![tony snow snow on the bluff tony snow snow on the bluff](https://c8.alamy.com/comp/C67J99/curtis-snow-of-snow-on-the-bluff-at-arrivals-for-2011-slamdance-film-C67J99.jpg)
Did my best to flick off any particularly egregious sticks (and one lone rock) from the skate deck on the 8k. Thinnest areas were on uphills, especially where skiers had dug in down to ground. Very lumpy as early season skiing tends to be but no downhill lumps bottomed out in dirt or rocks. No tracks on the 8k as mentioned by the groomers but coverage was pretty good throughout - I have to imagine this is in part due to all the hard work put into these trails this summer and fall (Thank you Snowflake trail crew!). Impressively firm tracks for just being put in today. Unfortunately a furry friend did manage to put their paw prints right into the tracks for a good length of the whole 6k loop, but at 10ยบ it's hard to lose kick.
TONY SNOW SNOW ON THE BLUFF FULL
Great early season skiing at Snowflake! Tracks on the 6k were much better than expected, with full depth through most of the loop and just little patches of grass here and there. We are making progress on the upper section of the Roller Coaster loop and connecting to Black Bear and the S-turns, and we hope to have that connection made by the end of the weekend. The Spirit Mountain alpine runs will be open this weekend and will commence full-time hours afterwards, so from that point on we will not be grooming specifically for nordic in these areas, and we please ask that skiing stay within the confines of the GANC once the weekend starts. You can still access the upper section of the Supertour loop and the Black Bear trail, but due to our need to pull power and water across the trail at the mid-section of the big hill, we ask that you please observe our closures and make this section an out-and-back. We have some mechanical issues with our track-setter that are being addressed today and hopefully will be back in service tomorrow. Howdy folks, we had a successful Section 7 race yesterday using the newly opened big bend section of trail, which now allows us to have another loop completed! We are groomed and tracked through the stadium and into the core trails, but do not have track on the alpine runs at this time or up the "Supertour" loop.
![tony snow snow on the bluff tony snow snow on the bluff](https://cdn-assets.alltrails.com/static-map/production/at-map/17713633/trail-us-minnesota-honeymoon-bluff-trail-at-map-17713633-1590515553-414x200-1.png)
Beautiful day to be out there and Swix V50 kick wax worked well on my wood skis. Very nice classic skiing if you don't require perfect set tracks. Most of the Razorback trail had seen little or no showshoe and hiker traffic, but several skiers had preceded me, so it was in good shape. And it eliminated the need to break trail through the deep snow. Normally a bad thing, but since the snow is fresh and soft, the packed area is soft enough to help the skis track straight. The skiing was excellent, even though the trails had not been groomed yet, as of noon Sunday! The Knob and Kettle trails had been heavily traveled by many snowshoers and hikers, who packed a trail about the width of normal set tracks.
![tony snow snow on the bluff tony snow snow on the bluff](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/006c2a3/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3600x2400+0+0/resize/1486x991!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F15%2F75%2F140c9f604456a843e79afcf2267f%2Fsd-photos-freelance-contract-667840-sd-me-drivethrough-holiday-xol.002.jpg)
![tony snow snow on the bluff tony snow snow on the bluff](https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/160508151744-snow-on-tha-bluff.jpg)
After checking the hourly weather report and finding the forecast high was three degrees higher than forecast the previous evening, I had to hurriedly spread a coat of a wide-temperature-range violet klister over the layer of violet special klister I had put on the previous evening before my companion picked me up. There was no track until a very shallow one showed at the very end of what we skied. Also skied a short section of the MInnehaha Trail from the base of the historic fort to maybe a 1/4 mile past the Hwy. Some of the more sun-exposed, slushy sections had brief sections of exposed dirt but posed no significant problem. Double tracked for much of the way but one track washed out briefly at the tip of the island. Skier-tracked Pike Island Trail was generally in very good condition.