What’s better for Nordic touring? Wax or Waxless skis? The usual answer: It all depends!
Before I started skiing, I only knew of one type of skis. Ones you strap on your feet, get on a chair lift and then go downhill.
Never having skied before, I did not realize there were such a wide range of skiing and ski types to go with them: classic cross country, Telemark, alpine touring, alpine, and my personal favorite: Nordic backcountry.
Not only are there different types of skis but different types of boots, bindings, side cut patterns, climbing skins and a whole bunch of lingo that is frankly confusing for a person who just knew off only one kind of skis (more or less!)
My view of skiing was formed a bit too much by this Disney cartoon.
When I started actually skiing after I moved to Colorado, I learned all about the fun types of skis and skiing styles.
No surprise, I shied away from lift-service skiing. And though I have done a decent amount of Telemark skiing , I do not think I’ll ever be very elegant at it. I can get up the mountains and tend to get down more based on sheer bull-headed stubbornness more than any grace of style. 🙂 ( Which is fancy way of saying I fall down and can get up again quickly! ) I do not get in enough lift service skiing to really practice my turns and I do not want to exclusively skin up and then ski down a big mountain on free time. This type of skiing IS fun, but not something I want to do all the time.
Old skis never die, they just get turned into a bench at 11k or so feet.
The skiing I love the absolute most is Nordic backcountry. The emphasis is on distance and exploring vs altitude gain. This type of skiing typically takes in rolling terrain that is suited for skis that can climb moderately steep terrain and go down equally moderately steep downhills. The same type of terrain covered by snowshoes is usually excellent for Nordic touring skis. As the fantastic Dave’s Nordic Backcountry Skiing Page states: “Nordic backcountry touring falls in that odd middle ground between cross-country skiing and Telemark skiing.”
For similar reasons why I love hiking and backpacking is why I love this type of skiing. Once the learning curve is achieved, I find skiing to be a more graceful and elegant way to explore the backcountry vs snowshoeing.
Before the start of the ~15 mile Sourdough Trail Traverse
Nordic backcountry is not a popular an activity as in years past. Snowshoeing is the winter mode of transportation choice of those who enjoy hiking as their major past time. And most backcountry skiing is now about getting up the mountain and then skiing down. Skis have become wider with a larger side cut (shape to the skis essentially) to make for better control going down but sacrificing ability to cover distance on flat or moderate terrain. (And it is why I have two sets of skis! 🙂 )
But among those increasingly rare people who do enjoy Nordic backcountry skiing, there is one major choice to make for their skiing: Do you go with waxless or waxable skis?
Before going too far down the rabbit hole, a quick, and I do mean quick, primer about the basic types of skis and their use should be given.
( If you already know all this crap, skip ahead to waxable vs waxless skis )
First some technical jargon
For the purpose of ski touring discussion, there are two basic terms to keep in mind
Side cut: In very simple terms, the shape of the ski. Classic cross-country skis are long and narrow with no shape. Nordic backcountry skis typically have a slight hourglass shape that allows for basic turns on moderate terrain. Skis meant for steep descents in deep powder typically have a pronounced hourglass figure.
Camber: Classic Cross-Country skis and Backcountry Nordic skis have a double camber. What does that mean? It means the skis have a noticeable arch in them. Good for covering ground; less so for downhill descents. Downhill oriented skis have a smaller arch and are designed more for control in descents and powder rather than covering distance. This explanation is simple, but should suffice for our purposes.
Want even more detailed info? Read this nice and detailed summary from the folks over at Winter Trekking.
Types of Skis
In general, there a few basic types of skis.
- Skate Skis – Skate skis are the most specialized form of skis. Very narrow and light. Use for very rapid skiing in groomed Nordic centers and/or wide, snow-covered roads. No real backcountry application.
- Classic Cross Country Skis- long and narrow with very little, if any, side cut. Meant to cover distance on generally flat terrain and groomed Nordic centers. Typically do not have metal edges which can make turning in backcountry areas interesting. Do not float well in deeper powder.
- Nordic Backcountry Skis – Perhaps the broadest range of skis and the hardest to define. Some skis are not much wider than classic cross-country skis and barely have any side cut to them; others aren’t far removed from the Telemark skis of a decade or ago. In a nut shell, these skis are meant for covering distance in the backcountry over the course of a few hours, a day or many days. Some of these skis are more for distance, some are for deeper powder, some are more turn focused. Dave’s Nordic Backcountry Skiing page has a nice synopsis of the different types of skis and their purposes. The specific skis may be a little outdated, but the types are not. For what it is worth, I tend to gravitate towards this kind of setup.
