What I thought would be a quick out and back on the Dry Creek Trail turned into a tour of a few trails as the conditions were too good to stop skiing. From Dry Creek I picked up the Pioneer Trail, then the north end of Deer Creek. I trudged up the hill by the Visitor Center, finishing on the Mitigwaki Loop. Trails on the first part of my ski were newly tracked and just slightly soft, but very nice.

(Kris Backlund)

Enjoyed freshly groomed trails on the River Access Road, Mondale River Trail, and Old Logging Trail. Shortened the route a bit by parking at the top of the road. Tracks were generally quite good. There are some spots on the River Trail where dirt or debris has worked its way to the surface, but nothing that necessitated stepping out of the track. Watched the full Wolf Moon rise above the St. Croix at the Nevers overlook.

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(Kris Backlund)

Skied Deer Creek Loop, Mondale River Trail and the Old Logging Trail. Trails are well-groomed and track set is nice. Lots of wolf/coyote/fox and deer tracks on Deer Creek, but didn't actually see anything other than squirrels and swans.

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(Rita Minnichsoffer)

Classic ski on the Pioneer trail, Deer creek trail in the late afternoon. Trails were recently groomed for classic. The last snow we had over the weekend spruced up the trail conditions, quite nice.

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(John Grund)

Skied the Old logging trail, River trail and Mitigawi loop. The trail was freshly groomed this morning, after about 3-4 inches overnight of fresh powder made for pretty good conditions. Really nice day out. Not all trails had been groomed yet by about 3 in the afternoon, specifically the Deer Creek loop.

(Ben Mouw)

The Park reported flat packing with no track set, so skated Pioneer, Deer Creek, and Dry Creek. A rough, icy base, but just enough new snow on top to make it manageable. I had to shorten my stride and use a lot of pole for balance with the rough conditions, but couldn't pass on above freezing temps in January. There were a lot of what I thought were wolf tracks using the Deer Creek trail, then got a good look at one as it ran across the trail in front of me through the grass on the very north end! Abut 30 swans on Deer Creek, and a few more on the river downstream of the shelter.

(Bryan Lueth)

Today's route was nearly 7 miles: Dry Creek, northeast portion of Pioneer, north end of Deer Creek Loop, Walter F. Mondale River Trail, River Terrace Loop with a single track set, Old Logging Trail, finishing on the paved portion of the Mitigwaki Loop. Overall, pretty good conditions, and a really nice day for skiing. Wooded trails were definitely the best. Some spots had overlapping ski tracks from different grooming passes, which sometimes made it hard to follow the track. The track on the River Terrace Loop was variable due to an overly packed base from hiking and snowshoe traffic. There were a few areas with exposed dirt, which were easy to get around. Just a single swan near Nevers, and two swans flying overhead. Great to see the sun today!

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(Kris Backlund)

Waxless classics on Deer Creek loop starting from the trail center. Overall very good track, some occasional dirt, especially under the pines by the shelter. Parking lot was nearly full, but didn't encounter many others except some congestion on the hill. Over 50 swans on Deer Creek, and deer along the river.

(Bryan Lueth)

The trails were groomed well in most areas. There were areas where the classic tracks were not set however it was a pleasant ski.

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(Tanya Piatz-Sandberg)

I skied the Dry Creek Trail for a second day in a row, and a portion of the Pioneer Loop. These trails were regroomed between yesterday and today. Conditions were good throughout, with scattered areas that had a bit of dirt or leaf litter. Easy enough to get around. Heard swans from the Pioneer, presumably in the Deer Creek backwaters.

(Kris Backlund)