Skate skied two laps on the outer lighted loops between 6:15 and 7:15 pm. They were in excellent condition. Pretty fast. Surprisingly good given that they were very icy over the weekend and we've just had a couple inches of snow since then. Great job on the grooming!

(Craig Wiklund, North Star Ski Touring Club)

After I told my coworker I was sneaking out early to go skiing he said it sounded like a lot of work. I replied correct, and what is your point? Effortless skiing on Browns Pond Trail Loop. So nice I did not want to stop. Eagle Point was packed but no track set. Groomers plan to groom and track all trails tomorrow.

Photos:

(Scott Ford)

Groomers are out on the trails this morning. They are setting classic track and it looks good. They also report that the skate deck looks great.

(Theresa Young, Washington County Parks)

Very good. 23 degrees, overcast with a brisk south wind. I used FastWax Blue LF. Groomers did a good job of turning the weekend's boiler plate into a very skiable skate deck. Only a few spots of uncovered boilerplate and ice & one bare spot. Timed it just right; arrived as one of the two high school teams were leaving and the other was coming off the trail. Only met three skiers on the trail. Skied the entire eastern perimeter at a 6.75 mph pace with relative ease even though I walked any significant hills. What a difference from this weekends awful conditions.

(Keith Carlson)

The main skate trails are just fine. A tad bit icy in a few spots, so B-skis highly recommended. Definitely skiable and enjoyable, especially if you like a fast trail.

(Chris Creagh)

Trails were groomed again today. Trails are still icy and rough but skiable according to the groomers. Classic tracks were not reset and are very icy.

(Theresa Young, Washington County Parks)

Trails were groomed today. Trails are icy and rough but skiable according to the groomers. Classic tracks were not re-set and are very icy.

(Carolyn Friedrich, Washington County Parks)

1200 noon. Very icy still. The groomers were out and when I talked with them they left the old track and were trying to chop up the skate deck but weren't having much success. Didn't make it very far in the classic track before heading back.

(Mike Hausken)

Unfortunately, Eagle Point was mildly rutted, boilerplate. It had been packed and groomed but not before the refreeze after the thaw. There was a classic track but it washed out on the sun-exposed ridge on the north end. Some ice in spots, a few bare spots again on the sun-exposed ridge on the north end that you could ski around, a far amount of leaf litter (enough that the one classic skier I met complained about it sticking to his klister) and lots of maple tree seeds immediately past the quonset shelter. I have to say this is the one time I have been disappointed in Lake Elmo's grooming. I assume the east side was better but I don't know that for sure. There were very few cars parked in either trailhead parking lots when I arrived after 4:00 pm.

(Keith Carlson)

Knowing the ski trails would not be suitable, I took a B set of soft classic woodies off trail or next to the Red trail, skiing back country style. It went about as expected, lots of work. Hope was to find 3-4 inches of fluff that would allow some glide. No such luck. Deep snow was everywhere. Kick and glide wax was right when I returned on my skied in track. No worries about crashing at walk speed... At least it was about an hour of off trail skiing.

(Jeff Bolte)