Not bad/variable for skating, no classic tracks. A thin, hard base on the trails on the north side of 42nd street, with a bit of frozen slush and some leaf/grass/twig litter. The outer purple and yellow were nicely groomed today with a light touch, which resulted in an excellent texture and slightly softer feel. The hilly side of the yellow trail is the best of the bunch. Great job, groomers!

Photos:

(Todd Campbell)

The Blue, Red, and Green trails are in poor condition. Yellow and Purple trails are fair but have no track as there is not enough snow yet.

(Jodi Saylor)

First time out at SMF this season. It appears to have been groomed yesterday with light use. Surprisingly decent conditions, especially as you get out away from the inner loops. There is less snow there than in Duluth but it makes up for it with a level and even trail in most places, so it skis quite well with the lack of snow. There is some exposed dirt, trail detritus, some sticks and reeds and a few small ice flows on the bottom of hills on outer green, as well as some thinly covered ice on the outer green for a very small section. Your typical early season issues. I thought the inner purple (field portion, the connector is not groomed yet) is quite good with excellent coverage, save for some uneven spots in one small section). Despite the -6F temp, it was also surprisingly fast (Swix Polar Pro). Thanks again City of Superior for your continued attention to this wonderful trail (ie. regular grooming).

(Thomas Heinitz)

Today I skied inner and outer green loops, inner and outer red loops, and the inner purple loops. The skate deck on red and green was more firm today compared to Thursday, still some areas of debris, vegetation, and ice. The inner purple trail was groomed at some point but is soft and lumpy bumpy/uneven. No classic tracks set that I could see. Happy to be out on the trails!

(Brittany Markgren)

Inner and outer red and green trails will have a groomed skate deck today - conditions are fair. Ski lodge is open on a timer from 7am-9pm 7 days a week. Solar lights on the red trail were turned on today.

(Kara Czapinski, Superior City Parks)

I skied the red loops and part of the green this morning. The skate deck is soft but the groomer made several passes. Some spots are slushy and there is vegetation poking through the snow in areas. There were no classic tracks set when I was out. It was a nice morning in the woods and the soft snow made for a good workout. There is a new QR code/online pass purchasing system which is very convenient.

Photos:

(Brittany Markgren)

The red loop was groomed and had good coverage. There's no bare spots, but there is some grass and debris poking through. The Parks and Rec department did a great job making our little bit of snow into a nice skate deck. No classic track yet. I pushed out to the Blue loop, and it was not groomed. 85% of the trail had enough coverage to skate on, but there were some roots and mud clumps that I had to go around. The part of the blue trail that is on the Millenium trail isn't groomed, but it's packed from foot traffic. No bare spots, but be prepared to have your pole click on the concrete just under the surface! I glanced down the Green loop from the Millenium trail and it didn't seem groomed. It was snowing hard on Wednesday and it was already covering my tracks.

Photos:

(Richard Kaufman)

Most trails were groomed today, which resulted in surprisingly decent conditions for skate skiing. Compacted thickness appeared to average about 1", with some thinner areas especially under the white pines. 3"-4" snow depth off the trail. There are a few short areas of frozen slush, as well as tufts of grass and leaf litter poking up here and there. Some surfaces were undulating and a few of the shallow dips were rather abrupt, but 90% of the system skied very nicely. Not possible to set classic tracks yet, of course.

Photos:

(Todd Campbell)

The snow accumulation is currently minimal, with only 1-2 inches, and grooming operations have not yet begun. Certain areas are still bare and not frozen. We will provide more updates as soon as there is more snowfall.

(Kara Czapinski, Superior City Parks)

Zero snow. Tiny bits of snow which will melt ASAP. Definitely not open.

(Bob Mackey)