Am I right in thinking that this would be a great thing to do if downhill conditions weren't so great? That if it hasn't snowed in a while, for instance, or if there's been a freeze/thaw cycle, that the Nordic skiing would still be fine? Or is it just as important to have good snow quality as it is with downhill?
Um, no. I came to alpine from Nordic, and one of the main reasons I did so was moving to New England from Wisconsin. Alpine ski areas mostly have snowmaking capacity. Nordic areas mostly don't. Some do, but when they do, it's for a short/small skating loop. If you don't have good conditions for downhill skiing you won't have them for cross-country skiing. It's even worse because you can deal with icy conditions on the downhill slopes by using stiff skis with sharp edges, but unless you're using back-country skis for cross-country, you usually don't have metal edges at all. Also, with nordic skiing, any hill you ski down...you had to hike up with a pair of skinny plastic 200cm skis strapped to your feet, first. When it's icy, when there have been freeze-thaw cycles, when there hasn't been much snow lately - stick to the downhill runs.
In New England, and Wisconsin, the nordic season is at
least 1 month shorter than the downhill ski season. Maybe it was different Back In The Day, but in the last ten years, that's what we have.
None of this means I'm down on Nordic skiing. I have several pairs of cross-country skis, and when conditions are right there is just no comparison at all. You spend way more time communing with nature than you do at an alpine ski area. It's quieter, it's more mellow, it's a MUCH more serious physical workout. It's meditative. It's thrilling, too - there's nothing like piloting these ultra narrow, ultra long skis
with no edge down a hill and around a series of curves. Between the two, I regard downhill skiing as
much easier.
If I were going to make a recommendation for someone just getting into nordic skiing I'd say definitely go with skate-skiing. It's a more "natural" movement, it's more energy-efficient, you can cover more ground in less time, and nearly all of the touring centers have trails that are groomed with nice wide zones for the skaters.
If what you want, on the other hand, is a winter outdoor sport that you can do with the conditions really suck at the downhill areas, I heartily recommend snowshoeing. It burns nearly as many calories as cross-country skiing, you don't need a dedicated trail system (you don't with nordic, but it really helps if you have one) and thanks to the cleats and crampon-style arrangements on the base of the snowshoe, you can
definitely do it when it's icy, slushy, freeze/thaw, etc.
