Guide Duck Creek
Groomed ski loops, snowshoe trails, and two overlooks on the rim above Navajo Lake, four miles from the village
Deer Hollow is the closest groomed cross-country skiing to the inn, and the easiest winter outing in the area to get right. The Forest Service keeps more than 1,300 acres of meadow and spruce-aspen forest closed to snowmobiles, the Cedar Mountain Nordic Ski Club grooms the loops, and the plowed lot sits right on Highway 14 four miles west of Duck Creek Village. You can finish breakfast at the inn and be clipping into skis fifteen minutes later.
The trails climb gently from the parking area at 9,510 feet to a pair of overlooks on the plateau rim, one above Navajo Lake and one over the black lava field, then fan out into a network of ski-only loops named for the rock layers under your feet. Summer is quieter: no grooming, no signs to speak of, just wildflower meadows and aspen groves that most visitors drive past on the way to the lake.
Header photo: a groomed ski trail on the Dixie National Forest, US Forest Service, public domain.
Every trail carries a colored marker, and the color tells you who it is for. Match your activity to the color and the whole system makes sense.
The ski-only loops are named for the plateau itself: Claron, for the pink limestone that makes Cedar Breaks; Basalt and Dolomite, for the lava and dolomite that cap it; and three draws called Navajo, Virgin, and Kolob. The multi-use trails on the far side of the area carry bike names (Hardtail, Chain, Grinder, Downshift, Endo, Bunny Hop, Fork), a hint of what the fat-bike crowd gets up to out there.
Start at the kiosk and pick a loop by how much you want. The Pebble Loop is the shortest, a few hundred meters around the meadow beside the lot with a spur to the Lava Field Overlook, and it is where first-timers should spend their first half hour. The Boulder Trail climbs from the lot to the Navajo Lake Overlook at 9,600 feet, roughly a mile each way with the lake spread out below the rim; it is multi-use, so expect snowshoe prints alongside the ski track.
Beyond that the blue ski-only network takes over. The Hollow Trail and Sinkhole Trail run the length of the area as the spine, and the Claron, Dolomite, Basalt, and Outback trails hang off it as loops through open meadow and spruce edge. String several together and you can ski for hours without repeating a segment. The Forest Service counts about 23 miles of trail in total; the ski club's recent grooming reports put the regularly groomed portion nearer 11 miles, so treat the outer loops as bonus terrain that depends on snow depth and volunteer time.
Grooming is classic track, and the terrain is rolling rather than steep. That makes Deer Hollow a genuine beginner area, but the altitude is real: you are skiing at 9,500 to 10,000 feet, and the first climb will remind you. Go slower than you think you need to on day one.
Snowshoers use the yellow multi-use trails and should stay beside, never in, the set ski track. The best short snowshoe is the same one skiers rate highest: the Boulder Trail to the Navajo Lake Overlook, with the Lava Field Overlook as a second stop on the way back. The Forest Service counts about 1.6 miles of dedicated snowshoe and fat bike trail reaching the two overlooks.
Fat bikes are welcome on the Boulder and Pebble trails only. Bring your own; there are no rentals at the trailhead, and none in the village that we can point you to with confidence. The nearest outfitters are in Cedar City.
Deer Hollow is one of the few groomed Nordic areas in southern Utah that welcomes dogs, and it does it well: a purpose-built dog-friendly ski trail (the Aspen Trail, marked purple) plus the two overlook trails, Boulder and Pebble. Everything else is off limits to dogs so that the classic track stays clean. If you are staying in one of our pet-friendly cabins, this is your winter outing.
The Cedar Mountain Nordic Ski Club, working with the Cedar City Ranger District and Utah State Parks, grooms the loops roughly weekly through the season and posts grooming reports on its website. Check those before you drive, especially early and late in the season and after a warm spell. The Forest Service lists the ski season as mid-December to mid or late March, but the meadows can hold skiable snow outside that window in a big year and lose it early in a thin one.
