Skied a 4k loop of the Gold Trail at Giants Ridge Sunday morning at 9AM. This loop was groomed and maintained as the State Meet course this year, versus the traditional use of the Silver Trail. Temps were still below freezing and the trail was icy outside of the groomed center strip on the first uphill half of the loop. The trail was fully groomed on the descents, which was vital given the otherwise icy conditions. The trail had little debris, but did have a handful of bare spots, which were easily avoidable. Kudos to the groomers on the conditions given the mid-50's melt we had the day prior. There was track set for classic, but looked to be all ice in the morning hours. Very thrilled to have found natural snow up north! The website notes that the Gold, Bronze, Cedar and Oslo trails are all groomed and open. The State Meet course was the best by far given the need to maintain it for the race. I skied a short section of the Bronze course going south off the beautiful corduroy of the groomed Alpine base, but turned around before the first major downhill as the center of the track was very icy.

Photos:

(Jon Severson)

Warm temps mean the trails are changing by the hour. I skied Oslo this morning and would not recommend it unless you enjoy walking along the powerline section. Summit trail was in good shape yesterday and Bronze trail is skiable except for a hill at the 2km mark. Giants Ridge staff are putting in a huge amount of effort to pile snow on the State Meet course.

(Mark Bushinski)

Skied the state courses with a teammate who made it to state. Silver (Skate Course) is starting to become bare. I’m not too positive that the course will be perfect like it normally is for state. A few grass spots throughout but otherwise a decent base. They will have to do some shoveling in those spots with grass. [ Note: The courses are not the standard State Meet courses this year and will be about 4K. Official course maps have not been published yet. --Ed. ]

Photos:

(Hugh Witzmann)

Fabulous conditions during my 11-1:30 ski. The trails had been groomed that morning and provided a secure edging and an extraordinary glide. Everyone was so happy. Today provided a perfect balance between warmth and sun for comfort and snow that wanted to be skied. The classic tracks were very fast on the downhills, and mostly well defined throughout. I heard no complaints from the classic skiers and many of them were really hauling speed on the climbs as well. A day I wish I could have skied for hours.

Photos:

(Michael Wilke)

I skied Summit, Bronze, Silver and Northern Lights and all were in great condition. Silver and N.L. were freshly groomed and Summit and Bronze were still good from yesterday’s grooming. They have a lot of snow here.

Photos:

(Cheryl DuBois, Vakava Race Team)

Yesterday most trails were transformed and ungroomed but today they had groomed the entire system and it was wonderful! They still have a lot of snow here. Hopefully it will hold out for H.S. State meet. Watch the temps and trail reports. There still might be some decent skiing up here before the end of season.

(Cheryl DuBois, Vakava Race Team)

Great conditions at Giant’s Ridge. Skate skied Oslo and Bronze and found corduroy everywhere, classic tracks were laid down. Just beautiful conditions.

Photos:

(Jose Manuel Benitez)

Excellent conditions at Giants Ridge today. The skating deck was firm with just a bit of give. Gold and Cedar loops freshly groomed. Silver had seen some use but still great.

Photos:

(Steve Squillace)

A great day to be kicking for fun on Atomic skin skis. Moist snow came down the whole afternoon and fresh pow on the trail provided a low impact yet surprisingly fast track. 95% was breaking trail, as both skiers I saw were skating. The kick was just dyno on the Bronze, Oslo, and Biwabik Spur trails. What a day to climb. And descend. Plenty of both on the route I took.

(Dale Vaillancourt)

I took to the trails after ski practice on Friday evening, to find Thursday's fresh snow not groomed in anywhere as of then. My hopes were high, that I would find some fresh grooming / classic tracks on Saturday morning, but from 9-11 am, there wasn't any sign of a refresh happening on any of the trails. The Cedar was devoid of any tracks as well the lower Gold. The Summit, NL, Bronze, Laurentian, Wynne Creek all had old skied in tracks, and same for the skate deck. At 11:30 am, the team and I hit the Silver system, to find the skate deck was snow covered as well. The stadium is the only place that had fresh cord and tracks.

(Cheri Johnson)