Conditions: Still thin but ok for skiing!
The Back 40, Skyline Trail, Tornado Alley, JD Gardens, Butler, and Bog were all rolled this morning. Snow making loop update is the 1K we have been working on is open until Sunday evening. We need to add additional snow in two areas when the Loppet races are over this weekend. We only anticipate closing it for Monday and have that 1K back open Tuesday morning. We will set tracks starting tomorrow morning on the snow making loop going forward. We have some super cold weather coming in this weekend which should help kick snow making into high gear. What a crazy winter! Thanks for your patience.

(Troy Tschida Winter Recreation Foreman, Minneapolis Parks and Recreation)

Conditions: Still pretty good.
I spent most of my time on the south side of the road from the snowmaking loop. The golf course still had pretty good coverage and was firm but not too hard, though in a few places it was rutted or had washer board humps starting to form. Bottineau way, AKA "tornado alley" and south of the tunnel had some bare spots and debris, as did Eloise Butler, but overall still quite skiable. Late afternoon the place was full of school kids, including Eloise Butler, making for a lively place. I returned to the snowmaking loop at dark, but was not able to ski as hard as snow conditions would have allowed because there were no lights.

(Lois Braun)

Conditions: Nice for skating on the stadium loop.
For my first ski of the year, I elected to do the stadium loop several times as it was well groomed with the man-made snow. I saw others venturing off to the surrounding trails, but I didn't want to take that risk with some of the reports for than snow. At any rate, the loop as nice if you want to ease into things. I saw them making snow this morning around 830, so with the favorable Wednesday and Friday forecast hopefully things get better all around.

(Paul Larson)

Conditions: Come to Wirth with a sense of adventure, and you will be rewarded! Today I skied from the main chalet to the Front 9 (Skyline Trail), Tornado Alley, JD Rivers, Eloise Butler, the Bog, and back to the Par 3 (Twin Lakes) section, plus the short section of the snow-making loop that is open... basically everything north of I-394 except the Judy and Hap loops. I don't remember being able to do that last year! I used "B" skis and only got a small scratch. As others have reported, the snow cover is very thin and grass is showing through much of the trails, but skate skiing is still very enjoyable and you can easily avoid ski damage. ( No official classic tracks, but plenty of man-made classic tracks.) The Bog section was my favorite - it had the best coverage in my opinion. There are a few curbs to jump, and some bumpy spots, but that adds to the fun. The Twin Lakes/Par 3 section was probably second best in coverage, followed by the Front 9 and JD Rivers and Tornado Alley being the lowest coverage.
Like I said, arrive at Wirth looking for a mix of an urban/forest skiing adventure, and you will have so much fun. Wirth is such a special place to ski - thanks to the groomers for doing the best they can with such little snow!

(Bill Oyler)

Conditions: Skated 11-1:00 today. Trails getting thinner. Skied Skyline, Tornado Alley, JD Garden, and the Back 40. Groomers have done a good job this year with the thin snow, not grooming too deep, but with usage and time there are quite a few spots you want to keep an eye out for and recommend B skis definitely. Still just a very small 0.5 km of man made open (stadium and first little climb). They had the snow guns blowing so hopefully more will open in a few days.
Lots of walkers on the trails again which is unfortunate. Would be nice if some cheap signs could be put out by the park mentioning the trail rules which could save grooming time.

Photos:

(Clayton Keim)

Conditions: packed, no classical tracks.
Early morning ski today around Wirth lake, then up to the golf course (sky line and bridge trails) via the connector. This was my fourth ski at Wirth since the snow last week, and it definitely feels like we're on the last legs. They were re-packing the golf course around 8:00 this morning. Heavy use the past few days has made a lot of slick spots, and there are many patches of grass/plants poking through.
But, if you like hills, South Wirth (Eloise Butler and the Quaking Bog areas), are still pretty decent.

(Sam Knuth)

Conditions: Groomed with fair conditions.
Went skiing around 4 this afternoon until dark. Went on the Back 40 and the Front 9 with a couple loops on each. Trail conditions on the Back 40 were fair to good, make sure to watch out for the fat bike crossing on the large hill in the back because the trail crossing almost creates a type of jump on the downhill. The Front 9 has some thin spots but they are easy to avoid. Great to see people skiing, snowshoeing, walking and generally enjoy the beautiful day.

(Joe Kane)

Conditions: Fair- pack with no classic tracks.
Skied the back 40, hap and Judy loop. Pretty good but thin coverage throughout - recommend b skis. Snow guns going on man made made loop!

Photos:

(Chris Torvi)

Conditions: Good! The bare minimum amount of snow, but it is enough!
Skied all the open Wirth trails from the Back 40 to Brownie Lake this morning. The snow coverage was surprisingly good. There were a few dirt clumps and curbs sticking through in Eloise Butler and near Wirth Beach, but otherwise the trail was nearly fully covered and nicely groomed for skate (no classic tracks anywhere). However, I wouldn't recommend "a" skis unless you're really careful. They do have a tiny snow making loop open (maybe 0.3K), but it's really nice not having to ski in tiny little circles!

(Mike Keyes)

Conditions: Trails are still in good condition and a small portion of the snowmaking loop is now open.
This morning we were able to open a very small portion of the man made snow loop, maybe .3K or so without classic tracks. We are very close to getting a larger portion open and should have it open the beginning of next week some time. We will begin setting tracks at that time. Please pay attention to signs marking snow making areas! The Back 40, Sky Line trail, Eloise Butler, and Bog trails are being packed again this morning. After that we are going to have to start limiting our maintenance due to low snow conditions. Thanks!

(Troy Tschida Winter Recreation Foreman, Minneapolis Parks and Recreation)