Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest

Popular winter activities include snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, and ice fishing.

Although there are few designated snowmobile trails, roads that are inaccessible to other vehicles at this time of year offer many miles of ready-made trails. Since this mode of transposition affords access into relatively lightly-used backcountry, special efforts should be made to cause as little impact as possible.

There are cross-country skiing trails near Greer and Alpine, but this activity is by no means confined to these two areas. Ski rentals are available in Alpine, Forest Lakes Estates, Greer, Springerville, Hannagan Meadow, and the Lakeside-Pinetop area.

A small downhill ski operation is located near the community of Greer, and Sunrise Ski Area is located close by on the neighboring Ft. Apache Indian Reservation.

Ice fishing is a popular activity wherever it is cold enough for the lakes to freeze over, which varies with the weather from year to year. Big Lake, Crescent Lake, Willow Springs Lake, and Woods Canyon Lake usually freeze, but access roads are not cleared. Others such as Luna Lake and Nelson Reservoir have easy access but can't be relied upon to freeze over. Check with the local forest office for lake conditions.

Road and driving conditions are usually poor at this time of the year and drivers should be extra alert and cautious. Contact the local forest office for details on road and weather conditions. They can also provide more information on winter activities.