Nordic Skiing In Rochester

Rochester Active Sports Community works closely with Rochester Parks & Recreation to support cross country skiing at multiple locations. RASC volunteers provide trail maintenance and grooming support for trails at Essex Park and Quarry Hill. RASC is also working with Rochester Parks & Recreation to develop 11km of new trails at Gamehaven Park, which includes 2-3 km of trail with snowmaking capability.

For the 2025-2026 winter season, free public skiing will be available at the parks listed below.

Ski trail conditions: The most frequently updated sources for trail conditions are our Discord channel (if you are new to Discord, click this link to join RASC Discord) and Skinnyski.com. Many RASC skiers will post about trail conditions on Skinnyski.com and it is also a great resource for trail conditions throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Below are the four primary locations for cross-country skiing in the Rochester area. Quarry Hill and Essex are maintained and groomed by RASC and updates to the trail conditions are to be found on our discord channel. Gamehaven is managed and groomed by the Rochester Park and Recreation Department, and Chester Woods is managed and groomed by Olmsted Co.

Essex Park

Location:

5455 West River Road NW, Rochester, MN 55906
44.0779666,-92.4786973,17.18z

Essex Park has over 9K of well groomed trails consisting of rolling terrain with few flat sections. Starting from the parking lot, most trails climb or descend, making it more of a challenge for beginners.

Gamehaven Park

Location:

Gamehaven City Park (not to be confused with Gamehaven Boy Scout Reservation) is the newest ski trail in Rochester. There is a machine-made snow trail of about 3K located on the Rattler trail. Much of the trail is double width, with loops on both ends and is meant to be skied in both directions in an out and back fashion (think Birkie Trail with turnaround loops.) There are also natural snow trails, with a total distance of machine-made and natural snow of about 11.5 Km.

All trails can be accessed from either upper or lower parking lot. While the upper lot is the main entrance, access to the machine-made loops from there is via an immediate, rather steep 90-foot drop. Skiers that prefer not to navigate that hill should access the trail via the lower lot. It is a short walk to the trails on a gravel access road from there. Natural snow trails are: The Pipe, 4.8K (intermediate level), Meander, 1.4K (beginner), and Hammer, 1.9K (intermediate). Almost all trails are primarily in open terrain, and The Pipe and Meander can be quite windy, while lower Rattler and Hammer are in a bowl with more protection.

Grooming is provided by the City of Rochester. The machine-made section of Rattler is tilled, groomed, and tracked very frequently with a Pisten Bully, so conditions are usually very good to excellent with a firm classic track.

Quarry Hill

Location:

701 Silver Creek Rd NE, Rochester, MN 55906
44.029737, -92.429564

Quarry Hill ski trail exists in a 300-acre natural park within Rochester city limits. 12K of trails begin immediately behind the Nature Center where parking, bathrooms, and family activity can pair nicely with skiing.  Classic ski rental is available by the hour or day from the Nature Center.   Trails consist of a series of small loops designed to accommodate all level of skier abilities.  Combine several loops in multiple directions to create your favorite ski profile.  The relaxing Prairie House Loop (green on map) appeals to beginners or venture to the Horrible Hills (black sections) where advanced skiers will test their hill technique and heart rate.    

The main trail (shown in green) is ideal for beginners, and goes north up to the ball park. The trail that goes north from the ball park contains some steep climbs and is only recommended for advanced skiers. The West Park loop heading west is also flat, but does get more foot traffic as it is shared with walkers.

Chester Woods

Location:

8378 Highway 14 SE. Eyota, MN 55934
44.000332, -92.311829

Chester Woods park is located approximately 5 miles east of Rochester on US 14. The park is on the right about 1 mile past Chester, MN. Admission to the park free as of March 2022! The start of the ski trail is located near the boat ramp and crosses over a small trestle bridge before heading south into the park. The trail at Chester Woods is a multi-purpose (fat bikes, walkers, snowshoes ) trail and is groomed for both skating and classic. The park grooming crew does a nice job of frequent smoothing the trail after significant use so it is usually a great place to ski.

The trail is mainly in the woods, making it an ideal place to ski on cold windy days. Total trail length is approximately 12 km.

The terrain is gently rolling on the east side. As you head west there are some major climbs and descents. There is a cut-off at approximately the half-way mark around the main loop that allows you to skip the major hills.

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