6-8" of snow fell last night. The wet heavy snow did make a mess with significant branches and several trees across the trail. I was able to ski in some classic tracks on Maple, North Loop, Aspen and Easy return. Another skier skied in tracks down Oak. I was able to remove most of the branches and all but one tree on the route I skied. There were several wet spots that should be pretty solid tomorrow morning as the temps drop to low 20s. The base is 6" deep in most places but was very soft when I removed my skis to clear trees and branches which makes it not possible to groom. Get up early to enjoy the best conditions this time of year.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

We skated about 10k between 8:30 and 9:30. Conditions were firm and fast. Most of the trail still has a significant base but expect bare spots and ice patches. The fat bike trail was riding well too. Get out early to enjoy this rare spring treat.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

The skate decks on Maple, Oak, Balsam, Aspen East Loop, Little Joe and North Loop were groomed. I skied at 9:00 and by 11:00 the trails were getting soft. The snowshoe / fat bike trail had also been groomed and was riding well.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

Skated most trails this morning, there is still lots of snow. No recent grooming but plenty of base on 99% of the trail. Expect a few bare spots and some ice. Get out early while the temps are below 32F.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

Fair skiing this weekend at Afterhours. It could have been amazing had the trail been groomed, so that was a bummer. It was pretty rough and uneven after the warm weather and with some walkers and many deer on the trail recently. A few trails had ruts from equipment driven out last week when it was warm. We skate skied the whole trail system on Sunday. Lots of snow still, with 99.9+% coverage. Just 5-6 thin spots in the typical places exposed to too much sun. These spots are easy to ski carefully around or with a few steps you can walk across. No tracks were left to ski for classic (though enough snow present).

Photos:

(Cordell Manz)

I skied with my fish scale skis on Maple and Loop to 6 Corners and then back to the chalet on Loop, Oak and Easy Return. Just a few bare spots but most of the trail still has a 6" base. Unfortunately some equipment had also been driven on the section I skied but not on any of the other trails. There has not been any grooming for over a week. Expect occasional bare spots, some debris and ice patches. This weekend's cool down should help hold the snow for a while yet. The snowshoe/ fat bike trail looked pretty rough from foot traffic and hasn't been groomed in quite a while.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

Despite 55 degree temperatures, the firm base at After hours was holding up today. I skied Maple, River, Spruce, and Entry loops without encountering bare ground, soft base, or slush.

Photos:

(Peter Nordgren)

I skated the 18k race route at 9:00 am. The skate deck had been groomed yesterday on all trails except Red Pine and Nebagamon. By 10:30 it was getting slow. There is still excellent snow cover, plan to get out early.

Photos:

(Jon Jurek)

Spring has arrived in the northland this week. Thank goodness for skin skis which has revolutionized spring skiing in these parts. I arrived at the Brule ski trail at 12:30. The temp was 32 degrees. I did a loop around Sally's classic, red pine and the river trail. Some areas of track in the sun were a little sticky and areas in the shade still had powder. I had excellent grip and glide on my skin skis through out. There was very little debris in the track today however another bonus with skin skis is that you can ski over leaf debris and pine cones and nothing sticks to your skis. Hopefully we will be able to ski into April this year.

Photos:

(Gene Karwoski)

It was 10 degrees when I arrived at the Brule ski trail at 11am. The groomers had just groomed the red pine loop and I was able to ski virgin tracks. The red pine loop opens up along the Brule River with beautiful views of the river. I had a thin layer of violet power grip with swix VP45 over it which gave perfect grip and glide. With the windy conditions there was some leaf debris in sections of the trail that went through hardwood forest but overall excellent conditions on the Brule trail with as deep a snowpack that I can remember this time of the year. Get out and enjoy excellent conditions this weekend.

Photos:

(Gene Karwoski)