Conditions: Como is in pretty good condition all things considered - the glacier and the flat area near parking are very ski-able - hard, a little textured, but not bad. The trail on the north side of the 8th fairway is pretty rough in 2 sizable areas (40% grass with ice and crusty snow for the rest) you can ski it but it is pretty ugly. I suggest creating a return on the south side of the 8th fairway along the trees. Under the bridge is ok, and most of the rest of the trail (north side) is fair (good given the weather) - the hill back to the bowl looked rough, (did not go back to the bowl) - there is one other rough spot, but that is easy to get around. The snow off the trail is also easy to ski - 2" of powder.
There is a 5" diameter open drain pipe in the trail at the far SW end - between the 7th & 8th fairways, about 1/3 into the trail on the inside of a turn. Easy to avoid if you are looking but a dangerous situation that has been there for all the grooming so far. Should be covered or better, the trail should be moved a little to the west.

(Karl Dewahl)

Conditions: Mostly good, some thin spots.
Skied this morning with a local high school team. Minimal ice and the new snow made it easy to get an edge skating. No classic tracks seen. The trails are mostly covered but grass is showing through on the heavily used sections of the trail. Be prepared to get slowed down by grass and watch out for the asphalt golf cart trails that are poking through here and there. Recommend using B skis and getting out before warmer weather.

(Sandy Schreyer)

Conditions: Rock ski conditions.
Snow recon stop 1 of 5: I skate skied the loop around the Glacier. Lots of grass showing, but there's a nearly continuous icy base on the south side, near the zoo. The light snow on top gave me a nice fast workout.

Photos:

(David Byrne, Minnesota Rovers Outdoors Club)

Conditions: The classic track was filling in with snow and leaves at 2:00 pm. Even though the skate deck was blowing in, it was still good but probably slowing down.
I waxed a friend's old skis today so I had to go try them out on a groomed trail. Como was the closest. I wanted to hear what the fish scales sounded like going down hill, all 80 inches of scales between the two skis. Obviously these retro classics, a narrow touring ski, have zero for speed but they climb like woodies! There was the expected limited glide in the clean or partially filled track. The leaves didn't slow things down any. On the downhill corduroy the skis turned and handled well. They sounded like a distant tornado siren. Skaters still have a good deck but its mostly over with for classic track skiers. Thank you Como groomers for a great effort on very thin snow!

(Jeff Bolte)

Conditions: Groomed classic tracks, 90% good/10% fair to poor; skate deck looked great.
Skied at 8:30 this morning, and the trails had been groomed already. The classic tracks weren't quite as pristine as I thought they would be, having skated the night before and eyeing them eagerly, but they were plenty good for November ski. Grass shows through in predictable places, and leaves are starting to fill the more wind-swept areas, but all in all, a great workout. Thanks to the groomers!

(Michael Kuhne)

Conditions: Rolled and tracked. Crunchy with occasional wind-blown snow.
Skied at 6:00 pm and was pleasantly surprised to see good classic tracks on most of the trail (I'll pull out the classic skis tomorrow!). The skate deck was nice and wide and remarkably even for how little snow we have had. Mad props to the Como groomers - thanks!

(Michael Kuhne)

Conditions: Excellent but getting windblown.
I skied around noon and suspect I was there shortly after the groomer made a pass. The skate deck was excellent and the tracks even looked really good. The only thin spots on the skate deck were under the bridge and the top of the descent off the back bowl towards the bridge but easily avoidable. The classic tracks showed a little grass in a few areas. An hour after I started the tracks were getting drifted in fairly well.

Photos:

(Ben Mullin)

Como is groomed! A pretty nice skate deck and some really windblown classic tracks. No bare spots that I could see, although the base is very thin and there is some grass poking through in spots. Definitely good enough for B skis.

(Elias Anoszko)

Conditions: Groomed (somewhat), icy in parts, wind blown in other parts.
Skied at dusk just as a high school team was leaving. Saw snowmobile tracks on the trails, so I assume the trails were rolled? No classic track. It is a little bit like open range skiing at Como these days with skied-in tracks going in every direction. It can be fun, but it will be nice when we get some more snow.

(Michael Kuhne)

Conditions: Wonderful! No bare spots. Plenty of cover for classical and skate.
Skied for about an hour today from 2-3pm on classical skis. Followed some tracks and made my own at other times. Sunny and rather pleasant with only what seemed like a breeze.

(Stanley Sledz)