Four inches of new snow, best skiing of the year! All trails groomed for classic and skating.
Rentals at discounted prices.

(George Hovland)

Conditions: Very nice skiing.
Skated the whole thing today and everything is in really good shape. New grooming yesterday resulted in the 5K to be in very good to excellent shape and the 10K to be good to very good. My only knocks on the 10K are the first 2-3K are a bit uneven (not due to lack of snow though) and chunky in places but with the warmer temps and more people skiing, should even out. The later part of the 10K (from Check Pulse on) is better. Got out there early under bluebird skies and almost had the place to myself. You gotta lover early spring skiing! George was all smiles watching the kids ski and setting out food for Tour DuLuth.

(Tom Heinitz)

Conditions: Bad, not groomed recently.
Snowflake has been great all year, but it is in tough shape right now. I think a good grooming could make a huge difference, but it hasn't been lately (maybe a week?). I skated, but the classic track looked more enjoyable. The skate deck is rock hard and rutted in many places. About 2 km of the 5k had been groomed, I assume for kidski, and was much better. Definitely needs some grooming attention, or snow!

(Matt Ryan)

Conditions: Not terrible, not good.
I suppose when compared to other trails in the area, Snowflake was OK. They have pretty good snow cover. But, it had been heavily used prior to my arrival in the afternoon, making for a very rutted skate deck and a poor wiggly washed out track. It was impossible to ski relaxed. Every moment was spent rigidly controlling my skis from following some renegade rut. So, it beats skiing on a lake, and far outshines skiing on dirt, but the conditions couldn't be classified as "good.".

(Shane Parks)

Conditions: Wonderful groomed trails.
Skate skied the 5k after dark and the snow was fabulous, firm but plenty of snow for good control, reasonably fast. Thanks, George. Bring a headlamp if after dark.

(Mark Knutson)

The trail was not freshly groomed but still slick. Skied Georges 10k twice and worked on flat Ski. Today was a great day for skiing with the 25 degree day and 10 mph wind. Keep the prayers for more snow.

(Scott Cummings)

Conditions: Great coverage, new snow.
Skated all the trails this morning and everything is in really good condition. Used my good skis and had no problems whatsoever. The deck is evening out with each little snow we get. Classic track looked good. A tad shallow on parts of the 5K and better on the 10K when I jumped in on the downhills. No new grooming but it didn't affect the ski with a good edge and an inch of lake effect fluff accumulating as I was skiing. It was amazingly fast with Fastwax teal. The 5K is firmer and more skied-in and 10K in better condition (as usual). After a grooming it should be fabulous. I talked with George after and thanked him for the trail and his commitment to keeping Snowflake going after the sale. Duluth skiing would not be nearly as good as it is now without Snowflake.

(Tom Heinitz)

On the day its announced that Snowflake is quite likely sold, I had probably the best skate of the year at Snowflake Thursday around noon. Temp close to freezing, an inch of new snow, Fast Wax red paste gave great glide, Beth and I both agreed. The new snow was fast, and was sufficient to give all the edge you would need, even this old guy let it all out down the big hills like the one that ends in "Wiggles", Geno's Jump", and "Hovland's Hill". According to my records, this is my 20th year as a Member at Snowflake, and the 15 km of trails there have given me over 16,000 km of winter fun. Thanks George and Jane! Yes, that is a shadow on a couple of the pictures, a gorgeous day to boot.

Photos:

(Tim Holst)

Conditions: Amazingly good and tracked throughout!
Classic skied the 5 and 10km loop and couldn't believe how much snow the trails had. Just a spot here and there with weeds sticking thru. Almost no dirt or ice, and really nice over all. Track in pretty good shape throughout.

(Carol Koos)

Conditions: Good, considering recent conditions.
I classic skied the 5 K this afternoon. Reasonably good classic track with only a few icy patches, and some debris in the track....no rock/ gravel. I used good skis. Skate deck level and hard packed with enough thin snow topping to make it not icy/hard. Thanks to Dave Johnson/groomers for a good job!

(Dave Arvold)