Shear-Pin just reported in that he and Chainsaw had just finished their roll in the darkness. They also reported that the tracks laid down by the Old Coach looked plenty good. Enjoy!

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

The boys, old men mostly, have been busy. Our 2-4 predicted inches turned into 2x4 actual inches of new snow yesterday. Unlike during times of lean snow, the Trail Crew has found new energy. Ancient One and a new rookie groomer, dubbed The Natural, grooming like he has been doing it for the past 3 decades, rolled the first 6 midday. That is about the max we can handle at any one time and even then it is a wrestling match with the snow, but fun none the less. We finally got Taxi back into the rotation, leading the Lineman to roll the late evening shift to widen and get some more air out of the snow. Expect a soft trail with roller humpty-bumps until we can run the screens, likely Saturday evening. The Old Coach has a break today from running section meets and will lay down some tracks for us. Enjoy!

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

It was a nice soft ride on top of a firm base, which were perfect conditions for this seasons maiden voyage on these wobbly, old knees. The skis I grabbed out of the corner to wax had a 25th anniversary Berkie sticker, my first. How time flies. The skis were still fast, but I can't say the same for me. The trail crew is chomping at the bit, hoping for more fresh grooming supplies. Enjoy, it has been a long wait.

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

Three new inches of fluffy snow, rolled and ready for what should be a very nice Wednesday ski. Ancient One just reported in that he and Babe had just finished their 8mph curb to curb roll of all trails. Grooming plans: New tracks will be set after the Thursday snow. Enjoy if you can.

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

I loaded up Babe this morning and we headed out to check the trails and groom if conditions warranted. The groomable snow on the skate trails held up much better than expected, surviving the traffic, warmth and drizzle, mostly. We pulled the Godzilla screens to scratch up the skate deck. In most areas, there should be enough traction for some ok/decent skate skiing. Definitely B skis, as there are now several small thin spots where the screens are likely picking up and scattering a few small bits of the earth. Watch for a couple small patches of bare asphalt on the Prairie Loop. If my wheels were younger, I would be out skiing now. Speeds will likely be a little on the lickity split side until we get more snow. On Saturday afternoon, the Engineer brought out the track setter and laid down a few k of "Playdough Fun Factory" tracks in the warm snow that has since firmed/iced up. Enjoy with appropriate caution.

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

Amazing, splendid and perfect conditions. Thank you so much groomers. These are some of the most fun skate trails around. I had my best ski all year. I said B skis just because there were getting to be a few areas where ground was exposed as more people made laps. Mostly be careful near the parking lot where there is asphalt under the trail. Wash pond flats had a few bits of dirt but really it was 98% fantastic so you can use the good skis if you pay attention in those few areas - I did without issue.

(Peter Aggen)

Shear-Pin and Refuge Guy are out pulling the medium screens for our Saturday skiing pleasure. Ancient One is predicting his "plenty good" rating for your Saturday morning ski. We are hoping for only a partial meltdown Sunday and a little snow on Monday in hopes we can string together a few days of decent skiing. Enjoy, it has been a long time coming.

(Dave Anderson)

Headed for woodland trails today to try to get some shelter from the wind. Windchill was not too bad in the woods. Most challenging part was skating the cold, loose snow. I'm sure it'll be great after a few more grooming passes and a little warmer weather, but it was a lot of work today. Coverage was great and I switched to my A skis without issue. I probably should have done classic but I didn't want to switch boots and get my feet cold.

(Peter Aggen)

Four new inches of fluffy, seemingly rare, real snow, rolled curb to curb and ready to ski. Due to the elementary grooming conditions, I was permitted to accompany Chainsaw on a daylight grooming run. Babe made a third pass around the outer loop after we finished. It was a great morning to ride the Skandics. The sky was bright blue, the air crisp and seeing the world covered with a coating of almost blinding fresh white brought back memories of winters gone by. I stopped counting deer at 30, one less than the number of years the Trail Crew has been tending the trails at Woodlands. We will plan to run the screens Friday evening and will hopefully have some fun skiing for our ski friends on the weekend. Enjoy, at last.

(Dave Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

About 2 inches loose snow over icy base. The flat stretches are comfortable, uphills are tricky as pushing on edge can reveal the ice. The blacktop trail sections show some scrapping to asphalt. Overall worth getting out to ski, but I kept to flatter trails such as Poplar Loop, North Mickey and Wash Pond Flats. Saw one other skier, one hiker on walking trail, and 3 whitetail deer. So things are starting to get back to normal at Woodlands.

(Dean Kleinhans)