First hand Trail Reports

These reports are maintained by readers like you. Let us know about the skiing conditions in your area via our Ski Trail Report form. If you'd like to send along some photos, please e-mail those as attachment and we'll plug them into your report. Can't find a recent trail report on your favorite trail system? File a Trail Report Request!

Submit:

Minnesota Metro Area

• Mar 14 - Green Acres Recreation (Lake Elmo):
  Conditions: Poor.
  Green Acres X-C Skiing is now closed for the season. We would like to thank everyone this year for coming to try us out and hope to see you again next season.
  (Beth Springborn, Green Acres Recreation)
• Mar 13 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Still skiable for diehards.
  The snowmaking loop is still skiable at Wirth. It's wet and slushy but if you want to remember what snow is like it's okay for that. There's a classic race (juniors) tomorrow morning which will probably have a track set and I'd imagine there are only a couple days left for it. The puddle has a pipe under the trail now so it's a bit more skiable, and the stadium works pretty well for playing skiball/soccer/The Game.
  The golf course is melted off, although the Bog looked skiable if you are desperate/stupid in the woods. And someone groomed the snow on the Cedar lake trail (!) so it's still icy on either side of 55 which I learned when I was biking over.
  (Ari Ofsevit)
• Mar 13 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Fat lady refuses to sing.
  I went out this afternoon planning to skate some laps on the manmade with my rock skis. It was freshly groomed for classic races tomorrow, so I had to change plans. I instead skated the whole back 9 and par 3. I skied 95% and ran on my skis for 5%. But the skis never had to come off. It looks like ice, but it's soft and nice to edge on.
  (Zach Handler)
• Mar 13 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: Closed until it snows!
  Notice I no longer say "closed for the season". It gives us an out in the event of a drastic turn in the weather. As always, I will leave you with the Trail Crew motto- "Woodlands, built by skiers, groomed by skiers, for skiers. Enjoy!
  (Dave Anderson)
• Mar 12 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Soft, dirty, slow but snow.
  Passed the 'keep your skis on' test. The only really bare spot at the bottom of the small hill near 1K. But there was a 18" strip of ice that kept my skis on. Everywhere else coverage was good. Walkers and dogs are getting more common. If you need one more fix get there before its gone.
  (Greg Yetzer)
• Mar 12 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Warm and misty.
  Skied from 5:00-6:30PM Coverage on the manmade loop is still good. About 2-3 inches of cream of wheat on top of a frozen base. The trail was firming as I skied. I went over the bridge to see what the PPP course looked like. The trail varies with areas of ice on the trail and other areas with a couple of inches of snow on top of the ice on the trail. Some short portions are clear, but mostly snow/ice combination.
  (Dave Kallemeyn)
• Mar 12 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Still being groomed. Good Classic skiing (waxless skis) between the rain storms. Surface of tracks is fairly firm and fast. Skating looks slow and mushy.
  (Bob Woodruff)
• Mar 11 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Wet but fairly firm on the manmade loop.
  I went to check it out for a lunch time ski. It wasn't as soft as it had been and looked fairly fast judging by one of the 3 or 4 skiers out. I was going to ski but then the sky got darker and it began to rain and there was some distant thunder to the west. I didn't want to have additionally sintered bases or become a sintered skier so I went ice skating (indoor rink) instead. Perhaps lightning waxed skis would be lightning fast with the natural energy - negative strikes only though as the positive strikes might be a little too hot. I'd ask one of those wax techs if I could find one.
  Looks like the natural ski season has ended at 92 days - 3 weeks longer than average, but about 10 days less than other years with a foot of snow at the end of February like we had. A similar year was 1928-29 - hopefully the economy isn't quite the same as then.
  Photos:  
  (Mark Lahtinen)
• Mar 10 - Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Closed.
  Stopped by on the way home from work. Parking lot gate was closed and sign said trails closed. I was reduced to shuffling along the gravel road. A pheasant was out enjoying the warm wet day and to greet wannabe skiers.
  (Greg Yetzer)
• Mar 10 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Fast transformed corn snow, dirty in sections. Good to excellent coverage on the snow making loop. Several small rivers that need to be avoided. Skate track was fast and surprisingly firm in most places. Some ruts.
  I skate skied the entire snow making loop and it still has 1-3 feet of solid base. The snow was fast though a bit rutted in places, but it made for good spring skiing. There are a few spots with water flowing across the trail, but if you are careful they are not too bad to navigate (though you might get your feet wet right now- the COLNSF is making bridges prior to this weekends Midwest Junior Championships to ensure dry feet). A few of the spots under the trees are getting very dirty, but nothing that will hurt your skis. The classic tracks were a bit washed out today as hasn't been groomed since yesterday.
  Photos:  
  (John Swain)
• Mar 9 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Wet concrete...
  Well, I got out at about 3 PM, before the sprinkles turned to rain, for a skate. After an hour, gave up the ghost. In summary: Mush, mush, slog, slog, mush, squish, squish, mush. Valley was covered, but slow. Northern Lights (beginner & advanced) was still covered, with some "yellowing" (wet) spots (and fearless deer in the middle of the trail munching debris). Feet started to get wet through my boots from all the moisture after about 45 minutes--the worst of it all, really--because, if you are OK with sloppy-damp & slow, and are a die-hard, it can be done...wetsuit recommended.
  (Andrea Potyondy-Smith)
• Mar 9 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: Skiing in the rain, just skiing in the rain, what a glorious feeling, I'm happy again...
  And the most surprising thing is that there were a few of us out this evening. We still have good coverage on about 99 percent of the system, but it was a wee bit mushy and slow. OK, a lot mushy and slow. My ski was still continuous, so we are going to call this day 88. Enjoyment for the desperate only.
  (Dave Anderson)
• Mar 9 - Hiawatha Golf Course (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Firm and sloppy.
  Hiawatha's fair-to-good on 90 percent of the trail; it's the 10 percent that's a real boot-soaker! I love spring skiing, especially the wildlife: many ducks on a huge, on-trail pond near 22nd Ave, further down trail a gaggle of Canadian geese took wing upon my approach, and later an on-trail, off-leash dog & walker. We're not done yet!
  (Charlie Casserly)
• Mar 9 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Slow, soft, mushy.
  Thought classic skiing would be the way to avoid doing the mashed potato. Universal klister was not the ticket today although the tube says it's for "...granular wet snow, crust and icy tracks." Should've tried "Special klister for coarse wet snow." Don W. said his red klister was working okay. My tube at home had oozed out leaving me with nothing but, well, an empty tube - how does it do that? Pete, the Mayor of Elm Creek, had on his Crowns (skis...he's not the king yet) and let me try them. They were working pretty good despite the hum of the kick zone and friction during the glide. Oh how I long for my sidewall exploded Zetas which would've worked well and not hummed.
  That or the 22 technicians and quiver of skis to choose from.
  Looks like we'll end shy of the 100 natural snow ski day season by about a week or so. Damned that nighttime melt!
  Photos:  
  (Mark Lahtinen)
• Mar 9 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Not bad, actually.
  I skied mid-morning both skate and classic. It was soft and slow, but there is still lots of snow on the trail, with the exception of one icy spot. Even the man-hole cover is still below the snow. The tracks are getting shallow, but they're still there. From the footprints, there seems to have been more walkers than skiers on the trail.
  (Curt Hillstrom)
• Mar 9 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Cream of wheat...on the rocks.
  I skated the loop and Northern Lights from 8-9 a.m. The snow that is left is the consistency of cream of wheat. It is beginning to settle amidst the ice from the Christmas melt-down. Still, good coverage. Good classic track on the loop, almost non-existent on Northern Lights. I would be surprised if N.L. lasts until tomorrow. Kudos to the Elm creek groomers for keeping us in snow through thick and thin! I think this is it for me for the season.
  (Stan Hokanson)
• Mar 8 - Cleary Lake Regional Park (Prior Lake):
  Conditions: Very good for skating at these temps. 34 degrees with few drops of rain switching to snow flurries. Full coverage; generally corn snow with a minimal ice by Norway Ridge(?) campground. I didn't notice classic track so I think it's pretty much gone. I used Fastwax Yellow LF.
  One other car in the lot when I arrived around 8:15 p.m. Building was closed and gate was locked when I left at 9:00. But the skiing was really pretty good. Unlike my Saturday struggles on the Cannon Valley Trail, I was able to to sustain my skating for the entire length of the trail except the hills which I generally walked. The base is holding up well; there were no bare spots. I did the 5.7K (I did the bypass on Ironwood) in 35 minutes.
  (Keith Carlson)
• Mar 8 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Slushy, but okay.
  Wirth is skiable - more so than yesterday. The big puddle drained so there's not as much waterskiing, and while the snow around the manmade loop is VERY dirty, it's snow. My (luckily) rock skis had a lot of visible dirt in the bases by the end of a couple of laps teaching. It's pretty soft but, with cooler temperatures and not a lot of sun, skiable. However, unless you have something to train for, it's not that great. The rest of the loop looked marginally skiable for hardcores only.
  (Ari Ofsevit)
• Mar 8 - Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Soft moist snow on a firm base.
  Skied around 4:30pm. After all this warm weather, there is still plenty of snow on the trails. The only wet spot is on the Razorback rest stop in the hollow. Only one south facing hill (just north of the bridge on the bog) had some trail creep on the edges. Skated all the loops and they are in "late" spring condition. Kettle and Knob trails are in good shape as well. Trails were pretty clean, with small amounts of debris and dirty snow here and there. Structure and LF8 provided a nice glide. It has been a great year at Murphy. Thank you Three Rivers Parks for the outstanding grooming of the two parks out here "south of the river"!
  (Rich Schulze)
• Mar 8 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Slow and slushy.
  The man made loop was painfully slow, with mashed-potato like snow. The northern lights loops was a bit harder and faster, but had a few puddles. Still excellent coverage throughout.
  (Drew Polasky)
• Mar 8 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Ungroomed as of 1 PM.
  What a case of "might have been". I went to get in a hard workout before Biathlon Nationals next week. I expected to be limited to the man-made snow loop. The snow is dirty of course but there is plenty of it. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to have been groomed since Saturday's tour.
  (Lou Chouinard)
• Mar 8 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Fair-poor. Decent coverage, some slush, some ice. Spring skiing.
  Skied the back 9/man-made and front nine starting at 10am. Back nine/man-made still had pretty decent coverage but was pretty dirty with lots of ice/slush patches. I'm glad I used rock skis. Burn-out section at the top of the back forty and big puddle where trail meets up with man-made. Tricky descents on the man-made loop downhill and other downhills (be careful!).
  Front nine was much the same - good coverage with some ice/slush puddles. The 2 railroad bridge underpasses have exposed concrete. Overall quite fun, got to play "Fast or Slow" where you didn't quite know if a puddle would be primarily ice resulting in the former or primarily slush which would result in the later. Fun spring skiing.
  (Bob Hendrickson)
• Mar 8 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: Yes it's over, let's call it a day. Sorry it had to end this way... Our season went out with a bang. Actually there were more than 2000 bangs, which was the approximately the number of shots fired by the over 130 biathletes that were racing at Woodlands yesterday. Nearly a 100 were trying the sport for the first time. It was great fun to watch. A few of us will be skiing segments for a few more days. The trails will likely close later this week.
  The Woodlands Trail Crew would like to thank all who visited our trails this ski season. Seeing happy skiers is what makes us do what we do. Your donations are also greatly appreciated. The Trail Crew has logged over 200 grooming hours and has driven more than 1500km for our skiing pleasure. When grooming hours are combined with the time spent tree cutting and doing other non ski season trail maintenance, it adds up to roughly 1000 hours that volunteers put in each year to keep the system going. Enjoy whatever it is that makes you go when you are not on your skis.
  (Dave Anderson)
• Mar 7 - Lebanon Hills Regional Park (Eagan):
  Conditions: 36 degrees 9am cloudy.
  Surprisingly good on skate tracks section. First run a touch icy from overnight freeze, but soft snow by my third circuit 10:30 am. But good coverage and very few bare or icy spots at this late date.
  (David Moore)
• Mar 7 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Still alive and kicking (in slush).
  What may be my last ski of the year (unless we play more of The Game) at Wirth today was mostly teaching a couple folks who'd skied a combined once in their lives. Getting up the hill to the start was interesting (we probably should have walked up) but at least it was warm out. The trail is getting pretty good and slushy, but is skiable. The base on the non-snowmaking trail looked quite wet and slushy/icy where it's thin, but the base on the snowmaking course is generally thick.
  There was one burnout section right before the downhill before the sliding hill, and a lake at the bottom of the first big downhill out of the stadium. It made for great waterskiing (I was soaked from my thighs down) but was pretty much across the trail, and rather deep.
  But, it's March 7, so I can't complain. Especially when I get to bike (part-way) there.
  (Ari Ofsevit)
• Mar 7 - William O'Brien State Park (Marine on St. Croix):
  Conditions: Fair to Good (great given the recent weather).
  Skied 11am-1pm. Almost complete coverage. While there were some thin areas, the only time I took off my skis was the railroad tracks. Yes, there was slush and some detritus on the trails, conditions weren't fast and it was great by me. Skiing in a t-shirt on a brilliant sunny day was a great way to end my local season.
  (Seth Lindenfelser)
• Mar 7 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Good skating, fair classic.
  Full coverage and no ruts on Sunday afternoon. The classic track was soft and in places it was washed out.
  Photos:  
  (Caleb Goltz)
• Mar 7 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: 100% complete.
  Snow was soft, wet and dirty, but very flat. Four sets of footprints from the Burnsville Parkway lot to the southwest corner, plus a few dog/human tracks close to the Cty. Rd. 11 lot.
  Photos:  
  (Eli Smith)
• Mar 7 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Great, especially if you are going to do the CA Gold Rush in 3 weeks.
  Great snow cover warmed to mush by the bright sunshine. So much like sierra cement, felt like I was at Royal Gorge.
  (David Delforge)
• Mar 7 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Fair to poor, but still very skiable.
  I did a couple of loops on the par 3/back 9 this morning. With temperatures staying above freezing last night it was very soft with water standing in low areas and a few easily avoidable bare spots. But there is still a very nice base. I found skating to be a lot of work, so I switched to my waxless and had a lot more fun.
  (Curt Hillstrom)
• Mar 7 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Soft and slow.
  Wow, what a difference a day makes! It must have rained quite a bit last night. Outer loops were soft and slow with a lot of thin spots and just a couple of small bare spots. A couple more warm days or even a few hours of sun and there will be spots that are impassible. Too bad because 80-90% of the outer loops still have decent amounts of snow. Manmade snow was much softer and like thick mashed potatoes.
  (Al Anderson)
• Mar 6 - Cleary Lake Regional Park (Prior Lake):
  Conditions: Good tracks and snow coverage.
  Very slow for classic by noon but still complete snow coverage and good tracks with very few icy spots. Looked very good for skate based on the few people I saw skating.
  (Dan Zenk)
• Mar 6 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Great coverage.
  Terrace Oaks holds snow well. I only found 1 spot where the sun has won the battle, but coverage is great everywhere else. By 2pm, the snow was getting wet, but a proper wax job could have solved the issues created by that.
  (John Saunders)
• Mar 6 - Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Excellent.
  Skated today late morning. Great conditions. No melt out yet on the south facing hills. Minimal tree debris. Used good skis without problem.