Highway 14 is the real gatekeeper. The road is plowed and open all winter, but it climbs to nearly 9,900 feet between Cedar City and the village, and storms close it for hours at a time. Coming from the inn you are only four miles away on the high, flat part of the road, which is the easy end. Check our Highway 14 snow report and UDOT before you leave, carry chains or have winter tires, and turn around if the road is worse than you expected.
When the snow goes, Deer Hollow stops being a managed recreation area and goes back to being ordinary national forest: the same meadows and aspen groves, the same overlooks, with no grooming, no kiosk map to speak of, and hardly anyone around. That is the appeal. The winter trail corridors turn into faint meadow paths, and the loop hikers track on AllTrails as the Deer Hollow Loop runs about 3.8 miles with under 300 feet of climbing, rated easy, and praised mostly for its quiet and its wooded meadows.
The honest caveat from those same hikers is that the summer route is not well signed and the footing is uneven in places. Carry a map or a phone with the route downloaded, expect boggy ground near the sinkholes in June, and treat it as a wander rather than a destination hike. The Navajo Lake Overlook is the payoff and is worth the walk on its own.
Timing matters more than route. Wildflowers fill the meadows from early July into August, the aspens turn in the last week of September into early October (see our fall colors guide for the Highway 14 timing), and mornings are cool enough at 9,500 feet that a fleece is welcome in any month. Birders come for the aspen and spruce edge. Elk and mule deer use the meadows at dawn and dusk.
Motorized riders should know that Deer Hollow's non-motorized rule is a winter designation; in summer the normal Forest Service travel rules apply, and the designated OHV routes are covered in our ATV guide. The meadow paths here are not an OHV trail system.
Deer Hollow is a morning, not a day. Ski or snowshoe for two or three hours, then drive back to the village for lunch, or carry on west to Cedar City for supplies and a warm meal. In winter it pairs naturally with an afternoon by the fire, an evening of stargazing, or a second day at Brian Head for downhill. See our full winter guide for the rest of the season, and compare our rooms and cabins for the base.
September 2026
We live four miles from the trailhead and ski it through the season. Distances, elevations, trail names, and marker colors come from the Forest Service brochure map; grooming and season details from the ski club and the Forest Service site page. Conditions change weekly in winter, so check the sources below before you drive.
What guests ask before their first visit.
About 4 miles west on Highway 14, roughly a 10-minute drive. The plowed parking loop is on the south side of the highway, between the road and the rim above Navajo Lake, 22 miles east of Cedar City.
The Forest Service lists no fee or pass for the area. Grooming is done by the volunteer Cedar Mountain Nordic Ski Club, which accepts donations to keep the trails free and open, so if you enjoy your day, that is the place to say thanks.
No. There are no rentals at the trailhead and none in Duck Creek Village that we can point you to with confidence. Bring your own gear or rent in Cedar City on the way up.
Yes, on three trails: the purple-marked Aspen Trail, which was built for skiers with dogs, and the yellow Boulder and Pebble trails to the overlooks. Dogs are not allowed on the blue ski-only loops, and all waste must be packed out.
No. The entire 1,300-acre area is closed to snowmobiles and other motorized travel in winter. Snowmobile routes on the Markagunt Plateau start elsewhere; see our snowmobile guide.
The Forest Service gives mid-December to mid or late March. The meadows sit at 9,500 to 10,000 feet, so a big snow year can stretch that at both ends and a thin one can shorten it. Check the ski club grooming report before you drive.
Yes, quietly. The winter trail corridors become meadow paths, and the Deer Hollow Loop is an easy 3.8-mile walk to the Navajo Lake Overlook with wildflowers in July and aspen color in late September. There is no grooming or signage in summer, so carry a map.
Book a room or cabin at Duck Creek Village Inn. Ski Deer Hollow in the morning, warm up by the fire in the afternoon, and watch the snow fall from your window.
