The Grouse Mountain Winter Trail offers a more moderate mile. The Conifer Ridge Winter Trail is mapped as an “easy” half-mile.

Snowshoers are allowed on the groomed trails, but they are asked to stay along the edges, off the tracks. Snowshoeing and cross-country skiing are popular on ungroomed paths elsewhere in Mueller State Park, across the trail network sprawling nearly 50 miles through rolling meadows and forests above 9,500 feet. 

Groomed conditions are best a day or two after storms. Call the visitor center for the latest information: 719-687-2366

Without a Keep Colorado Wild Pass, the park charges $10 per vehicle. Dogs are not allowed on trails.