An increasingly popular snow activity has more to offer than just a cool Norwegian name

Skijoring at Triple Creek Ranch
If you’re looking for a fresh, thrilling take on skiing, try adding a horse. Yes, we’re serious.

The sport of skijoring, Norwegian for ski driving, is picking up in resorts across the West. In skijoring, the skier is towed by a rope behind either a horse or a dog, adding a water-skiing feel to your typical snow skiing. Even Bloomberg calls it winter’s wildest sport.

Skijoring has been around for hundreds of years, according to Skijor International, with popularity growing in number and in nations over decades. Today, it’s even considered a highly competitive sport, both in the equine and canine versions. But it’s also a recreational activity that more resorts are starting to offer, making it a great winter sport to try out for the first time this ski season.

Triple Creek Ranch near Darby, Montana, is one of many resorts that offers a recreational skijoring experience, where skiers are drawn by mounted horses through snowy meadows and forest trails, as seen above.

The Resort at Paws Up, also in Montana, offers skijoring lessons to guests 12 and up, while Colorado-set Devil’s Thumb Ranch offers skijoring clinics for guests looking to try out the sport with a dog. If you’re looking for a private skijoring lesson, try the St. Regis Aspen, where lessons are taught by local experts from High Country Dogs.

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