  FWIW: The park police were handing out $65 tickets to those without a ski pass. Which they still give you if you left your pass at home. Doh! At least it goes back to the park system.
  (Zach Handler)
• Mar 6 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: Okay for now.
  It was much sunnier than forecast so the trail got petty soft, but had full coverage. That won't last long, though; there are already holes forming in several spots—be especially careful on the paved paths on the prairie loop near the start. If it freezes up it should be good, if not, it will be pretty soft. The end is near.
  (Ari Ofsevit)
• Mar 6 - Lebanon Hills Regional Park (Eagan):
  Conditions: Tracks and snow pack very good in the woods. In open areas to the sun, some dirt areas and snow pack dwindling with washout of trail. Some low lying areas water and ice. Did not have to take skis off anywhere.
  Skied trails east of Pilot Knob Road.
  (Ken Kuznia)
• Mar 6 - William O'Brien State Park (Marine on St. Croix):
  Conditions: Good enough for skating, fair for classic.
  I skied the entire outer loop and finished at 5pm. It has complete firm coverage for most of it. Two small bare patches at the base of south america and by the big tree after the railroad tracks. Surprisingly good.
  (Michael Wilke)
• Mar 6 - Hyland Lake Park Reserve (Bloomington):
  Conditions: 39 degrees starting out; 43 when I left.
  A great day to be out. Skating was OK, getting a bit slow as the day wore on. A couple of guys were in shorts. Classic track looked good as well.
  (Bryan Evarts, Minneapolis Ski Club (Nordic))
• Mar 6 - White Bear Lake (White Bear Lake):
  Conditions: Excellent!
  Conditions of the lake are great. Almost perfect corn snow this morning. Even with all the vehicle and snowmobile traffic there are still untracked areas that are really fun. With about 1-3" of corn snow on top of hard pack, it makes for fast cruising.
  (Tom Birkeland)
• Mar 6 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Warm but great!
  The outer loops are holding up pretty well. The Creek "Straight Away" is roped off so you have to take the wooded bypass which is in great shape. Overall the natural snow is good. When the sun came out from the high clouds it softened up quickly. Even so the natural snow is not nearly as rutty as the manmade loop. Recommend getting out before it softens up. Night skates just before sunset have been good this week - before things ice up again.
  (Al Anderson)
• Mar 6 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: I finished my lap at 11 this morning and my ski was very nice. The snow still had most of its speed and the sun had softened some of the slick spots. Skiers were just arriving for the Spring Fling and Ancient One and Babe were heading out to cut trees. The Trail Crew had the outer loop in great shape. We will have one more day and then we will be down to skiing segments.
  Buckthorn Bob and Doc will be dragging the screens this evening. The Goddess of the Trails will be out shoveling and setting course in the morning. With over a hundred biathletes coming to Woodlands tomorrow morning, I have a parking hint. My truck will be in the golf course lot just to the south of the Woodlands entrance. Enjoy one last time.
  (Dave Anderson)
• Mar 6 - Baker Park Reserve (Maple Plain):
  Conditions: Great coverage and expertly groomed.
  The snow was a little sticky after 12:30PM, but still good. I'm sure it was better in the morning. Get out on Sunday morning and enjoy one last fast fun ski. If you ski in the afternoon be sure to bring your fluro and structure tool.
  (Mike Sund)
• Mar 6 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Fresh grooming this morning for skating and classic! The groomers at Wirth continue to outdo themselves.
  I was out this morning at 10:00 and skied the Back 9. Starting at the Par 3 clubhouse, don't judge the trail to the Back 40 by the first couple blocks. It's kind of washed out going around the first bend, but after that, the whole Back 9 was in great March Skiing shape. The classic tracks were definitely skiable a lot of the time. The downhills were fast and fun. I think this has been one of the best years for skiing at Wirth with enough snow and excellent grooming.
  (Bill Lundberg)
• Mar 6 - Lake Harriet (Minneapolis):
  Tried Lake Harriet, it was ungroomed, but untrammelled. 2 inches of snow, a few ice patches. Nice gliding for this novice at 10 am.
  (Tom Amatruda)
• Mar 6 - Green Acres Recreation (Lake Elmo):
  Conditions: Fair to very good for skate.
  Skied 10:30-12:00 this morning and there were a few other folks out. They had groomed last night and still have good coverage. Rich's Road was the best stretch by far and was great. The southern half of Gaylen's Gallop and Lori's Loop were good to very good as well. For me it was worth the $5 for over an hour of solid skiing in this weather.
  (Seth Lindenfelser)
• Mar 6 - Phalen Golf Course (Saint Paul):
  9 a.m. fast and fun. By 10:30 starting to get soft. Yes rutty but surprising conditions for this time of year. Better that Como yesterday evening. Thanks groomers for a great season.
  (Brett Smith)
• Mar 6 - Battle Creek Regional Park West (Saint Paul):
  3 & 5K loops regroomed for skating--got most of the ruts out. A few enlarging bare and icy spots that need to be navigated around. Report that the outer loop's long downhill has large open area in the sun, thus not groomed. Overall, pretty doable.
  (Bill Kosfeld)
• Mar 5 - Hyland Hills downhill area (Bloomington):
  Conditions: Good until everything froze up at 8:30pm or so.
  Okay, not quite cross-country skiing, but a 20-year old pair of kid-sized Fischer skating skis were great for accompanying a couple of grade schoolers on their first time going downhill. In the early evening, the hill was soft enough to get an edge and turn well, and to skate uphill to help pick up the occasional yard sale. Once the temp got below freezing, everything turned really hard, with an inch or two of sugar snow on top. Had a couple interesting conversations on the lift, mostly along the lines of "what the heck are those?".
  (Adam Himes)
• Mar 5 - Woodland Trails (Elk River):
  Conditions: Should be good, mostly. For my money, I would wait until after 8 when the day starts to warm to start your Saturday ski.
  Ancient One and Wrench just reported in that they made three laps with the heavy screens around the outer 10K. The thought they hit the transition just about right. We will see. Shear Pin will be out in the morning setting course while the rest of us are skiing. This will likely be the last weekend for a continuous ski at Woodlands. Enjoy it while it lasts.
  (Dave Anderson)
• Mar 5 - Green Acres Recreation (Lake Elmo):
  Conditions: Good!
  I skied it over lunch from about 11:30 to 12:30. Ideally I think the best time would be to start around 10:00. There is still good coverage everywhere for skating. A few slushy spots but all the loops are still 100% open for skiing. The deep base they have is holding up well. Another great day at Green Acres.
  (Tom Birkeland)
• Mar 5 - Battle Creek Regional Park West (Saint Paul):
  Conditions: Melting but overall pretty good.
  Most of the trail is still in great shape, although I wouldn't use your best skis. There were a few spots down to the grass and dirt on the prairie loop and the south facing hill on the longer loop. Thanks to the groomers this year for such a great trail at Battle Creek this season.
  (Katie Anderson)
• Mar 5 - William O'Brien State Park (Marine on St. Croix):
  Conditions: Quite decent for March 5th!
  Slogged through 2 slushy laps under sublime sunshine around 1:00. Skate lane has good coverage but it's wearing thin in the usual places. Rock ski conditions for sure. Just a suggestion of a classic track remains. Surely the last day of skiing without a dismount and a short, muddy walk.
  (Chas Joy)
• Mar 5 - Phalen Golf Course (Saint Paul):
  More, deeper skate ruts than yesterday. Couple places where double poling gets one past the water spots. I went out too late today, so only did one loop.
  (Stuart Knappmiller)
• Mar 5 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Kind of slow.
  Needed to be there before 10:00 today I think. There was slow wet snow, slow shaded/untransformed snow and a little faster snow (25%) in between on the outer loop and multi-use trail. Still looking for those wax techs and multiple pairs of skis to try.
  Good coverage though and a good classic track on the manmade and parts of the other loops.
  (Mark Lahtinen)
• Mar 5 - Baker Park Reserve (Maple Plain):
  Multi-use trails: Beautiful day, great grooming, Penny had fun. Several other dogs out enjoying the great conditions.
  (Larry Myers)
• Mar 5 - City of Lakes Loppet Trail (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Variable but good.
  Skied JD Gardens and Eloise Butler... snow is holding well most places. Watch out on the first significant downhill in Butler, it is bare ground except for an 8" path (could be a surprise if you crested the hill at speed for descent). Ground opening up on the second south-facing significant downhill in Butler too. The rest of the coverage is good.
  (Sue Schroeder)
• Mar 5 - Hyland Lake Park Reserve (Bloomington):
  Conditions: It was great for skating. Very fast conditions. 100% trail coverage.
  Skied 2 1/2 hours at Hyland mid-morning. The groomers were out and had scratched it up enough in the few icy areas to get an edge. No rocks or dirt at all, so you can still use your good skis. If you go too early in the morning, you need fancy footwork as the downhills are a little icy from the overnight freeze. About 9:00-9:30 a.m. start is ideal. Wait too late and it gets mushy and slow.
  (Brent Bovitz)
• Mar 5 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Almost 30 degrees at 8 AM. Ugh. Skating was still in great shape, overall, though outer loops are getting "crunchy" off & on. Take the Creek wooded bypass--yesterday the straight-away was an ice rink at 8 AM. Get em' while you can, and earlier is always the best conditions. Tracks looked pretty icy, though OK on Valley. Hooray for vigilant groomers!
  (Andrea Potyondy-Smith)
• Mar 5 - French Regional Park (Plymouth):
  Conditions: Great hard pack freshly groomed.
  Josie, Karl and I have been skiing every morning this week at ~8-9am across the lake to French Park. Every morning has been freshly groomed and great hard pack conditions. Doug the groomer said they will only groom until Mar 14 so it will be interesting to see if the snow can last until then. By 10am conditions on my commute into work are starting to get softer, but not slow yet.
  (David Nelson, Skinnyski.com Race Team)
• Mar 5 - City of St. Paul Parks (Saint Paul):
  The City of St. Paul has discontinued grooming all of our ski trails for the season. We hope you have enjoyed our trails and look forward to seeing you next fall.
  (Stephen Dinger )
• Mar 4 - Terrace Oaks Park (Burnsville):
  Conditions: 5-6 pm. Very Good. No bare spots. A few twigs and some bark on the trail. Tracks look good. Great conditions for skating.
  Most of this park is in the woods and stays shaded throughout most of the day so it holds snow better than most places.
  (James Ross)
• Mar 4 - Hyland Lake Park Reserve (Bloomington):
  Most of trail was tough going, the sun is quickly taking its toll. A few wooded section exceptions. Many puddled areas, enjoy while you still can.
  Photos:  
  (David Seifert)
• Mar 4 - Lebanon Hills Regional Park (Eagan):
  Conditions: Good, 36 degrees at 11:30am, sunny.
  Groomed classical, some wet and slushy spots, but skied the whole loop from Jensen to the Visitor Center and back, no bare spots and tracks holding up well.
  (Kari Tyne)
• Mar 4 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Mostly very good to excellent.
  I don't need to repeat what others have already reported, which is that Theo Wirth Ski Course is tops! Thanks to the groomers for not quitting when there's still good skiing to be had.
  I want to put in a plug for the #7 bus. Today I finally walked my talk about climate change (which is not good for skiing) and took the bus to Theo Wirth instead of driving. The terminus for the 7C bus is close to Wirth Chalet, so the bus sits there for quite a few minutes before starting its new run.
  (Lois Braun)
• Mar 4 - Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve (Burnsville):
  Conditions: Great Spring Skiing at Murphy today. The classic tracks were recently groomed and in good shape overall. Skating looked fine. A lot of the tracks in the woods and shade were firm and actually very good--in the sun and the south side of hills--soft and a little slushy. Good snow coverage.
  It's always a thrill at Murphy and the Razorback. The downhills were fast and furious! The uphills--well, not so fast. I still think if you like hills and a workout, Murphy is the best park in the metro! Thanks to the groomers for tracking one more time.
  Photos:  
  (Bill Lundberg)
• Mar 4 - Hyland Lake Park Reserve (Bloomington):
  Conditions: Very nice conditions! A little icy in a couple of areas, but other than that the trail was in awesome shape. There were no bare spots anywhere. For those who wished to stride, the tracks were deep and not washed out.
  I skate skied in a vest, no hat and gloves under a wonderful sunny sky! Ahh...late winter skiing doesn't get any better than this!
  (Carolyn Krampe)
• Mar 4 - Elm Creek Park Reserve (Maple Grove):
  Conditions: Classic skied on the artificial snow and Northern Lights trail 7-8am at 18deg. Hard wax would probably still work on the artificial snow while cold (looks like they're still grooming and setting the track every night). Violet spray-on klister worked like a charm on both loops. The NL track was icy in exposed spots (would need klister in the track). Skating looked good (and fast) everywhere - nothing close to a bare spot yet.
  Klister skiing is some of the most fun of the season - fast with great kick. Scrape off your hardwax, cover 6" of glide surface at either end of the klister zone with masking tape, and spray away. Two minutes later - voila! Get out early for the best skiing.
  (Pete Thurmes)
• Mar 4 - Irondale Trails (New Brighton):
  Conditions: Fair to good.
  Took the final pass with the groomer early this morning and cleaned up the skate lane. This will be the last grooming we will be able to do this season. That said, still lots of snow in the woods and trail is very skiable. I put in 15km after grooming and had a great time. All the North facing hills are very good. South facing hills are in tougher shape. If you hit the trails in the morning or later afternoon when snow is not so soft, it is awesome.
  (Chris Torvi)
• Mar 4 - Tamarack Nature Center (White Bear Township):
  Conditions: Fair in the meadows, still good in the woods.
  Considering the lack of any new snow in the past month, and the recent warm temperatures, the trails are holding up well. Tracks not shaded are mostly shallow and very wide, and there are a couple of bare spots along Co. Rd. H2, but in the shaded areas they're still much deeper then I expected. The trails that go through the woods as part of the long loop are still good, and even the south facing hills have full coverage. We started skiing around 10:15 which seemed to be the sweet spot; earlier and everything would be rock hard, later and it'd be sloppy. Good to be on the snow!
  Photos:  
  (Mark Weinberger)
• Mar 4 - Green Acres Recreation (Lake Elmo):
  Conditions: 90% excellent, 10% fair.
  Checked out Green Acres for the first time this morning. They seem to be grooming it regularly and most of the trail was nice fast corduroy. Some of the steepest uphills I've seen in the area. A few of the more exposed sections are getting thin and dirty, but nothing that can't be navigated around.
  (Peter Aggen)
• Mar 4 - Phalen Golf Course (Saint Paul):
  Conditions: 32-34F kept part of skate frozen. Fast today on the ice. A lot of tracks from yesterday cut deeply and were frozen. 6 holes in skate from falls. Hills have deep carved tracks. Classic still looks good.
  Go early or late so track has had a chance to firm up please. The classic guy can't cover all our ruts!
  (Stuart Knappmiller)
• Mar 4 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Classic tracks still good on Hap and Judy loop, golf course is getting almost too washed out.
  (Leslie Hale)
• Mar 4 - Bunker Hills Regional Park (Coon Rapids):
  Conditions: Skate skied this morning starting at 9:45. It was icy to start but better as the temps warmed the snow.
  Started at the ski rental chalet. Trail groomed Monday night. The advanced trail was icy and challenging with quite a few sun-burned/open spots but in between was well groomed with little use. Over on the golf course there is a lot of snow with just a few open spots which are easy to avoid. The skate lane has had very little use since the grooming and the classic tracks are deep and look good.
  (Pamela Jawish)
• Mar 4 - Theodore Wirth Regional Park (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Par 3, Back 9 were good for skating and classic.
  No major meltdowns except for the uphill in the back 40, but there's still plenty of room to get around it.
  (Tim Franz)
• Mar 4 - Como Golf Course (Saint Paul):
  Conditions: Not bad.
  I thought I was going out for a last hurrah, but I might be able to go again tomorrow. While the puddles are getting bigger and there are a few more of them now, the coverage is still good. Only a few spots where something (grass, mud, asphalt!) is poking through. Some sections are simply awesome (packed powder, superfast). The magic hour is 10-11am. It's getting just soft enough to give you better ski control. It ain't over til it's over. Get out there while it lasts.
  (Jenneke Oosterhoff)
• Mar 4 - Hiawatha Golf Course (Minneapolis):
  Conditions: Iced in boot tracks.
  Despite the park board's final grooming, the dog walkers have trashed the trail. The boot and dog prints are deep pretty much throughout the trail. I would love to advocate on behalf of a groomed walking trail at Hiawatha, and/or enforcement of leash and ski pass rules. It's hard to call it a ski trail most of the season because of the walkers.
  (Sue Schroeder)

