Kudos to the hard working groomers for creating an awesome firm classic track and pretty darn smooth skate deck on the 5k and special k! When we got there they were inside sweating after working on the 10k for hours! Today was our new puppies first time skijoring and she stayed out of the tracks the whole time!

Photos:

(Eve Graves)

Classic track was set on the 5K and SpecialK today. Also ran the Ginzu with knives down to smooth and level the trails, with good results. Still soft surface, but getting harder by the hour. Beginner oval at the stadium was groomed with 2 sets on classic track and a skate lane. The Pond Oval is closed due to unsafe ice.

Photos:

(John Graham)

Kudos to John and the Snowflake grooming team. The 5 k was surprisingly nice today; despite the massive snow totals the trail was firm and with repeated passes it was flattening nicely. Snow was abrasive and somewhat slow but that will change soon. No tracks by late afternoon, classic skiing was a challenge. The 8 k was not groomed yet, as expected.

(Paul Windberg)

The snow is transforming and packing-down. Today, we further compacted and rolled SpecialK, then did six side-to-side grooming rins with the Ginzu, knives up. Produced a decent skate deck, still soft but much better than this morning's. Lots of skiers are helping by skiing the snow in. Started to set a classic track, but had a breakage in the track-setter; I purchased the needed hardware, we'll fix it in the morning, and plan to have a track set by early afternoon. Then, on to the Perimeter loop! Thank you Skiers, for your encouraging words and enthusiasm the past two days!

Photos:

(John Graham)

Wow, we have 22" of powder and drifts to 30" on the trails! Today we spent 6 1/2 hours compacting the 5K and SpecialK with the sleds, then did multiple runs with the roller/compactor. The 5K is now groomed for skating and open for classic skiing on the right side. The deck is still soft, and snow too loose for setting a track. Tomorrow we will try and run the 5K with the Ginzus and set a track. Next step is to groom the SpecialK, open the Bi-Loop, then the Perimeter Loop.

Photos:

(John Graham)

Post-blizzard, most Duluth roads are still unplowed, our access road, driveway, and parking lots are buried, and the Groomers are snowed-in at home. Thus, Snowflake is Closed today. Members who want to bust trail on skis or snowshoes may do so. We will update our progrss when we can start re-opening trails.

Photos:

(John Graham)

First grooming of the season was a bit complicated by the sheath of ice that had formed on most hills after last weekend's rain: we hooked-up the machines but couldn't pull them up the hills! The workaround was to run the trails multiple times with sleds only, to compact the snow, which worked and gave us the purchase to do multiple runs with the roller and Ginzu. By sunset, the 5K was groomed for skating. This groomed snow is not deep enough to set a classic track but classic skiers are welcome to ski the right side of the trail. We got several sled runs on the "10K", which will be called the "8K" from now on, as we had to revise the trail this summer due to loss of some land. The 8K is OK for classic ski trailbusting but not for skating. We are taking Thanksgiving off, but the trails are open to members and their guests. We will get the 8K rolled and groomed for skating on Friday. Past Snowflake skiers are probably aware that I lean conservatively about "Ski Rating" and "Trails Open". All of our trails are open for classic skiing right now, I just don't up the rating until they are properly groomed. Happy Thanksgiving!

Photos:

(John Graham)

Thank you to the groomers for setting the tracks at Snowflake (I talked to John who said they had been out for more than 6 hours yesterday grooming)! The 5k is open for skating and I had a lovely ski late yesterday afternoon. It's really pretty good for a first ski--just a little soft given the conditions, but definitely worth going. I think there was only one other skier before me.
I called the Snowflake line and they are open Thanksgiving so I plan to go out in a couple hours for another great ski. They plan to groom the 8k (formerly 10k) on Friday for skate, so I'll likely be out again if I can get there. Enjoy!

(Nathan Holst)

Summer prep is done, ground is freezing up, grooming equipment is ready. Flirtatious flurries early this week were sufficient to cover the ground, but only ski-able by one skier: George Hovland (picture), skied a section of the 5K on Wednesday, proving again that old skiers can be bold skiers! Duluth East Nordic began workouts at Snowflake last Monday. The chalet is open 7 am - 6 pm M-F. Members are welcome to use the wax-room during that time, and the SkiErgs are available until 4 pm. Regular hours will begin when the snow comes. Season Pass memberships are discount priced, until Nov 30th.

Photos:

(John Graham)