Trail Detail
Notes
The Balsam Branch trails are open to the public for no charge. When there is snow, tracks are set by Polk County Park and volunteers. The trailhead parking area is always well plowed. Toilet facilities are available at the nearby Kennedy Environmental center but no coffee shop or warming facility. Roughly 4K of lighted trails added in 2010.Trail Reports
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Monday, March 16, 2026
Morning
posted: 2026-03-16 11:08:03
Grooming [ Trails Open: All, ]
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This morning we groomed the beginner, green and blue loops for classic and skate. Conditions of the trails are good but I'm sure they will be a bit soft. The lights are still on in the evenings. May be a good time to go out before we loose the trail to spring weather.
(Greg Hoelscher)
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Saturday, February 28, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-03-01 07:16:30
Observation
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It was surprising to see the trails were still snow covered after the week of warm weather but they are a sheet of ice. No grooming has been done recently and snowshoe trails were thinly covered with snow and also very icy.
(Jess Dunn)
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Sunday, February 8, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-02-08 17:12:45
Firsthand: Classic [ Trails Open: All, ]
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Tuesday, February 3, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-02-03 15:31:08
Grooming [ Trails Open: All, ]
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All trails, both skate and classic, have been groomed this afternoon. The skate lane looks good. The classic track looks good, but due to hardness, a deep track wasn't able to be set. All looks very nice.
(Greg Hoelscher)
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Sunday, February 1, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-02-02 00:16:53
Firsthand: Freestyle [ Trails Open: All, ]
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Trail conditions were excellent. They had not been packed after the morning's 1 1/2 to 2 inches of snow but it ran fine in the flats. I struggled on the uphills but that was not surprising after a 3 1/2 week layoff. Unfortunately I fatigued myself going over the first section of the blue trail three times after I convinced myself that I had missed a turn (I hadn't), so the frequent uphills on my return on the green trail's section from B8 to G13 went really slow for me. Reality is it always has. It took me over 67 minutes to do 5.1 miles.
(Keith Carlson)
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Saturday, January 31, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-01-31 19:55:47
Grooming [ Trails Open: All, ]
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Scratched all trails today. Skate lane should be good. Haven't been able to set new classic track because of hardness. However, they are fairly good shape except for leaf debris. All is very firm but very skiable. Looking forward to a little snow.
(Greg Hoelscher)
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Friday, January 30, 2026
Evening
posted: 2026-01-30 19:29:53
Firsthand: Freestyle [ ]
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Skate skied at sundown on the lit loops. It looked like all trails were open. Overall, a very good base. Some areas had a few leaves to avoid, and a few patches were a bit icy with minimal corduroy, but it was a fast and beautiful ski. Classic tracks looked good too.
(Tom Stormont)
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Tuesday, January 27, 2026
Evening
posted: 2026-01-28 10:05:37
Firsthand: Freestyle [ Trails Open: All, ]
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Skied all trails at 4:00 pm. Trails are in great condition. Fresh corduroy. Good skis. Thank you, groomers!
(Ron Roeser)
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Tuesday, January 27, 2026
Afternoon
posted: 2026-01-27 13:37:54
Grooming [ Trails Open: All, ]
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Groomed all the skate lanes today. Still not enough new snow to reset classic track, but the old track is fairly consistent and skiing well. Some oak leaves in tracks.
(Adam Greeson)
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Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Morning
posted: 2026-01-21 15:06:22
Firsthand: Classic [ Trails Open: All, ]
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The trails had fresh snow on them and were recently groomed. They are in nice shape for skating as well as classic skiing. I used the classic grooves and they were in good shape. Enjoy the trails.
(Thomas Sirek)
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