Minnesota Northeast

• Mar 13 - Spirit Mountain (Duluth):
  Conditions: Freshly groomed!
  Ron the groomer is a saint! This was my second stop on my skijor of Duluth and I was soaked and cold with water gushing in my boots from the wet snow at Magney. It was foggy as heck and drizzling. I was treated to fresh corduroy and tracks on the 1k and campground! I skated them both and then went and thanked Ron for doing it! Apparently I was the only one who got to enjoy his efforts. He even got stuck once. There is a ton of snow there and no ice.
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 13 - Magney-Snively Trail (Duluth):
  Conditions: Tons of snow!
  This was the first of our skijoring tour of Duluth today and I really thought it would be bare! It was the total opposite! I tried to skate and because I am light I was able to stay on top quite a bit, however, there were scary times when my ski went all the way down 6 or 8 inches of snow and stopped me. The tracks were visible so I stayed in them at times. I accidentally did the whole lower loop plus more because I got lost in the dense fog a couple of times. I had planned to just do a few k and go back. The snow is fairly debris free, there was absolutely no ice, and if the temps go below freezing again, this will be an awesome place to skate. Towards the end of my ski I noticed a person leaning against a tree with no skis on, this was in the middle of nowhere and I did not see his tracks getting there. It kinda scared me! I said hi and asked him which way I had to go to get out then moved quickly away!
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 13 - Lester Park (Duluth):
  Conditions: Treacherous!
  I very carefully walked both ways on the ski trail before deciding that there was nothing I wanted to run or ski on. The trail I could see was a mix of ice and grass. Someone said they skied the upper loop and it was "ok". I personally will wait until it's free of ice before venturing there again.
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 13 - Hartley Park (Duluth):
  Conditions: Not too bad once away from the pines.
  I was pleasantly surprised at the condition of the trail at Hartley! To get to the "good part" we had to go through the icy, debris covered, bareground stuff for a bit and on my $4.99 goodwill Trak skis it was fine to do. There was plenty of snow, great glide, and because I am pretty light I did not have any issues with sinking in. Great place to classic if you need more!
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 13 - Chester Bowl (Duluth):
  Conditions: Poor.
  This was my last trail of the day and one of the worst. I decided to classic ski whatever was there and the field was very slushy and icy, the trail was a mix of ice, bareground, and dirty snow with debris and dog poop.
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 13 - Bagley Nature Area (Duluth):
  Conditions: Poor.
  I classic skied Bagley today and one person was leaving when I arrived. When I asked how it was he said it's "glideable". Bagley is a mix of ice, snow, feces that look like raisenettes, many of them all over, tree debris, bareground, and slush. Of all the trails I skied today, this was one of the worst and the only one I had to take my skis off/on once.
  Photos:  
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 11 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Not Good! A ditto to Dave Johnson, probably a bit worse now. Still plenty of snow, but not very skiable.
  Went to Snowflake this morning to test skis for the Bear Chase. Found a 10 meter section near the lodge that I could do some glide testing on without sinking in 6-7 inches. I would say skiing is not too easy right now. Perhaps a great workout, but not all that much fun. Let's hope we get some cooler drier nights to at least salvage some of the base!
  (Jonathon Rulseh)
• Mar 10 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Not too good...sorry to say.
  Annie Blackfoot and I drove out at 6:00 this morning to ski. It was about 40 degrees and raining lightly. We skied for about a kilometer and decided to head home. There is plenty of snow, it is just losing it's structure. About every 100 meters or so you punch through the upper crust and sink down 4-5 inches. If it would stop raining and cool down a bit, we would have plenty of snow to work with and regroom. For now it is tough skiing.
  (Dave Johnson)
• Mar 9 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Surprisingly good!
  Annie Blackfoot (the yellow lab with a black right foot) and I loaded ourselves into the Saab and headed out to Snowflake for a 6:00 am ski of the 5k trail. We had skied it the night before and loved it. It hadn't gotten below freezing last night so this mornings ski was just like last evenings...somewhat slushy but still fast enough to be fun. Annie is just learning the ropes of skijoring and while pulling she wishes that the fates had landed her in the home of a much lighter skier. Still being a lab she forgets this once the lap has been completed and it is time to head back to the kennel for the day. If I can pull myself off this computer soon, Annie and I plan on a repeat tomorrow morning. I will submit another post letting you know a bit more about Annie and the conditions at my second home away from home, Snowflake Nordic Ski Center.
  (Dave Johnson)
• Mar 9 - Lester Park (Duluth):
  Conditions: Not that bad.
  Dug out the waxless classic rock skis this morning and found Lester surprisingly skiable. The lower loops have some puddles and small open patches, but coverage is still pretty good on the upper loops.
  (Catherine Winter)
• Mar 8 - Spirit Mountain (Duluth):
  Conditions: Pretty rotten thanks to snowmobile traffic.
  There's plenty of snow left at Spirit, but most of the 11k loop has deep ruts from the passage of several snowmobiles and is really not fun to skate. Where they aren't obliterated, the tracks have melted into barely noticeable depressions.
  (Erik Riker-Coleman)
• Mar 8 - Boulder Lake Management Area Ski Trails (Duluth):
  Conditions: Good overall.
  I classic ski and thought it wasn't too bad this morning, but there are some soft deep spots that'll take you down if you're not keeping an eye on what's ahead. I talked to a skate skier afterwords and he had a great ski, much better than he thought it would be.
  (Mark Gagnon)
• Mar 7 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Good overall, 10k temporarily poor.
  Skied part of the 10K then switch to the 5K. It did not get below freezing on Saturday night so the 10K base was quite soft. The 5K was still firm. Lots of snow. I'm expecting good conditions for the Wooden Ski Rendezvous.
  (John Jereczek)
• Mar 7 - Boulder Lake Management Area Ski Trails (Duluth):
  Conditions: Great but warm.
  After classic skiing earlier on some private trails in WI, I wasn't sure what to expect...the trails were in excellent shape at Boulder, almost completely debris free, nice white snow, tons of it, no signs of the land under the snow, the depths on the sides of the trail as measured in medium sized doggie height are still shoulder high too! I think I know what the Olympians felt like skiing minus the good wax job. My timing was slushy and slow, double "k" day!
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 7 - Lester Park (Duluth):
  Conditions: Skied at 8am this morning. Air temp 37, I'm not sure it froze overnight.
  I jumped on the trail at the hockey rinks (hike up the small hill, put on skis) and then I skied the upper reaches of Lester, skipping what I imagined would be a less-spectacular lower portion. It was nice. The worst I encountered was icy groundwater flow, but in general the trail is fully covered with snow. I did not ski down any of the little "expert" loops off the trail -- only because I ran out of energy not out of snow. One or two spots where there's a downed tree or something dark in the trail we see the snow melting away.
  Photos:  
  (Kristin Riker-Coleman)
• Mar 6 - Boulder Lake Management Area Ski Trails (Duluth):
  Conditions: Good to very good.
  Skated 51K during the afternoon into late afternoon and after adjusting to the mildly icy conditions in shady areas and contrastingly soft snow in sunny areas (as Tom mentioned) was able to have a great day skating. As the sun started setting conditions hardened nicely. Boulder didn't disappoint in the least today. Thanks to the groomers who have done such a fine job throughout the season here.
  (Lane Ellis)
• Mar 6 - Boulder Lake Management Area Ski Trails (Duluth):
  Conditions: A mixed bag of decent spring skiing.
  I went out to Boulder today because of the good snow depth and recent grooming (2 days ago). I skated everything in the south loop late morning. It was in the upper 30's at the time. It was fast and crusty (a tad icy in places) in the shade and near slush in some of the sunny areas. It was a good test of balance going from fast to slow and back again. There is a lot of debris on parts of Nine Pine but overall, you could use your good skis. Get out there and enjoy the snow while its here.
  (Tom Heinitz)
• Mar 6 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Still quite good.
  The conditions at Snowflake continue to surprise me. Classic and skated the 10k, overall quite good. Tracks are a little soft. Best skiing is within an hour or two after temps get above freezing.
  (John Jereczek)
• Mar 5 - Hartley Park (Duluth):
  Conditions: Good conditions for spring skiing.
  Looks like the trail has recently been groomed. Snow is clean except for under the pines. One or two minor bare spots.
  (John Jereczek)
• Mar 5 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Conditions: Not quite as nice as yesterday, but still good.
  Most of the trail was still firm and reasonably fast, especially in the more shaded areas. There is good snow depth with no bare spots, but Shovel Hill may be in need of a shovel soon if this weather keeps up. The only thing that marred a great spring ski was some minor damage done by humans. There were deep gashes hardened into the downhills on the 10K, left by a couple of skiers who skied the trail backward when it was soft, and the first 3 kilometers of the 5K had been driven on by snowmobiles and were rutted and chewed up in a few places. These weren't major problems, more of an annoyance.
  (Sue Janssen)
• Mar 5 - Magney-Snively Trail (Duluth):
  Conditions: Very good spring skating.
  It was 39 degrees and getting mushy when I got off the trail at 11:40 this morning. Coverage is still good throughout. There are ruts on a few exposed uphills. A couple of snowmobilers took a joyride through the whole system, but the skate lane wasn't really damaged. They messed up the classic track in a number of places but I think it's still skiable.
  (Catherine Winter)
• Mar 4 - Boulder Lake Management Area Ski Trails (Duluth):
  Conditions: Super!
  We skijored, skate skied around 3:30ish today. All the loops are in excellent shape, appeared to have been recently groomed and there is plenty of snow! The groomer is so incredibly awesome out there that I bet the trails will be good for a long time!
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 4 - Snowflake Nordic Ski Center (Duluth):
  Beautiful spring skiing at dawn at snowflake on Thursday. The warm temps have me in April mode in early March. Early start, but sufficient light so I turned off the headlamp around 6:10 AM. Trails, both classic and skate in unbelievably good shape for the warm days we have had. Not icy at all, fast yet plenty of edge in the skate lane. Classic tracks were set Monday, I think, and are still perfect. I strided on waxless (could have used the good skis even without klister I bet) and skated, and it was great. I'll be out most mornings from now on!
  (Tim Holst)

