Ski trails remain closed at Woodlands, but the trail crew has been busier than ever. Doc, Lumberjack, Chainsaw, Nuke, Outback, Refuge Guy, Darth Evader and Night Skier have been out all week hand raking thousands of sticks and branches deposited on the trails by the big Christmas blow. The City helped out by bringing out the big tractor mounted blower to blow sticks off the paved trails on the west side. In total, the volunteers hand raked roughly 15 km of ski and winter walking trails. Big job when you think about it. We still have good coverage of mostly hard pack with several icy sections on all trails. If you see one of the Trail Crew when we get back to skiing, give them a hug. It has been a rough week in the forest. Stay tuned.

(David Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

Woodlands ski trails are closed thanks to our Christmas rain event/serious lump of coal. When I stopped by to put up the trail closed signs, the mood of the Trail Crew in the Grooming Cave was similar to that of a sports bar full of Vikings fans. Trail Crew scouts will be out in the coming days to look for snow and ponds accross the low lying trails. Think snow. Stay tuned.

(David Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

Classic tracks were set Monday on the Prairie, Poplar, and Wash Pond Loops and the Great Northern trail. Due to thin coverage, some tracks are shallow and a few short sections are down to bare pavement. We have closed Scouring Rush due to trail damage caused by a private contractors ATV that went astray during a buckthorn removal project. We have groomed the ruts out on Scouring to ready it for the next snow. Also damaged were both exits from Big Tooth to the GNT near the biathlon range. We have blocked off one of those exits, and Scouring, and groomed the other exit the best we could so we could exit through the biathlon range. Dirt and leaves that were dug up by the spinning ATV tires were scattered by grooming that was done to level the ruts. Use a little extra caution when skiing this trail section into the biathlon range. Only a few inches of new snow will heal the damage. Still open are; 14 km for skate, 5km for classic and 5km designated for winter walking and snowshoeing.
We were having a little trouble getting Ancient One interested in grooming this winter. When the call went out for someone to capture the culprits and screen out the ruts, he was off the couch in a flash. Lumberjack and the Mr. Unreliable (hopefully reliable tonight) will be pulling the medium screens to buff up the undamaged trail sections for your Wednesday skiing pleasure. Enjoy!

(David Anderson, Elk River Nordic Ski Club)

I skied all the trails at Woodland today. Great coverage but a little soft. Groomed but no tracks, not even on inside loops.

(John Kendrick)

Woodlands received 5 inches overnight. Rolled all trails Sunday morning. Coverage is thin and no tracks have been set. Rock skis until we get another snowfall and re-groom. Skied after grooming, great to be on snow!

(Dave Kallemeyn)