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.

Photos:

(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.

Photos:

(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.

Photos:

(Isaac Kasper, Loppet Foundation)

Skied the made-snow loop and things were great. The afternoon was not warm enough to soften things too much. There was some loose stuff on a few patches and climbs, but the deck was still pretty firm. All the turns were still in great condition despite all of the snow plowing going on. The only debris was at the top of the catwalk and it was minimal. The snow felt a touch slow to me, but it was great skiing out there.

(Dan Boody)

Excellent conditions (race skis), as always, in the morning on the man-made loop, for both classic and skate skiing. Deep, double classic tracks in several areas. Snowguns are making great progress in filling up the bridge near the Trailhead, and huge piles of snow in the Twin Lakes area look awesome. The natural snow trails (Bridge Trail and Skyline Trail) had just been groomed and were in good condition for skating, fair for classic skiing (shallow tracks), and probably B skis to be safe. The connector trail between the man-made loop and the bridge over the parkway was getting very thin and dirty so you may want to take skis off. Tornado Alley was mostly good, and there is actually plenty of snow under the Highway 55 bridge, amazingly. There are a few icy places on the natural snow trails, but if you carefully double pole the icy sections they are not too bad... better than not having any natural snow!

(Bill Oyler)

Skied the Green Meadow section a few times and it was great. Kids were able to navigate the downhills just fine, no icy spots at all. And the tracks were in great condition with no ice or debris. The snow machines were busy the whole time making huge piles. Thanks for the grooming!

(Dan Boody)