• Mar 13 - Banadad Trail (Grand Marais):
  Conditions: Despite the warm weather the Banadad Remains open - the entire 30 km. Banadad has 6"-8" of mostly continuous snow cover. 8 km. tracked from eastern trail head.
  Good Spring Skiing!
  (Ted Young, Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B, Cabins and Wilderness Yurts)
• Mar 12 - Sugarbush Trail System (Tofte):
  Conditions: From bare/ice to 12" of soft snow not recently groomed.
  The Onion river trails are melting down but areas have lots of deep snow. We kicked in a trail to get in our workout today and did lots of sinking! Swix Pink klister worked well with CH10. With some grooming there could be some good sections still but some is reduced to ice/puddles and a touch of bare ground.
  Photos:  
  (Kyia Anderson)
• Mar 11 - Pincushion Mountain Trail (Grand Marais):
  Conditions: Mixed transformed wet snow and frozen granular snow/ice. Fair for classic skiing and good for skate skiing. Mixed transformed snow and frozen granular snow. The warm temps all week have only melted and transformed the snow more in most areas.
  Grooming by snowmobile may be possible at some point this weekend. Trails are pretty good, considering... Compacted Base: 4-6” Snow Depth in Woods: 2-6" Groomed for Skating: 25 of 25 km open with skating lanes. Some bare spots and water on the trail. Groomed with Classic Tracks: Most tracks are melted out. Last Grooming Day: Thursday, Feb. 25th, 2010 Total Snow for Season since October 10th, 2009: 43".
  (Dave Bartol)
• Mar 7 - Northwoods Ski Trail (Silver Bay):
  Conditions: Mostly good.
  Skied for first time on Sunday afternoon. Considering the warmth, the trails were quite good. No issue on coverage and still very deep in most places - skis and pole plants starting to fall in a bit as snow got softer. Got slower as the day progressed as would be expected. Overall, very enjoyable.
  (Peter Aggen)
• Mar 7 - Cascade River/Deer Yard Lake (Lutsen):
  Conditions: Warm, Sunny, spring like conditions--a lot of fun!
  We have been enjoying our third week of great sunny springtime conditions! While we would love to have a bit more snow, especially near the lake, the warm temperatures and excellent base the groomers have set up on our inland trails really can't be beat! I have been skiing in a long sleeve shirt and enjoying the bright blue sky, the maples which are beginning to show signs of syrup and the very nice skiing temperatures. A great bit of fun in a very mild winter.
  (Michael O'Phelan, Cascade Lodge)
• Mar 6 - George Crosby-Manitou State Park (Finland):
  Conditions: 22 inches if un-groomed snow still on the ground; This is Bushwacker Territory!
  Heard reports the snow at Crosby was still good for backcountry skiing (or snowshoeing) and it is! Measured the depth several times in our jaunt, minimum found was 15 inches, max was over 22. No grooming, although trails have seen frequent snowshoe use. Park is beautiful, and backcountry skis, like my Bushwackers, work great.
  (Hans Erdman, Backcountry Trail Patrol)
• Mar 6 - Sugarbush Trail System (Tofte):
  Conditions: Powder with some ice.
  The trails were groomed Thursday night, tracks great, skate deck looked in good condition also. I was skiing by 9:00 this morning, had a wonderful time with some VR75 under foot. The snow was starting to soften up by 10:30.
  Photos:  
  (Liz Wagner)
• Mar 6 - Central Gunflint Trail System (Grand Marais):
  Conditions: Warm and sunny.
  Trails were rocket fast this morning and then slowed down in the 40 degree sun. Still plenty enough snow for the good skis. Although, wife broke a ski yesterday! Chased daughter all around Flour lake, quite the workout! Going to sit the midday out and let things cool back down and get back out then.
  Photos:  
  (Craig Holgate)
• Mar 5 - Tettegouche State Park (Silver Bay):
  Conditions: Still deep snow in the wooded areas, but conditions by the lake are deteriorating rapidly.
  The snow is melting, causing icy conditions in the mornings. The main ski loop is in fair to good condition (better condition the further you get away from Lake Superior). The Tettegouche Camp road is in fair condition, but tracks are eroding with the melting.
  (Hans Erdman, Backcountry Trail Patrol)
• Mar 5 - Northwoods Ski Trail (Silver Bay):
  Conditions: The melt is on, but still able to enjoy skiing in the Northwoods.
  Don't let the lack of visable snow on Hwy. 61 fool you. There is still snow to be skied in the forests above Lake Superior. Northwoods trails are icy, slushy, and sticky, but the snow is still there for now. Base about 4 inches, with no thin spots seen. Snow in the woods is over 18 inches deep. Ski it while you can!
  (Hans Erdman, Backcountry Trail Patrol)

• Mar 14 - Giants Ridge (Biwabik):
  Giants Ridge XC trails officially closed for the season. See you May 1 when we open our mountain bike trails.
  (John Filander)
• Mar 9 - Giants Ridge (Biwabik):
  Conditions: 1-3 inches base, granular. Ski in the morning when it goes from icy to slush. Good conditions on the Bronze, Summit, Gold, Cedar. Bare spots on the Silver, Biwabik Spur, Oslo. Laurentian, Wynne Creek closed for the season.
  Warm sunny conditions are drastically taking down the snowpack, we will have to wait and see what happens after the weather later this week.
  (John Filander)
• Mar 6 - Big Aspen Recreation Area (Virginia):
  Conditions: 9:30 sunny and icy. Some rocks starting to pop up in spots. Stayed to the West and explored a couple other spots down to 27 and up to 26,25,15,19,20 and back.
  Some really fun roller hills and fast. By 11 it was just starting to slow a bit. We managed to stay low to the sun and had a great ski. By 11:30 when we got back to the lot it was sticky near the end. Perfect timing.
  Photos:  
  (Ron Kutsi)
• Mar 5 - Big Aspen Recreation Area (Virginia):
  Conditions: Surprising to see tracks still exist. Though they are getting wider and more shallow.
  We went west to 8, 9, 10, 17, 18, 23, 22, 19, 20, and back. Icy to begin with but at 10 AM by 11 it was getting soft fast and getting tough on the hills with icy in the shade and stop you dead in the sun. Temps in the upper 40s this afternoon. Only a couple bare spots in the tracks where we skied. Go early and enjoy.
  Photos:  
  (Ron Kutsi)
• Mar 4 - Carey Lake (Hibbing):
  Conditions: Overall good.
  Bare spots starting to show in a few exposed areas under pines. Overall, most of the trail base is still fully intact. Not having skied here much this year, I was pleasantly surprised to find several new trails added in the southern half of the system, and a reversal of the usual skate- vs. classic-only trail designation.
  (Matt Zak)

• Mar 7 - Bear Head Lake State Park (Ely):
  Conditions: Slush to sublime, melting pretty fast.
  The lake has had a huge amount of snowmobile and ATV traffic and is pretty useless for crust skiing, much worse than previous years. Trails have not been groomed for some time, but have reasonable snow cover. The Blueberry Lake loop had not seen any recent traffic other than a moose. If you can tolerate the occasional sketchy bit or detour around rocks, the trails should be OK.
  (David Zarkower)

• Mar 10 - Tilson Creek Ski Trail (International Falls):
  Conditions: 34F at 8 AM, cloudy and fog.
  As Teresa mentions, the almost icy Green trail had been rutted by classic skiers walking down the middle, but that stops at 1.5K. (My time into the first warming shelter was the fastest of the season.) There were some soft sections of the orange trail - unpredictable, and 10% at most - where poles and skis sank into the snow, but the yellow and red were firm and fast. The 3 short usual sections of the red are bare - I have switched to yellow wax on rock skis and easily walked up those spots. Cover on entire Green, Orange, and Yellow is excellent. If we can get colder temp's at night we should have excellent skiing!
  Photos:  
  (Burgess Eberhardt)
• Mar 10 - Tilson Creek Ski Trail (International Falls):
  Conditions: 31 degrees at 8:30 am -- sun poking thru the fog.
  Hanging in there.... Trail was just stiff enough to get in a good ski! Trail coverage is still quite good and, once you ski/fall over the ruts in the green trail, the skating deck is actually quite nice on the orange trail & beyond. Trail was softening quite a bit by the time I was through at around 10 am, so recommend an early or late in the day ski. Soft trail = lots of ruts = falls from caught tips by clumsy skiers like me!
  (Teresa Stone)
• Mar 4 - Tilson Creek Ski Trail (International Falls):
  Conditions: Sunny and 19 degrees at 10:15am -- woods were still, other than the spring calls of the chickadees.
  Beautiful day at Tilson! Trail is in great shape thanks to some timely recent grooming--and has held up quite well despite the "heat" & bright sunshine of recent days. Only a few icy spots under the cedar trees (why, always under the cedars??) and on some of the south facing slopes. Firm deck + fast skis = big smiley!
  (Teresa Stone)

Minnesota Northwest

• Mar 6 - Lake Bemidji State Park (Bemidji):
  Overcast 38 degree. All trails remain skiable and are best suited for waxless skis. The mild weather is taking its toll on overall conditions. Trails are fast and icy in many spots.
  (John Fylpaa)

• Mar 12 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: Fair. Soft corn snow, areas of standing water, thin areas. Good coverage on North Loup trail. Bullhead lake trail closed.
  Took a ski out to North Loup trail this morning with the RCS Crowners after hearing reports of North Loup being the "best skiing on the trail system" yesterday. Was pleasantly surprised to find good consistent coverage throughout the entire trail. The snow was dirty and a few low areas holding lots of water but considering the weather we have gone through the past week, it was nice Springish skiing. Birds were chirping away and thought the glide was better today than Wednesday's ski. Should be skiable through the weekend and hopefully survives until the return of cooler weather and snow!
  Photos:  
  (Jay Richards, Maplelag Resort)
• Mar 11 - Rainbow Resort Trails (Waubun):
  Conditions: Very poor; cloudy; 42*F above; past 48hrs. On and off rain showers; trail base reduced to water saturated slush to bare muddy areas.
  Between the mild balmy weather at the beginning of the week to rain showers and warm temps the past couple of days the ski trails are rated as very poor to closed for skiing without the addition of any new snow fall.
  (Doug Schumann, Rainbow Resort)
• Mar 10 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: Fair. Soft corn snow, slushy spots.
  We are on 6 days of temps above freezing. Despite the warm weather and close to an inch of rain during that time, the coverage remains good. Besides a few thin areas near the start, the base average is around 5". If we could cool down at nights and freeze, the snow would last much longer but with water at the bottom of the base now, the snow could go quick. We have been skiing in the mornings on Skaters Waltz which has remained relatively firm and guests at the resort are still getting out and skiing including a group from Canada that has skied the entire 64 km trail system since Sunday.
  (Jay Richards, Maplelag Resort)
• Mar 8 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: 100% corn. Base of 3-6". Soft and slow spring skiing. Grooming last night on three classic trails and Skaters Waltz. Mid 30's. No freeze down since Friday night.
  Early morning Jake and I skied with Jack Hinkens on Skaters Waltz. Grooming last night compacted the snow making for a pretty decent ski surface but lack of freezing temps made for bit slower going. Beautiful morning ski though. Trails are holding out fine today with best skiing on trails that have been groomed daily the last 5 days. Grooming on hold until cooler weather forecasted. Skiing on the weekend looks likely but depends on forecasted rain. Thanks to everyone who came to the Lotvola Cup event. It was one of the more exciting races at the front with a group of up to 14 skiers battling position throughout the entire race until the end including a near ski into the open water on Bullhead lake!! Soft and slow conditions made it difficult for any skier to get away and the challenging snow caused skiers to auger, lose skis, etc. We have left the rope at the lake crossing on Bullhead lake until we close the trails.
  Photos:  
  (Jay Richards, Maplelag Resort)
• Mar 6 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: Plenty of snow, light rain.
  Skied late afternoon, under a light drizzle. Trails were holding up surprisingly well with firm conditions. The damp conditions made the snow a little slow, but otherwise the trails were in excellent shape. Really a lot of snow still, no thin spots (and nothing looking even remotely close to thin). Hoping for cooler, drier weather on Sunday for the Lotvola Cup.
  Photos:  
  (Bruce Adelsman)
• Mar 6 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: Fantastic spring skiing!
  All trails well groomed, 100% coverage, fast in the morning and slower as the day goes on. Come up for the Lotvola Cup 12K tour Sunday!
  (Kevin Gregerson)
• Mar 5 - Rainbow Resort Trails (Waubun):
  Conditions: Variable Trail Surface conditions; currently 28*F above and cloudy; courses for upcoming Rendezvous Race groomed late last night; 5 to 7 inch base throughout; base temp at -2.7*C; best ski snow conditions.
  The last couple of mild temp days have put us more into spring time conditions. As I was grooming last night I found that renovated surface on trail segments exposed to the sun through out the day were definitely granular with some small ice chucks prevailing on the surface however for the most part trails protected at all by forest groomed up like mid season form. Our weather forecast for Saturday is for a high of 35*F, cloudy skis, and a 20% chance of snow.
  (Doug Schumann, Rainbow Resort)
• Mar 4 - Maplelag Resort (Callaway):
  Conditions: Beautiful Springlike skiing today. Trails fast this morning than softening up with sun and warmer temps. Fresh groomed last night included Rootin Tootin, Roy’s Run and Island Lake. Grooming this morning on Mother Hen and JibFly. Trails groomed this morning getting soft and slow around noon but other trails holding firm and getting soft later. Few trails have icy sections and caution must be used on downhills. However, the snow is holding out nicely and good skiing depending on timing and right waxing/ski selection. We will be grooming again this evening on North Loup, Wavy Gravy, Mother North Star and the skating trails and touching up inner trails as well.
  The two days previous not as warm as forecasted with cloudy conditions keeping snow damage to a minimum.
  Photos:  
  (Jay Richards, Maplelag Resort)
• Mar 4 - Five Lakes Nordic (Frazee):
  Conditions: Sunny, 27 degrees, no wind, solid base with well defined corduroy.
  Skated out to the Power Line and was expecting a glazed course due to recent high temps. Was pleasantly surprised to find the course has been recently scratched with knives but not too deep to make the trail sugar snow soft. Course had great definition with very good control. Skied the entire Power Line and into the North Field. The pines, snow cover, wind protection and trail grooming was outstanding in North Field especially up the middle with the rolling hills. Skied down into the Hidden Meadow, down the Wall and back by the cabins. Should be a great weekend of skiing. Thank you.
  (Jason Sannes-Venhuizen)

