These are the days that make winter special! Sunny, mild, no wind and great conditions. The snow-making trails were pretty superb, with well-set tracks throughout. The Skyline Trail was also in very good shape for both skating and classical. I also skied Tornado Alley which was good, the Hwy. 55 underpass was thin but OK to ski on, JD Gardens connector trail also fine. The only area with just a slight amount of debris and thinner snow depth was the west side of Wirth Lake (Jar Hill) but it was still OK. Lots of high schoolers, families and other folks out enjoying the trails; the Chalet overflow parking lot was virtually full at 3pm. Note: Trail 18 was closed and the short meadow loop on the Green Meadow/Twin Lakes trail was not groomed; I did a short trek on one of the Judy trails but it was sort of icy and not as good as the rest of the trails.

(Dave Carlson)

Great shape today! Got out at 2 pm and some sort of group was mostly wrapping up. Tracks excellent just about everywhere, with a small exception where snow being made for the North Finger was drifting over the uphill tracks. Good day!

(Dan Hutjens)

Theodore Wirth was very busy this afternoon--even with the cold weather! It was great to see so many kids out skiing with the MN Youth Ski League! The snowmaking loops were in very good shape for classic and skate. It was nice getting back on the Twin Lake Loop again. The Judy Loop wasn't open.

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(Bill Lundberg)

Skied late afternoon, covering the man-made loop and then south down to Wirth Lake. Wind was nasty, especially at the top of the old stadium! Most of the trails were in very good condition with the biggest drifting, not surprisingly, on Wirth Lake. Lots of people out, including big MYSL groups -- great to see! Used my good skis, no issues -- about the only semi-thin area was the stretch under Hwy 55 bridge. Decent classic tracks were set throughout the trails I encountered.

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(Bruce Adelsman)

The parking lots were the most crowded I've ever seen at 7am. Classic skied today, and my first time out on the Twin Lakes section this season. The tracks were in great shape overall, though I did have to hop out a few times to avoid heavy leaf pileups and I ended my ski with a few leaf bits ground into my kick wax. With blue still on my skis for glide it was a fairly slow day, but beautiful out and not terribly windy yet. Snow was in great condition as always on the made-snow loop. We left just as a high school meet was getting set up.

(Dan Boody)

Skated the natural snow golf course loop and down tornado alley under 55 and to Wirth lake just after dark on Thursday. Skate deck was very hard packed - not ice but I'd say close just because of the cold and having been skied a bit. Classic tracks looked good to me, but all I did was skate. Saw a nice herd of deer south of 55. If hardish snow and a bit of chill aren't dealbreakers, a very nice time to be out. Good coverage everywhere I was. I did not ski across the lake.

(Josh DuBois)

Hit the trails at about 8:20 pm, temps were dropping rapidly. The snow was very cold and squeaky. We did the Green Meadow on our first lap, but otherwise stuck to the main made-snow (lighted) loop. The deck had been skied on heavily, so there was no loose stuff- instead it was rock hard, almost to the point of iciness (but still not icy). The snow guns were going and we got blasted by several on each lap. The snow they put on the trail hit our skis like sandpaper. And closer to 9:00 a groomer was moving snow from the top of the tubing hill to the tower, so we had to ski/climb over the ridges they were making. There were a number of vehicle tracks across Trail 18. Otherwise, things were in great shape, and it was a delightful (albeit cold) ski.

(Dan Boody)

Skied the snowmaking loops late afternoon. Firm, well groomed, with snappy classic track. A number of teams out practicing, but not at all crowded. Snowguns were roaring in a number of locations. Good skis, no issues. Nice afternoon ski outside of the crisp wind.

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(Bruce Adelsman)

Pretty close to perfect conditions early this morning on the natural and machine made trails at Wirth North. I skied JD Rivers, Tornado Alley, Skyline, Bridge, and all open machine made trails. I found the natural trails preferable in terms of snow condition, but it was excellent overall. Plenty of snow to get under and over the bridges. Just one spot to watch out for on JD Rivers (near the Finish monument) with a lot of tree debris - looks like a new trail path there. Wirth Lake is open and packed - was good for skating, but no tracks.

(Sam Knuth)

The trails crew opened up Twin Lake Trail on the snowmaking loop this morning. We now have 5.5k of snowmaking open. The crew continues to work on the Inner Meadow Loop and the North Finger as well as the Loppet Festival and World Cup finish over the bridge and along the west side of the The Trailhead.

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(Isaac Kasper, Loppet Foundation)