Skiing @ Kettle Moraine - Lapham Peak Unit

Around sunset, this patch of trees turned blazing red.

Lapham Peak is a lovely state park/XC ski area just west of the Milwaukee 'burbs - about an hour's drive out from Madison.  This past weekend was the first time I got to see the entirety of Lapham Peak (as opposed to the small, manufactured-snow loop that I've visited in past, crummy-snow years).  I get the impression that every skate-skier who lives on the west side of Milwaukee spends all of their time at Lapham Peak since there was some pretty packed ice under a thin layer of recent snow.  There are at least 16 miles of (groomed) trail, and since the park runs along the edge of a moraine, the trails spend most of their time zigzagging up and down a small ridge (e.g. a great place to train for events like the Birkie).
 I ended up skiing somewhere around 17-20 miles with breaks for lunch and tea.  The classic track was in need of a good grooming (thanks to some skate skiers and a ton of oak leaves), but the hills kept me out of the track a fair portion of the time, anyways.

Skate skiers climbing Asthma Hill

Some community members have rather expertly annotated the trails:  you start with the "Gut-Buster" climb, pass "Target Tree" on a curvy downhill, and are bound to run into other spots like "The Wall," "Asthma Hill," and "Stairway to Heaven" - which sends you on a double loop of the hilliest bit of trail in the park.  "Roller Coaster" lived up to it's name, though it took me a second pass before I was willing to careen down some of the rollers with enough momentum to get up the next hill.  I've also got to admit that "Big Slide" is now my favorite XC downhill.  It's a somewhat gradual grade and a largely straight shot, but it just keeps going and going.
The temperatures were pleasantly in the teens (+ sun), but the 20+ mph wind certainly kept us moving.  The guys in the warming hut maintained a pleasant fire, which also served as a great glove warmer and breath-sicle thawing machine.

Late-afternoon

The group of folks I rode out with were the first ones there and the last ones left.  Two of us even had the good luck to crest the ridge just in time for the sunset (which was spectacular).  All in all, a lovely ski.  It's definitely worth the drive when there's fresh snow, and I imagine it would be just as good when freshly-groomed.