• Mar 4 - Soaring Eagle Trail (Park Rapids):
  Conditions: Good spring conditions, with 4-6" base on all but a few tiny spots that are thinning. Grooming from last week is still holding up nicely.
  Beautiful spring skiing, best timed when temp is climbing above 32 or just dropping down. I skied Eagle trail today, most of it looks clean, and was great skating late afternoon. Classic skiers would need waxless or klister. There are the usual few spots catching some heavy sun, notably the sw part of Eagle.
  (Deane Johnson)

Minnesota Central

• Mar 9 - Graystone Trails (Saint Cloud):
  Conditions: Still okay Classical on N. Loop.
  Atomic RC-11 Multi's with CH-10 were great today. Still full coverage for classical, skate is covered but too soft without freezing at night.
  (Kris Anderson)
• Mar 5 - Graystone Trails (Saint Cloud):
  Conditions: Freestyle groomed Friday night, mostly still very good coverage.
  We made 2 passes of the skate lanes to smooth them out and the snow is holding up really well. A few puddles on orchard, and 1 bare spot on the hilltop on the last turn by the pisten bully barn but other than that good March skiing. Recommend using A skis on North Loop and B or C skis on the rest but in reality its just a bit of dirty snow. Classical not reworked and is fair with intermittent good to poor tracks.
  (Kris Anderson)

• Mar 7 - Vasaloppet Public Ski Area (Warman):
  Conditions: The trails were wonderful for the most part. Beaver Dam was double trackset for classical and the Lantern Loppet had both.
  We had to take the skis off and walk at times but the sheltered area in the woods was superb March skiing.
  (Dave Olson)

• Mar 7 - Wild River State Park (Center City):
  Conditions: At the right time, still good spring skiing on Sunrise end.
  Still good coverage except for one gap in the first open area beyond the bridge. Much softer today than yesterday. If it gets below freezing tonight there should still be a window tomorrow-11:00 to 1:00 has been the best skiing.
  (Mike Chrun)
• Mar 6 - Wild River State Park (Center City):
  Conditions: Overall pretty good.
  Skated Pioneer Loop: only a couple of thin spots. Moved on to the advanced loop. Take your skis off at the bench on top of the hill once you get into the open near the Breezy Valley backpack camping spot: major bare spots on the downhill, and you can't see them until it's almost tool late. Also had to "skortage" up the hill to the Aspen Knob backpack site. A fine March afternoon!
  (Bryan Lueth)
• Mar 5 - Sibley State Park (New London):
  Conditions: Very good for skate. Looked good on the classic trails.
  The skate trails had all been recently groomed...think crumbles, not corduroy, and were soft enough on top to easily go through that, while very firm underneath with no icy spots. There was excellent coverage throughout, and the skating was great. It looks like the classic tracks were groomed in some places, not everywhere. I'd guess your best bet will be waxless with these temps. The coverage looked good in all the spots I checked out.
  (Margie Rock)
• Mar 4 - Wild River State Park (Center City):
  Conditions: Good to Fair. We still have a good base on wooded trails with a few open patches out in the prairie. Tracks are firm and icy in the morning but soften up for good skiing in the afternoon. Groomed Amador prairie and advanced ski loops for skate. Coverage is good except in a few spots on west side of prairie and on one south facing up hill stretch on the advanced ski trails.
  Will Be grooming the Pioneer Loop flat for skaters Early friday Morning
  Might be the last week end of the season so come on out.
  Remember, ski trail passes are required. Daily ski passes are sold at the park.
  (Shawn Donais)

Minnesota Southern

• Mar 8 - Saint Mary's University (Winona):
  Conditions: Fair.
  Base on main trails is still quite deep. Surface Monday morning was soft, with occasional icy spots or debris and only very rare thin spots. Overall fair skiing conditions. First section of Rattlesnake is poor; access Rattlesnake from the Orchard cut-off, and the rest is fine. Classic tracks remain on most trails. Spur from upper parking lot to bridge getting icy, but then trails are actually pretty fair.
  (Tom Stoa)
• Mar 6 - Saint Mary's University (Winona):
  Groomed skate trails except upper trails around ball fields on Saturday morning.
  (John Keane)
• Mar 5 - Saint Mary's University (Winona):
  Conditions: Very soft, no bare spots.
  Mid-afternoon the tracks and trail was very soft. Since there were no skiers, I reset all classic tracks. The tracks should be excellent Saturday morning. We are planning to groom the skate lanes between 8-9AM on Saturday morning. Skiing will be fast but outstanding...don't miss it.
  (Bruce Johnson)
• Mar 5 - Great River Bluffs State Park (Winona):
  Conditions: Very good spring conditions.
  Trails were groomed Wednesday. Solid base with virtually no thin spots, hard ice or debris. Very good spring conditions (somewhat icy in the early morning, very soft in late afternoon, with a few hours just perfect in between.) Classic only.
  (Tom Stoa)
• Mar 4 - Saint Mary's University (Winona):
  Conditions: Good base, no bare spots or solid ice.
  I groomed all trails this morning. I am able to scratch out old ski marks and get a fair amount of loose snow on a very hard base. The classic track is very hard and about week old, but skiable. The skate lanes are is very good condition despite the warm up. The best time to ski is mid-afternoon when the snow has softened.
  (Bruce Johnson)

• Mar 6 - Cannon Valley Trail (Welch):
  Conditions: Predictably wet and slow. 37 degrees and sunny. Trail groomed for skating - which I did - with skier-laid track for classic, which washed out in sunnier areas. Used Fastwax Yellow LF.
  Decided to to complete the Cannon Falls to Welch circuit I started yesterday before the rain. The trail is less shaded here then the other end coming out of Cannon Falls so that seemed to slow things considerably. But still some really pretty sections right along the river. I did 10 miles in I think about an hour and 40 minutes but it was a real struggle for much of the trip. I met three classic skiers close to Welch and one trail runner.
  (Keith Carlson)
• Mar 5 - Cannon Valley Trail (Cannon Falls):
  Conditions: Excellent for this time of year. 42 degrees and sunny. Trail appeared to be groomed for skating - which I did - with skier-laid track for classic. Some walker damage within first mile of ball park trail access. And soft/slightly rutted around 3 mile marker. Used Fastwax Yellow LF.
  There's still great skiing out there. Nearly three months into the season, I'm wondering after today's ski what's going to give out first - the snow or my knees. I'm going to have to ice them tonight. But it was worth it. There's a great base here and practically nobody skates it. Mine were the only tracks after the 3.5 mile mark. The scenery and peace and quiet is great and with the Fastwax Yellow LF I moved surprisngly well. I did 5.5 to 6.5 miles in an hour and 20 minutes with 2 stops for pics and 3 to answer work-related phone calls. (Bluffs didn't quite block out these little summons "back to reality.") Things were so nice I didn't even mind the face-plant when I caught a tip in the soft snow on the edge of the trail. Great afternoon.
  Photos:  
  (Keith Carlson)

• Mar 12 - Hormel Nature Center (Austin):
  Conditions: Fair.
  The lower trails behind the building are flooded. The snow is soft, but still very skiable. They plowed the trail out to the sugar shack but left a thin layer of ice/slush which makes it very fast skiing. The trails will no longer be groomed this season.
  (Kyle Dammen)

Wisconsin Northwest

• Mar 13 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Rain does not make for happy ski trails...yet the Birkie trail is holding its own -- yea groomers!
  I started at the North End Cabin, skied south to the Kortie cut-off and headed toward Telemark. The Kortie is very skiable, in fact, the Telemark trail system is in good shape -- much cleaner / whiter snow than on the Birkie trail. There is a healthy 8 inches of snow on the trails, even on the power-line and the Supertour World Cup Loops. Fun spring skiing indeed!
  (Bruce Manske)
• Mar 12 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Nice Spring Skiing on the Birkie and North End Trails.
  The North End Trails have a 4-8 inch base. I skied south for 10 kilometers up and over High Point and then back again -- a 21 K afternoon -- it was sweet! Even the Powerline is well covered. I plan to ski the 23 K Kortie loop tomorrow, elite wave here I come!
  (Bruce Manske)
• Mar 11 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Very skiable!
  Greetings from Hayward -- don't put those skis away yet -- Hail to the Birkie groomers, who packed the trails way back in November! I skied 16 k today from Mosquito Brook traveling north and conditions got better with each kilometer. There is snow from 1 inch to 8 inches with very little dirt or ice or puddles. Lots of sticks, pine needles, and pine cone, and a few GU packets but only two hills exposed to the sun narrowed the trails. I skied on my "B" skis, because I do not have rock skis and it was a blast. I do not suggest kicking but skating was a true spring delight. Perhaps a coat of SkiGo 242 with silicone would have improved the ride...maybe a quick rilling too. Yes, it rained for two days but the trails are still calling for skiers. Oh yeah, I know the runners are itching to hit the trails but if I could ski for a week or so yet, perhaps the Elite Wave will call me out! Enjoy!
  (Bruce Manske)
• Mar 11 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Wet and warm.
  Skied the south end this morning. Birkie trail took a hit this week. I had to ski around puddles and brown spots. Also tried not to pole too hard where it's soft, but it still beats rollerskiing or cycling. Still on good skis this morning.
  (Joel Harrison, New Moon Ski Shop)
• Mar 9 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Fabulous spring skiing with 100% coverage on North end.
  Accessed Birkie trail via North End trails in Cable. Unreal surface for skating. Perfectly groomed and flat allowing for great technique. Sure it's slowed down with warmer temps but skiing in a shirt in 50 degrees on an incredible course after oatmeal in the morning? Priceless!
  (Dan Olsen)
• Mar 8 - Telemark Resort Trails (Cable):
  Conditions: Very good/excellent.
  Plenty of snow in woods, groomed Sunday night. Birkie loops in great shape for skate and classic.
  (Larry Myhra)
• Mar 7 - Telemark Resort Trails (Cable):
  Conditions: Lots of snow beautifully groomed.
  Perfect klister skiing Sunday on the North End single track trail and skate skiing Monday on Telemark & Kortie trails.
  (Tom Dunaway)
• Mar 7 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Very good. Skied from the Brook past Hatchery to Hwy 77. The only places showing deterioration was a couple of places under some heavily pined areas.
  Fabulous day for some spring skiing.
  (Marian Hedman)
• Mar 6 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: 46F and fabulous at 2:00PM! Lavishly covered and recently groomed from the North End to Lindskoog.
  Seems everyone's 'skied out' for some of the best skiing of the year! The trail's never been better and it's impossible to imagine 8000 skiers on this trail just last weekend. I left the 6th pair of tracks and saw just 5 other skiers in 90 minutes of blissful sunshine! Shadows were cold, frozen and crusty, while the sun exposed areas were soft and slow (pink fastwax). No need for rock skis here!
  Photos:  
  (Randy Zarecki)
• Mar 6 - Heartwood Ski Trails (Trego):
  Conditions: Fair to good skate.
  Still holding up for skating but deteriorating fast. Classic tracks nearly gone.
  (Dave McAlpine)
• Mar 4 - Birkie Trail (Hayward):
  Conditions: Excellent spring skiing!
  Skate skied from the Powerline to 9K and back on the Birkie and Korte trails after work. The Birkie trail was groomed and track set last night. The skiing was great. Easy to get an edge and fast. The tracks are glazed and very firm. Korte trail did not appear to have been groomed since the Birkie, but was easy to skate and the tracks looked good. I had wondered what the trail would be like after the warm weather this week. I found that the race could easily be held this weekend as conditions should remain excellent. The Birkie Trail has been groomed and track set from the Powerline to Mosquito Brook. The Classic Trail has been groomed and a track set from OO north to Boedecker. The Classic trail is fine except some of the downhill corners are still washed out, but the trail should still be fun for striding. The trail will again be groomed Saturday night.
  (Ned Zuelsdorff, American Birkebeiner)

• Mar 10 - After Hours Ski Trail (Brule):
  Conditions: Depending on time of day...poor to fair.
  Unless a new snow dumps down on us we are not planning on grooming due to the warm conditions.
  (Catherine Khalar, Wisconsin DNR)
• Mar 6 - After Hours Ski Trail (Brule):
  Conditions: Excellent! Tons of snow!
  The groomers and race organizers did an excellent job of getting the course ready for the race today! The skate and classic were both in excellent shape. During the race portions in the sun warmed up and got soft and "stoppy" and those under the trees stayed nice and fast. Its most definitely worth the drive from anywhere to ski at After Hours!
  (Eve Stein)
• Mar 5 - After Hours Ski Trail (Brule):
  The Riverview Loppet will be going on at the Afterhours Trails on Saturday morning beginning at 10:00 a.m. The trails are to be groomed later this afternoon.
  (Catherine Khalar, Wisconsin DNR)
• Mar 5 - After Hours Ski Trail (Brule):
  Trail is in very good condition and the DNR has been grooming in the early morning hours to prepare for the River View Loppet race, which is tomorrow (Sat) morning. It is expected to be 20 degrees at 6am and 27 degrees at 9am. At noon, 40 degrees and party cloudy. Race starts at 10am. Snow has been running colder than you might think, so it will be fast and fun!
  (Borg Isaksen)

