From tracks along the Androscoggin River to mountain-climbing trails, Carter's X-C Center in Bethel offers an enticing smorgasbord of nordic skiing and comfy lodgings.

Earlier this week I spent a few days at Carter's Willow Brook Lodge and skied about 60 percent of the 55-kilometer network. It's located on riverside farmland that has been in the Carter family for generations. Dave Carter, who was a cross-country racer at nearby Gould Academy in the 1960s, is the center's principal founder. He's assisted by wife Anne, daughter Sarah and her fiance Jesse Hill.

Dave Carter poses by his biggest piece of trail-grooming equipment, a Kubota tractor towing a Yellowstone packing/tracking drag
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

Readers of The Ski Bum blog will recall that I bought a new set of nordic skis and boots from lovely Sarah Carter at the Down East Ski Club's annual Thanksgiving weekend sale. Picture is repeated below.

I bought these skis and boots at the Down East Ski Club's annual sale from Sarah Carter, daughter of David and Anne Carter
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

Jesse Hill, Sarah Carter's fiance, was running the ski shop during my visit this week
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

After cruising around the riverside trails and visiting the vintage yurt, I skied up the mountainside with Dave.

About half the trails at Carter's X-C Bethel are located on the north side of Farwell Mountail
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Dave Carter poses along the trail up Farwell Mountain
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Carter's has two very rustic hillside cabins along the Wiley's Farm Trail -- Mountain Lodge and Fern's Lodge -- that are rented out to intrepid skiers.

(I stayed in more citified digs at Willow Brook Lodge, where three bedrooms are available to visitors. You can rent the whole building or just one of the bedrooms.)

Overlooks afford excellent views of the nearby Mahoosuc Mountains and the distant Presidential Range. Among the most prominent sights is the downhill ski trails of Sunday River Resort.

Dave Carter poses near one of the viewpoints on Farwell Mountain; the alpine ski trails of Sunday River Resort are in the background
SCOTT ANDREWS PHOTO

Even before the arrival of today's storm, Carter's had great cover, especially on the Farwell Mountain trails, and the X-C ski center plans to stay open at least through the end of the month. Check conditions by visiting Ski Maine's website.

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