- Telemark Skis – The burlier brother of the above. Telemark skis have evolved in recent years to be wider, have a more defined side cut and less (or no) camber. Today, often the only thing that really differentiates Telemark skis from AT or even alpine skis are the free-heeling binding system. So it is more about the boots and bindings and less about the ski to a certain extent. Some people prefer this system to the AT system below as you can still do some rolling terrain in a pinch.
- AT (Randonee) Skis – Like all the systems above, AT skis are free heeled (able to lift your foot up) so you can climb up the mountain. Unlike the ski/bindings above, you lock down your heel and have a system similar to what most people think of in skis/boots/bindings (lift served skiing). With lighter AT bindings and boots vs years past, and the ability to lock in the heel for more control vs Telemark ski systems, the AT gear has become more popular than Telemark gear for backcountry skiing.
- Alpine Skis – Your classic skis and boots for bombing down the slopes. Locked in heels, big boots, wide skis and a generous side cut. Get on the lift chair, ski down, hit the lodge for Irish Coffee in between runs! 🙂
From L>R my tele skis and waxable touring skis. someone’ AT skis and her waxless touring skis.
Phew!
In the real world, most of us have a limited amount of money, storage space and time to use our toys. If you want to get into backcountry skiing, esp touring, go to a local outfitter that has the expertise for this type of skiing. If you are blessed with large disposable income and/or an understanding significant other, you may even want to pick up two types of Nordic backcountry skis. 🙂 (One for gentle terrain and one for steeper terrain/heavy winter pack)
The problem!!!! From the Catamount Trail Assoc.
Once you decide on the type of Nordic backcountry skis you want, you need to figure out the boots and bindings.
The boot used for Nordic skiing aren’t the heavy plastic boots and burly bindings of skis meant for downhill descents, but rather lighter boots and bindings that are optimized for distance and speed.
A very thorough overview is again found at Winter Trekking.
The overall synopsis of the above is that NNN-BC binding (or similar) and corresponding boots are generally lighter vs a 75mm three-pin system. This system is not as robust esp when carrying heavier gear. The 75mm three-pin binding is more robust and allows for more control and weight carrying stability (esp when you have an optional cable binding attached. Gliding is less if you use the cable, however).
Depending if you want distance and speed vs weight carrying ability and control, one system may be better than another for you.
OK..on to waxable vs waxless skis!
The beauty of Nordic touring is that you can climb up and then ski down moderate terrain without needing climbing skins.
What are climbing skins? Simply a strip of mohair fabric with glue on one side that brakes in one direction and kinda-sorta glides in another. You can climb up the steep mountain and then take them off for the descent. Good for the Telemark/AT set-up described above; not so good for rolling terrain over the course of a day.
Showing some skin(s)!
The solution for climbing while Nordic backcountry is one of two choices: A fish scale pattern (waxless) or waxable skis.
These two choices can apparently spark some spirited debate. 🙂
Waxless Skis
Waxless skis are the easiest to deal with when using Nordic backcountry skis.
Using a fish scale pattern on the bottom, the scales allow both climbing and gliding. No need to put on skins or apply wax.
Fish scale pattern Voile skis. Photo courtesy of Voile.
Just put on the skis and go!
The disadvantage of the skis? They are slower going downhill than the waxable skis discussed below. The fish scales do create a noticeable drag vs waxable skis, too. And where a good pair of waxable skis can last a long time if taken care of, the fish scale pattern on the bottom of the skis do wear out after a while. The waxless skis become waxable by default. 🙂 I also find that a properly waxed ski can often climb better than a waxless ski.
The waxless skis are best for:
- People new to Nordic skiing. The slower speed does equal a margin of safety for the beginner
- Experienced people who just don’t want to futz with waxes thank you-very-much.
- Spring skiing with its variable conditions. It is a pain to apply and reapply different types of waxes in cold snow and then wet snow.
- Places with wetter snow. Again, easier than futzing with waxes
Waxable skis
Kick wax (also known as climbing wax) is wax that functions much like climbing skins: They allow a person to climb up but still glide on the flats and downhills. Unlike skins, though, wax allows a smooth and fast glide.




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC4ikSRwIEM
Very useful. Thanks. Another Coloradoan here 🙂
Currently in Moab now but still get some skiing in the Blues (Abajos) and La Sals. Good stuff!