• Mar 11 - Montreal Trails (Montreal):
  Trail conditions are poor. Temps are in the 50s and climbing snow depth is depleting fast.
  (Jessica Bolich)
• Mar 8 - Montreal Trails (Montreal):
  Currently with temps in the 50s during the day, the track is melting. There is snow on the trail, it is icy in the mornings because temps are colders at night. Please use caution while out there.
  (Jessica Bolich)
• Mar 5 - Montreal Trails (Montreal):
  Montreal Trails have been groomed weekly all season. Reported to be in good condition. Enjoy the weekend.
  (Jessica Bolich)

• Mar 14 - Timberland Hills (Cumberland):
  Conditions: Like almost everywhere in the region, Timberland rapidly went from good conditions to nothing. There's some snow left in the woods but it's marginal.
  More snow may come but it's doubtful we will groom - stay posted. Thanks for a great season! The trails are open for hiking throughout the summer - no motorized vehicles.
  (Louis Muench)
• Mar 6 - Balsam Branch Trails (Amery):
  Conditions: Pretty darn good.
  I skied the classic track and it was fun spring skiing. I started about noon and things were just losing their glaze. A couple of thin spots but no problems avoiding the grass. I was clocked on my nose as I was not paying attn to the trail- I was watching my skis and whacko! A small tree had fallen and it was leaning over the trail about 5 feet up. Made for a quick wake up call.
  (Dan Murphy)
• Mar 5 - Balsam Branch Trails (Amery):
  Conditions: Spring skiing.
  The trails are good until you come to the segments that have been driven on by an ATV. The syrup makers are putting out pails along the trail. Even on the ATV rutted trail, I managed to stay upright. Skied this afternoon around 4PM. The trails are soft, but no bare spots and the track remains intact. If conditions get worse, there are always the new snowshoe trails to hike.
  (Michelle Stone)

• Mar 13 - Tower Ridge Ski Area (Eau Claire):
  Conditions: Done for the season.
  Last week there were many cars in the lot in the morning before it got too warm. The trails could have stood up to a few warm days, but not an entire week.
  Photos:  
  (Bob Schwartz)
• Mar 6 - Tower Ridge Ski Area (Eau Claire):
  Conditions: Good remaining snow cover.
  If you time it right there is very good skiing still to be had. Snow cover is good with only widely scattered bare spots and slush ice. Trails are holding up well under the warm temperatures.
  (Bob Schwartz)

• Mar 7 - Camp Forest Springs (Westboro):
  Conditions: Very good in the morning; becoming too soft and slow in the afternoon. Tracks becoming indistinct and soft in the sunny areas, glazed over in shady areas.
  I think we're done grooming for the season. Probably done skiing here except for crust skiing in the surrounding fields!
  (Scott Everson)

• Mar 13 - Troll Hollow (Dresser):
  Conditions: For my mid-morning skate ski with temperatures 40-42 degrees, I experienced relatively hard, crusty and somewhat icy conditions, rather gritty and dirty, despite having just been groomed. Generally perhaps a foot or more of very granular, rain-impregnated snow covers the trail and it wasn't too soft anywhere, just a few small places where it had puddled. No significant bare spots except on the short section below the Troll Hollow sign.
  Free skiing today after Chili Bowl race was called off. I certainly would not have wanted to try the classic portion of the pursuit race in these conditions. For skating, I got a great workout and found it much better for climbing than downhill. (Foolishly I tried to keep up with some faster, Birkie-tested skiers on one downhill and managed to slam my lip into the crusty snow--not the softest landing, but it could have been a lot worse!)
  A couple of downhill skiers told me it was a bit icy for turning, even though their runs looked softer than Troll Hollow.
  Rollie told me that they do plan to keep the trail open until March 21. I think that just might be possible if there isn't any more rain or too much sun. Rollie, you get an A for effort!
  (Wayne Federer)
• Mar 6 - Troll Hollow (Dresser):
  Conditions: Holding up nicely.
  Although I could have found some skiing closer to home, I feel somewhat obligated to get out to Troll Hollow because they always make an effort to provide skiing when others can't. The conditions were fast and firm. I was the only cross country skier on the trails. The atmosphere is always great at Trollhaugen. Lots of boarders performing tricks; and lots of little kids taking lessons while out on skis for the first time. And then there's Rollie! Great fun!
  (Mike Jorgensen)
• Mar 5 - Willow River State Park (Hudson):
  Conditions: Surprisingly good and clean skate track. Some easily avoidable burn-throughs in the classic track.
  Went out for an early lunch ski around 11:15 (air temp around 36F) and found that the crust had nicely thawed on the skate track. The snow started to soften and slow by the time I stopped an hour later. I didn't ski all of the trails but talked with someone who had skied the parts that I hadn't and he reported the same conditions.
  (Burt Levy)
• Mar 4 - Willow River State Park (Hudson):
  Conditions: Campground loop had a little debris, otherwise in pretty good shape.
  I went around 4pm today. Best time to go. The snow starts to harden up and there is just enough grip and glide. It was great!
  (Ginny Ballantine)

Wisconsin Northeast

• Mar 11 - Bass Lake (Lake Tomahawk):
  Conditions: Classic: very skiable.
  The trails are fading fast in the great Northwoods of Wisconsin- 2 days now with temps above freezing at night. I skated McNaughton this morning and was a lot of fun but probably the last time. So I tried the snowmobile trail behind Bass Lake and found it to be very skiable for striding. Dottie thought so too.
  Photos:  
  (Greg Dahl)
• Mar 10 - Minocqua Winter Park Nordic Center (Minocqua):
  Conditions: Fair.
  Haven't gotten new snow for quite some time. Warm temperatures are starting to take their toll and have prevented grooming since Sunday. Debris on the trails however still very few bare spots - 95% of the trails remain open. Come out before the seasons over!
  (Bryn Meyer)
• Mar 7 - Minocqua Winter Park Nordic Center (Minocqua):
  Conditions: Day after the races and still plenty of snow. Some regrooming and all in great shape for both classic and skating.
  Even late in the day (when the chalet thermometer read a sunny 55 degrees) the trails in the woods were firm and fairly fast. Of course, those on the treeless sunny trails were wet and slower. There was full coverage except very, very few tiny melted spots you could easily step around.
  (Don Fariss)
• Mar 6 - Northwood Golf Course (Rhinelander):
  Conditions: Very nice spring skiing for skate. Old glazed track.
  Groomed this morning and plan is to groom again on Sunday morning. Excellent spring skiing for skate. Softened up by about 11:00.
  (Ruth Jaeger)
• Mar 6 - Anvil National Recreation Trail (Eagle River):
  Conditions: Very nice.
  Skied the Butternut, Nine Mile, Lake Loop, and Devils Run at the peak of the heat of the day at 2 PM and the trail was holding up well. Some grooming had been done last week and the tracks were firm and not sticky.
  (Dan Hinch)
• Mar 4 - Washburn Lake Ski Trails (Woodboro):
  Conditions: Great!
  Hard and fast for skating, a few patches of icy snow from the melt yesterday. Groomed Wednesday. Lots of snow left up north.
  (Judy Archibald)

• Mar 8 - Nine Mile Forest (Wausau):
  Conditions: Melted.
  Monday notice posted, closed for the season.
  (Yang Vang)
• Mar 7 - Underdown Recreation Area (Irma):
  Conditions: Poor to pretty darn good.
  Scary fast and icy before the trails softened later in the morning. Lots of snow on Loop Road. Should be good for a while yet. Regular classic trails had few bare patches on south facing slopes mixed with fairly good tracks in other places. Rode Rossa klister over bare bases worked o.k. but was abraded off in short order. Rex Grip Tape with a thin layer of Swix Universal klister though worked fantastic and lasted for the whole 10k ski on my youngest son's skis.
  Photos:  
  (George Cleveland)
• Mar 6 - Standing Rocks Park (Stevens Point):
  Conditions: Still skiable.
  Trails have not been regroomed since last weekend. Lodge closed. It looks pretty bad by the parking lot, ice and bare ground, but some good skiing can still be had, especially beyond Tower Road. Bare spots still avoidable, but rock skis advisable. Classic tracks look okay for the most part. Watch out for the nasty sheet of ice at the bottom of a downhill near Northwest Passage. It can be avoided by cutting over to the inner loops. Get out early, beat the slush!
  (Mindy Borchardt)
• Mar 5 - Nine Mile Forest (Wausau):
  Conditions: Excellent skating, not so good for striding.
  Went out before the thaw this morning, fantastic! Trails were newly lightly tilled,saving the icy base but making it fast and safe. The tracks looked not so good, not reset, dirty snow and some bare spots. I used my good skis without fear, just taking them off to cross the road on Leo's Loop and taking the bypass at the one steep south-facing climb, which was almost bare.
  (Mindy Borchardt)
• Mar 4 - Nine Mile Forest (Wausau):
  Conditions: Very good spring conditions.
  I arrived late afternoon and thought I had missed the peak time of day. Boy I had an excellent 20k loop. There was a firm, fast base under some loose groomed snow, very controllable on the downhills (mornings may be different). A few slushier areas on the sunbaked exposed sections, some slightly icier in the densely forested stretches. Overall excellent. They will be grooming through the weekend.
  (Randy Ruege)

• Mar 11 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Skied from 4:30 to 5:30, classic waxless. Trail is 30% grey corn, 2% blue ice, limited open areas so far but I see an end to continuous loops coming on Friday. There are a few trail width iced bottom puddles but those have not slushed up yet. The base was still hard and frozen. Air temp was 42 and it was quite foggy and raining gently.
  I strided out on some waxless rockers and it was fun with glide and kick. Skating would have been good too. Now, I will admit the visual is somewhat depressing...
  (Scott Putman)
• Mar 9 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Poor, icy, foggy.
  I fear for the skis of anyone who reports after me! Alas, there are only 267 days until December 1.
  (Erick Wikum)
• Mar 9 - Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve (Green Bay):
  Conditions: 31F, remnant tracks, ice, bare sections.
  The end has come quickly for these trail. There is still snow under my Clandestine Snow Stick but bare spots are forming fast. 91 skiable days on these trails. Bye Bye Barkhausen.
  Photos:  
  (Mark Ernst)
• Mar 8 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Icy and soft.
  Probably the last day of classic skiing for me at the camp unless we get another big snowfall. Tracks were getting bare although still pretty good in some places. Icy at 9am but by 11am it was getting mushy. More dirt and bare spots too.
  (Paul Jaffe)
• Mar 8 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Skate skied from 4:30 to 6. Trail was covered so you could ski a full loop but the usual places were starting to open up.
  About 5:15 the base started to crust up a bit and it got to be perfect, fast, good edge. My guess is tomorrow from 8am to about 11 and then about 5 to 7 should be great again.
  (Scott Putman)
• Mar 6 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: 32F and going up up up. Groomed skate lanes and twin tracked on all the classic trails. Icy tranforming to slush.
  Beautiful day! Sun, calm and warm. The Bay Nordic Youth Leauge has their season finale ski and cookout. Lots of skiers, good skiing. Snow is amazing. 10" left in the woods means we still have a while to go.
  (Mark Ernst)
• Mar 6 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: 30 degrees warming to 40. Generally good to very good with some "fair" spots.
  Skate skied the Maple loop from 9:45 to 11:30 by the second lap things were getting soft and slow. Some icy/slushy areas developing but still very skiable. Probably my last report for this year, time to get on the bike!
  (Andy Maracini)
• Mar 5 - Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve (Green Bay):
  Conditions: 27F Icy sun eroded tracks. Crust skiing stellar.
  Crust Deux, The tracks are pretty marginal (until it softens) but the crust is just fabs. Ponds are in good shape with minimal snow loss yet. Early or late the crust is great.
  Photos:  
  (Mark Ernst)
• Mar 4 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Very good spring skiing. 36F at the start, just at freezing at the end. Skate skied 4 to 6. Skate lane flat, quite consistent and fast. New tracks set all around today. Other side of skate trail combed out with the G2.
  Several grey spots but limited base loss so far. I have a pair of klistered up skis for those new tracks tomorrow!
  (Scott Putman)
• Mar 4 - Reforestation Camp (Green Bay):
  Conditions: Fair to good.
  Fresh grooming and careful timing made for an enjoyable ski. Snow coverage remains mostly good. The hillside where Maples rejoins Birches near the house will soon be problematic. Tracks are holding up well.
  (Erick Wikum)
• Mar 4 - Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve (Green Bay):
  Conditions: 24-32F sun icy rutted tracks. Wunderbar crust.
  At last Crust Season has arrived. Barkhausen has dozens of small lakes and ponds with superbulous crust skiing, just don't go too late. By 10:00am it was softening fast. Fun in the sun.
  Photos:  
  (Mark Ernst)

