Black Bear Trail

Black Bear Trail is a cross-country ski route in Minnesota, about 3 miles from Elbow Lake Village. It is a short out-and-back, roughly 1.2 miles long, with a high point of about 1,560 feet and a low of about 1,529 feet. The climb is gentle, with a total elevation gain of about 22 feet, and the steepest stretch comes early, around 0.19 miles from the start, at about 6 percent grade. Winter is the natural season for this trail. Typical averages from a nearby weather station show January highs around 18°F with lows near -4°F, while March runs warmer, with highs around 37°F. The station sits at a similar elevation to the trail, so these figures are a fair guide to conditions on the snow. The trail sits among a cluster of other cross-country ski routes. Lost Bobcat and Fox Hill are each about 0.1 mile away, and Eagles Run and Ridge Run are about 0.3 mile off.