• Mar 6 - Cherry Hills Nordic Center (Sturgeon Bay):
  Conditions: Very good spring skating! Trails were groomed at 2 am (yes- while you were sleeping). I skied at 9:45am trails were fast, but slowed down considerably by 11:30am.
  Those that skated before me had it at its best. I will definitely ski earlier tomorrow. It's amazing that the trails are holding up so well... warm temps and no new snow since I can't remember when.
  Photos:  
  (Chesla Seely-Anschutz)
• Mar 5 - Peninsula State Park (Fish Creek):
  Conditions: Poor to fair. Extremely icy in the mornings, better skiing at mid-day.
  Many bare spots, but still skiable - probably time for the rock skis. The conditions are better than expected for the weather we have had recently.
  (Casey St. Henry)
• Mar 5 - Potawatomi State Park (Sturgeon Bay):
  Conditions: Fair for striding and good for skating. Last groomed Tuesday night March 2nd.
  Coverage is still 100% and you can use good skis. Striding track is icy so bring klister. Skate lane is flat, fast and fun.
  (Karl Schroeder)
• Mar 5 - Peninsula State Park (Fish Creek):
  Conditions: Crust skiing - excellent.
  The crust skiing season has arrived! Skied from 9:00-10:30 this morning on the upper golf course off Highland Rd. Plenty of snow with only a few bare spots. Thanks to Mother Nature, her thermal grooming is at it's best. Temps in upper 30's to lower 40's during the day with plenty of sunshine, followed by temps in mid to lower 20's at night. Don't miss this last of the season opportunity. Checked out Middle Road - plenty of snow and a number of ski tracks, but it is so unfortunate that they couldn't be groomed this winter.
  (Rich Dirks)
• Mar 4 - Cherry Hills Nordic Center (Sturgeon Bay):
  Conditions: Excellent Skate Skiing. Freshly groomed trail. Great coverage. No bare spots in sight.
  Timing is everything. Was able to ski from 10:30-1:00. Track remained firm the entire time. Excellent crust skiing.
  (Gary Machlett)
• Mar 4 - Cherry Hills Nordic Center (Sturgeon Bay):
  Conditions: Flat, fast and hard during cold portion of the day (night). Full coverage yet.
  I had to get in a post Birkie ski early this morning (or should I call it late last night?). It was cold enough that everything was frozen pretty hard and not easy to get an edge but I suspect it has been a totally different scene during the warm temperatures of the day. Get out and enjoy the last of the trails while we still have them!
  (Janelle Peotter)

• Mar 9 - Governor Thompson State Park (Crivitz):
  Conditions: Poor.
  After several days above 50 degrees the trails are fading. I skied this morning and I had to walk in, as both entry trails had too many bare spots. The inside loop is also in rough shape with several icy patches. Trails are now open to hikers and dogs. Thanks for the great ski season!
  (Maggie Kailhofer)
• Mar 7 - Lauterman National Recreation Trail (Florence):
  Conditions: Very good.
  I wasn't expecting much today at 50 degrees but the deep woods of Lauterman did not disappoint. Nice glide, a few bare spots under the conifers but easy to ski around. Untouched since last grooming in mid-February. Track visible and deep in some areas. Get out there this week!
  (Dan Hinch)
• Mar 5 - Spring Rapids Trail (Crivitz):
  Conditions: Skating - good as long as you do it before noon. Classic tracks are melting fast.
  It looks like the grooming that was done on March 1st will be the last for the 2009-2010 season. Thanks to everyone who skied and donated their money to the Spring Rapids Trail this year. See you in 2010-2011.
  (Sara Pearson, Wisconsin DNR)
• Mar 4 - Lakewood XC Ski Trails (Lakewood):
  Conditions: The trail is still 100% snow covered.
  Lloyd went out Thursday night and groomed from the Golf Course to the new parking lot. It should be great for a couple of days. Come to our chili ski social Saturday, Mar 6th, from 11:00 to 2:00.
  (Fred Axelrod)
• Mar 4 - Governor Thompson State Park (Crivitz):
  Conditions: Fun!
  I state skied the whole system this today. The skate lane is holding up very well to the warm weather. There are thin spots on the entries, a little but narrow spot by the equipment shed and its getting a little thin on top of the hilly trail-however I was still on my good skis and I did not have to take them off at all. The track is still good too.
  (Maggie Kailhofer)

Wisconsin Southwest

• Mar 4 - Justin Trails Resort (Sparta):
  Don groomed valley trails last night. Base is good. Depending on time of day skiing, the trails can be hard or soft depending on the temperature. Blue sky skiing is awesome in March.
  (Donna Justin)

• Mar 10 - Wildcat Mountain State Park (Ontario):
  Trail conditions are poor due to warm weather and rain. We still have a base of 3 - 5 inches.
  (Ron Campbell)

• Mar 7 - Levis/Trow Mound Trail (Neillsville):
  Conditions: Fun fast spring skiing.
  Hit the trails at 7:30 a.m. to catch the window of great skiing. Skied yesterday with groomer Dean who had groomed Friday night for three hours to make for a great weekend of skiing both skate and classic. Would like to thank all are volunteer groomers for making this a special ski season. The old lady is singing louder as several holes are opening and getting bigger with some exposed rocks. Rock skis advised or be careful. Thanks again!
  (Mark Sproul)
• Mar 5 - Levis/Trow Mound Trail (Neillsville):
  Conditions: Still great!
  Hard to believe great skiing with the temps so warm, waxless classic skiing as been great and the skate deck is in really good shape with only a few open holes. Recently groomed with new cord.
  (Mark Sproul)

Wisconsin Southeast

• Mar 8 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Conditions: Soft and slow at 11 AM at near 50 degrees.
  Skated red loop, and, according to another skier just leaving, it was better earlier in the morning. Still no bare spots and very little debris. Fun but slow and pretty arduous up the hills.
  Photos:  
  (Mike O'Brien)
• Mar 7 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Conditions: Soft and slow.
  Skated red trail about 1:30 in 42 sunny degrees. No bare spots or debris, and classic tracks looked decent. Fun but slow going on soft snow, particularly uphill.
  (Mike O'Brien)
• Mar 6 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Great skiing at Greenbush this morning. The groomer had been out and the skate track was solid with a bit of loose snow on top. Toward the end of our ski the sun exposed areas were getting soft. The down hills were fast and the down hill turns had a little chatter to them. My wife used the classic track and it was in generally good condition. The snow was hard on her wax and she did need to re-wax. All areas had complete coverage with no exposed dirt.
  (Jim Van Akkeren)
• Mar 6 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Conditions: Tracks holding up, degrading in the open though. Skate deck scraped by skis on the downhills but doable. Recent grooming has helped a lot.
  Nordic heaven in March! Got off the snow about 10:40 and it was getting soft already. Klister worked it's magic. Even chatted with a skater on half of the purple loop.
  (Mike Rhoades)
• Mar 6 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Conditions: Icy but very nice.
  Skated purple loop about 10 AM, sunny and near 40 degrees. Trail was well groomed with no debris or bare spots, but the snow was icy on the downhills and in the sunny areas. Classic track looked good.
  (Mike O'Brien)
• Mar 6 - Evergreen/Maywood (Sheboygan):
  Skate track has been freshly groomed.
  (Jim Van Akkeren)
• Mar 5 - Zillmer Ski Trails (Campbellsport):
  Conditions: Start temp 15F at 8:20, end temp 32F at 10:00. No wind. Icy track, only a few ice rinks near the pines. Frozen skater scars on the deck made downhills a challenge.
  Awesome! Rainbowed Zillmer for the first time this season. Used waxless, but will kick some klister tommorrow!
  (Mike Rhoades)
• Mar 5 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Conditions: Spring skiing at it's best! Morning grooming made for great skating conditions.
  Thanks Jeff & Terry for all the grooming this week!
  (Kathy Janikowski)
• Mar 5 - Evergreen/Maywood (Sheboygan):
  Conditions: All areas exposed to the sun yesterday were hard and crusty this morning. The wooded areas still have soft snow. I did not ski the Maywood side because it gets a lot of sun exposure and tends to get icy. There was still complete coverage on the Evergreen side, however there is a large patch of dirt in the trail as you make the turn on the northeast corner. Also, just past the bridge, as you head toward the Maywood cut-off, there is just a narrow ribbon of snow. Crust skiing in the field by the parking lot was fantastic!
  Today set a personal record in number of skis for a season; 46, with more to come this weekend. Not bad for a working stiff living in an urban area during an El Nino year.
  (Jim Van Akkeren)
• Mar 4 - Greenbush Ski Trails (Greenbush):
  Awesome! Went from 8-9:30 this morning. Little icy, but very good skiing! Lots of snow still left there! Groomer was just going through as I was leaving.
  (Leah Rebne)
• Mar 4 - Evergreen/Maywood (Sheboygan):
  Conditions: Spring skiing can be some of the best and this morning was one of those great spring ski days. The skate track had been groomed late last night or very early this morning and was a thing of beauty again. With the 1/4 inch of churned up snow over a solid base the trail feels like it pulls you along. There is still complete coverage though the northeast corner is showing dirt and along the new condos on the south section of the trail there is bare ground encroaching on the trail.
  Thanks to the groomers for doing such a great job.
  (Jim Van Akkeren)

• Mar 11 - Monona Golf Course (Madison):
  Conditions: Poor but skiable.
  Still significant stretches of snow this morning. The trail that climbs the hill along the tree line on the south side (just north of the LaFollette playing fields) still has plenty of cover, though it's really icy. That might soften up and become good.
  (Pete Anderson)
• Mar 11 - Blue Mound State Park (Blue Mounds):
  Conditions: Surprisingly fair to good.
  42F 6am skated the main loop and did not encounter any bare spots - still 6" base in the woods soft and slow but beats the alternative.
  (Dan Dudley)
• Mar 9 - Elver Park (Madison):
  Conditions: Good for skating at 6am, 36F.
  Surprisingly very skiable and no need for rock skis as yet. I skied the north end only this morning - firm base still but warm enough to get great edges and surprisingly fast. Had too much fun here did not get over to the south side. Only a couple of bare spots but easy to go around.
  (Dan Dudley)
• Mar 7 - Lake Kegonsa State Park (Stoughton):
  Conditions: Fair classic and skate.
  Got there mid-morning as things were softening up. Skate lane pretty smooth, tracks fairly deep. Pretty good spring conditions, but you've got to catch it right-- soft enough to edge, firm enough to not rut it up.
  (Pete Anderson)
• Mar 6 - Mirror Lake State Park (Baraboo):
  Conditions: Good spring conditions classic and skate.
  You can have great crust skiing on Mirror Lake until it starts to soften in the sun, then go out on the trails. Conditions icy and a little rutted, but pretty good for 45 degree days. Classic track still in pretty good shape, as is skate lane. Klister for sure.
  (Pete Anderson)
• Mar 5 - Mirror Lake State Park (Baraboo):
  Conditions: Excellent.
  Had the good fortune of getting out at 10am. The temps were just starting to soften up the track. They had groomed the skate lanes at Hastings, Fern Dell, and Turtleville and the skiing was fantastic. Went over to Ishnalla which was not groomed, but it did not matter because the footing was just as good. We have over 12" of total ground cover, and a 6" to 8" base. The only place that was bare was the bottom of the hill out on the Ishnalla loop that faces directly south full sun. The tracks all looked good, very little debris. A lot of great skiing left.
  (Dave Statz)
• Mar 5 - Maple Bluff Golf Course (Maple Bluff):
  Conditions: Good for crust.
  Crust skiing mighty fine this morning, just go wide of the originally groomed area (avoiding sand traps and any other roped off areas of course).
  (Jim Bolton)

• Mar 12 - Lapham Peak (Delafield):
  Rough skiing on man made loop, still 1-2 feet in most places. Heard it may be groomed both Saturday and Sunday morning. Dirty in spots. Good hard workout.
  (Matthew Stanke)
• Mar 8 - Scuppernong (Eagle):
  Conditions: Good double-track classic skiing.
  Still good skiing. Tracks quite solid and firm despite mid-40s. Near complete cover (Red Tr), just a couple of easily avoided small bare patches on the Observation Loop. Very little debris.
  (Phil Van Valkenberg)
• Mar 7 - Lapham Peak (Delafield):
  Conditions: Great on the manmade loops (1-3 foot base), getting fair-poor elsewhere (1-4") with many bare spots emerging. Upper loops are better than lower non-manmade loop.
  The manmade loops should be fine for a while, but the other trails days are numbered. Unfortunately due to the high traffic of skiers and somewhat lesser snow than everywhere else this winter, Lapham will be the first to go. I would used rock skis at this point.
  (Matthew Stanke)
• Mar 7 - Nordic Ski Trail (La Grange):
  Conditions: Spring conditions. 90% excellent, 9% good, 1% icy with a few bare spots. 2-6" base, more in a few spots.
  The meltdown is in full swing now, but good skiing can be had in the late afternoons after 4 p.m. I would used rock skis now. Watch out for the first south facing hill on the blue (rocks) and scattered spots on the white and south hilly blue (very icy and tricky).
  (Matthew Stanke)
• Mar 7 - Lapham Peak (Delafield):
  Conditions: Still good – but starting to deteriorate.
  Skated from about 8:30 to 10:00 this morning. The skate lanes were in good shape but the classic track looked icy. Some additional bare and thin patches were beginning to show since yesterday and there was sporadic ice as well. But the majority of the trail system was in good shape. Downhills, including the Big Slide, were wicked fast!
  (Steven Latham)
• Mar 6 - Lapham Peak (Delafield):
  Conditions: Excellent (mostly).
  Pictures from today say it all. Awesome job again by DNR groomers! Thank you.
  Photos:  
  (Jim Bolton)
• Mar 6 - Nordic Ski Trail (La Grange):
  Conditions: Exciting skating and striding.
  Should have gotten out earlier. Had to deal with the hair raising transitions from light to shade. Trails were well groomed with good cover and control everywhere. Control was key with constant transit from killer fast in shadows to draggy in the sun. Great to be skiing in March.
  (Phil Van Valkenberg)
• Mar 6 - McMiller (Eagle):
  Conditions: Fantastic. Very fast; enlarging icy patches. Started to soften around 10 am.
  Fields were solid and fast too.
  Photos:  
  (John Pehoski)
• Mar 6 - Lapham Peak (Delafield):
  Conditions: Very nice - especially early in the morning.
  Arrived at Lapham about 7:30am to find the trails well groomed and in excellent condition. There were just a couple of bare spots starting to show in South Field and up top on the blue trail – easily avoidable. Otherwise, coverage seemed very good. By around 10:30am the south facing hills were beginning to get quite soft.
  (Steven Latham)
• Mar 6 - McMiller (Eagle):
  Conditions: Very good.
  Skated the green loop twice. It was very good at 10am. Just a few icy spots. Getting slushy closer to noon. Groomers have done a great job considering the warm temps this week Great job.
  (Steve Kelley)
• Mar 6 - Lac Lawrann Conservancy (West Bend):
  Good in shady areas and in woodlands; thin base and icy in open areas. Groomed early this morning for one more weekend of skiing?
  (Bob Broman)
• Mar 5 - Nashotah Park (Nashotah):
  Conditions: Excellent!
  I skied at Nashotah the past two afternoons. Rode the MTB from the park for 45 mins then skied for 45 mins. Classic tracks are 99% intact. Skate lane has 3+ inches of firm base with a soft surface. OMG, it's like floating on a cloud! If this is Heaven, then I'm ready. Don't stow those boards away yet!
  (John Wilke)
• Mar 4 - McMiller (Eagle):
  Very good, fast. A few patches of ice.
  Photos:  
  (John Pehoski)
• Mar 4 - UW-Parkside Ski Trail (Kenosha):
  Conditions: Still well covered with snow.
  Just get there early to mid afternoon as the temps rise and the conditions soften up.
  (Charlie Shahbazian)

Michigan Upper Peninsula

• Mar 13 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: Skating: Fair, skiable, soft. Classical: Very good.
  Arrived at 9:00 to 35 degrees, skating lanes at first were good, but got pretty soft fast, still a very nice ski. Switched over to striding, good tracks and surprisingly fast with great glide. Jack Pine and White Pine were a blast! Even the great UP snow country yielded to El Nino this year and came to an end way too soon.
  (Greg Dahl)
• Mar 12 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: We are still grooming and skiing, the base is showing signs of wear but we are skiable on the main trails. A few wet areas and brown spots to ski around but general spring skiing conditions.
  We will be closing on Sunday at 5 PM for the season.
  The Spring Sale is on, discounts on season passes and ski equipment!
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)
• Mar 11 - ABR (Ironwood):
  We groomed skate lanes this morning and the classic tracks from yesterday skied well. The trails are very skiable but the conditions are spring skiing with corn snow and a few thin areas and wet spots. Comments from skiers today were positive. We will back out grooming in the morning.
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)
• Mar 10 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: Great spring skiing.
  Arrived at 10 am to a temp of 42 degrees. Decided to skate until the skating lanes got too soft only problem was they never did. So I skated for 4 hours. Started a light rain at 12:30. I had great glide (high fluoro moly). I was so impressed that skating did not get too soft. Classic tracks looked good.
  (Greg Dahl)
• Mar 10 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: We have had some warm temps this week, like other Midwest ski areas. We even had 2 hours of rain today. What we have had is 165 inches of snow and almost daily grooming with a Pisten Bully so our base is packed and can survive warm temps and some rain. We are still grooming daily, today we groomed 31 km of skate and classic trails. We may not last until the end of March if the warm temps and or rain continues on a daily basis. My guess is we will make it through this weekend and then take a look at the trail and weather forecast to decide the plan.
  Skiing today was spring like, very skiable on the groomed 31 km.
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)
• Mar 8 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Super Spring skiing. We have warm temps during the day and freezing temps at night (no rain). The skiing has been spring skiing with the snow converted to corn snow. This makes classic skiing with klister and waxless skis fun. Skating is fun too at the right time of the day. We have been grooming about 25-35 km daily, some at night and some in the morning. If you like it hard and fast, 9 AM works well. If you like it slower come a bit later. Ask at the trailhead for conditions before heading out. Since the trails get groomed almost daily the base is packed hard and only softens an inch or so in the warm afternoon sun.
  Spring Sale is on with discounts on season passes and ski shop equipment!
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)
• Mar 7 - ABR (Ironwood):
  I know the Birkie is over but now is the time for some excellent Spring skiing. The conditions at ABR are awesome. Plenty of snow, continued excellent grooming, and lots of fun. Don't put those skis away during the best month to ski. Get up there and go for it! Plus they have a fantastic sale going in the ski shop.
  Photos:  
  (Rich Scott)
• Mar 7 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: Great.
  When we arrived Saturday the car thermometer said 50! So skiing was somewhat slow but it needed to be anyway because we stopped at the food stands. Then, later in the afternoon, it started to freeze up again and became very fast in places. A bit rutty too. I took my one and only "Lindsey Vonn like" face plant for the season on a steep downhill and continued from there a bit shaky but still in one piece.
  Sunday morning it was superfast on the trails that had been rolled and a bit slower on those that had been groomed with the Pisten Bully. Overall, a great weekend. Thanks to everyone at ABR for making it all happen.
  Photos:  
  (Jenneke Oosterhoff)
• Mar 6 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: Spring skiing conditions for the Taste of the Trails today. the Pisten Bully smoothed out the trails for the morning skiers, the trail softened for the recreational skier in the afternoon but remained very skiable. The base remains at about 1-2 feet.
  The Taste of the Trails had a super day, participation was very good and the food was excellent!
  Photos:  
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)
• Mar 4 - ABR (Ironwood):
  Conditions: Nice Spring conditions with dry, cold powder for the majority of the trails. The groomers are just coming in and what we saw groomed very nice. The old snow powertilled into a very nice surface for skiing with fresh cold dry powder tracks.
  Taste of the Trails this Saturday! Ski along the ABR Ski Trails and sample our local cuisine and specialties of our local restaurants. Six restaurants will have tables set up from the trailhead along a designated route on the River Trail. You can ski or snowshoe on the River Trail to the food booths. It is a 1-2 mile route. The restaurants will be set up from 11 AM - 2PM. Photos from last year's Taste of Trails.
  Photos:  
  (Eric Anderson, ABR Lodging)

• Mar 11 - Valley Spur (Munising):
  Temps 38F-44F, Spring conditions. A few rain showers last night had little effect on trails. Soft snow, so no-wax working. Still able to skate, with base solid, however soft pole plants up on Y and W. Swany to reset tracks tomorrow. Plenty of base so if we gets some cooler weather and some snow we will be staying open.
  (John Gierke)
• Mar 8 - Valley Spur (Munising):
  Conditions: 40's, full sun.
  Lots of snow left, high temps this week have had little effect on the base. New classic tracks set on A, B, C, D, H, W and Y (see photos.) Yellowstone drag will groom skate lanes in morning. Skiing best mid morning and after 5pm.
  Photos:  
  (John Gierke)
• Mar 6 - Valley Spur (Munising):
  Conditions: 24F at 8am; 40's by 2:30pm; Cloudy until noon, then full sun.
  Skate lanes were dragged in morning, no ice. Slowed by noon with sun. Classic tracks held well, afternoon waxless was best. Speed came back after 3:00 pm. Come in the morning, no ice, lots of snow left.
  Photos:  
  (John Gierke)
• Mar 5 - Valley Spur (Munising):
  Conditions: 5F early a.m. mid 30's by afternoon; full sun.
  No ice, no dirt, no leaves and no pine needles. Entire system re-groomed starting at 6:00 a.m. this morning. Despite sun trails held up well. Milwaukee Nordic Ski Club gave it a thumbs up. Great skating and solid classic tracks. Not as cold tonight so the earlier you get there the better. Skate lanes will be cleaned up with steel drag early, so don't sleep in. Don't fly to Sun Valley, come to Valley Spur. Bring sunscreen.
  (John Gierke)
• Mar 4 - Valley Spur (Munising):
  Conditions: 24F; Cloudy in morning, full sun in afternoon.
  Great skating up through noon. The sun came out around 12:30 and some of the trails in the sun slowed. Great spring skiing. George having great classic skiing with Universal Klister. Nowax best in afternoon. Taste and Glide this Saturday, a money raiser for grooming expenses. Three tables of catered food so come on up. Good snow coverage, no ice.
  Photos:  
  (John Gierke)

• Mar 12 - Swedetown Trails (Calumet):
  Conditions: Tested skis 7-8 pm. Soft white relatively fast/dirty. Occasional post hole pole plants.
  10-20" base, no cold in the base.
  (Scott Putman)
• Mar 10 - Swedetown Trails (Calumet):
  Conditions: Classic no-wax between 6 and 7 pm on Tuesday was very good. Temperature was 41, but track was firm, in great shape, with good glide. The Pisten Bully was grooming the Great Bear Chase course while I was skiing. I went out again this morning between 7 and 8 am, and skated on crisp, fast corduroy. Lots of fun!
  The course for the Great Bear Chase is holding up very well, and is being well-cared for by the grooming crew. The groomer who was out last night stopped to measure in at least a couple of places, and reports a trail base of 15"-18".
  (Peter Vorhes)
• Mar 9 - Maasto Hiihto Ski Trails (Hancock):
  Conditions: Good to excellent spring skiing. Same goes for Churning Rapids.
  We regroomed a few of the trails today and this is what it looked like. These were all taken in Churning Rapids or on trails heading to there. And one photo of my buddy in a tree right next to the trail. Hope you enjoy them.
  Photos:  
  (Arly Aronson)

• Mar 7 - The Listening Inn (Crystal Falls):
  Conditions: Excellent.
  The Listening Inn held their Great Sno Bear Biathlon this weekend. This is a Citzen 10 K Biathlon. 40 adults competed on Saturday from the West and Central UP, and Wisconsin. If you can shoot a .22 rifle and ski, you are can enter. Competitors ranged from complete novices to Gustavus Alumni Nordic Collegiate Race Team members Chandra Ziegler(Daw), Mich Tech ROTC members.
  Photos:  
  (Bill Ziegler)

Iowa

• Mar 6 - Big Creek State Park (Polk City):
  Conditions: Fast and a little crusty at 8:00 to a little soft and sucky at 11:30, very good in between. The classic track ranged from better than it was to good.
  The trail base is still in very good condition, last night's grooming left a nice top layer. Anyone who thought possible poor late season conditions might leave a sour taste to the ski season missed a very sweet dessert.
  (Kevin Moss)

Canada

• Mar 4 - Hardwood Hills (Barrie):
  Conditions: Initially hard packed and softened to silk under a blue sky.
  Almost as good as the Birkie conditions.
  (Ken Hundert)

North Dakota

• Mar 13 - Lindenwood Park Ski Trails (Fargo):
  The Red River reached flood stage last night and many sections of the ski trail are underwater.
  Photos:  
  (Gary Brekke)
• Mar 8 - Lindenwood Park Ski Trails (Fargo):
  Several days of mist, rain, and above freezing temperatures have left the ski trails very soft and icy. Sections of standing water on tracks. Tree trimming work is taking a toll on the skating lane base.
  (Gary Brekke)
• Mar 4 - Lindenwood Park Ski Trails (Fargo):
  Conditions: Very good skate conditions, classic tracks firm.
  Skied around noon, skate lane was soft but not slushy yet. Very fast, but noticed at end of ski that conditions were getting soft. Still plenty of base snow on both the skate lane and classic tracks.
  (Earl Stabenow)
• Mar 4 - Edgewood Golf Course Ski Trail (Fargo):
  Conditions: Trails have just been groomed and appear to all be in good condition. The skate trail snow is soft in this warm weather, but fun to ski on. Classic trails look great.
  Get out and enjoy the trails while we still can. The season is nearing the end. Thanks to the park district for grooming the trails.
  (Laura Sivertson)

United States

• Mar 13 - Bear Notch Ski Touring Center (Bartlett, NH):
  Conditions: Very good spring skiing for skate and classic.
  Enjoyed the trails at this hidden gem, which includes National Forest land, a trail along the river, skiing along a wooded stream, and huge vistas. In the woods, many areas of thin coverage and debris. The open areas were fantastic for coverage and snow cleanliness. Lauren and I enjoyed a covered bridge and a river waterfall on the trails as well.
  (Katherine Himes)
• Mar 12 - Great Glen Outdoor Center (Pinkham Notch, NH):
  Conditions: Really good spring skiing for skate and classic!
  Lauren and I toured all the trails at this Nordic facility in New Hampshire. Very good coverage, with the exception of a few sticks, small dirt patches, and spruce needles in a few places. Excellent views of the Presidential peaks!
  (Katherine Himes)
• Mar 11 - Pajarito Nordic Trails (Los Alamos, NM):
  Conditions: Excellent - mid-winter conditions.
  El Nino continues to deliver with about 2 feet of new snow over the last 8 days or so. It just keep snowing a bit every day, and is remaining nice and cool with temps in the teens and twenties. We still have a 93" base at the Nordic trails. Santa Fe Ski Basin, across the Rio Grande Valley, is reporting about 129" now; Taos Ski Valley has between 94" and 100" (on Hunziker). Weird how different the weather can be way down here after hearing of the meltdown in the Midwest and NE.
  (Clay Moseley)
• Mar 8 - Nordic Heritage Center (Presque Isle, ME):
  Conditions: Holding up to warm weather.
  There is plenty of snow on the trails for the 2010 National Junior Olympics in Presque Isle, despite daily temps in the 40s. The afternoon sprint races were quite slushy on the turns and hills. The Midwest team is looking great and having a good time.
  (Mindy Benton)
• Mar 8 - Nordic Heritage Center (Presque Isle, ME):
  Conditions: 9-5:30; Quick/firm mush/shadowy sunset reset ice.
  The sprint course at JO's went through the usual sunny spring transition with the accompanying klister frenzy as the first day of racing got underway. In general, the 15-24" base held well and off the race course the trails were well groomed for the spectator/tourist skiers. A blend of technical racing pieces combined with a mellower profile for the rank and file make the ratio of steep and deep with birdwatching casual a proper mix to suit a variety of ski tastes. Tomorrow's mass start classic promised to be a thrill as the field drops away into a major downhill soon after the start. Ski neat and clean everyone.
  (Ken Schoville)
• Mar 6 - Laurel Ridge State Park (Rockwood, PA):
  Conditions: Bright sunny skis with temperatures ranging from 19F at 8:30 and 32F at 1:00PM.
  A base of almost 36 inches remains at this location no more than 17 miles from the Mason Dixon line in Southwestern Pa. However the snow grooming continues to be semi-satisfying. Trail width on only one trail is adequate for skating. Classical tracks were improved over last weekend but should be moved inward a few inches in an attempt to improve on the outside pole plant issues. This is just one of the three ski sites in Pennsylvania that offer trail width adequate for skating and classical skiing on the same trails.
  Photos:  
  (Bill Kircher)