Whispering Pines Trail
- 0.3 mi
- round trip
- 171 ft
- climb
- 1,508 ft
- high point
- Out and back
- route
- May–Oct
- best months
Whispering Pines Trail is a cross-country ski route in Minnesota, about 4 miles from the town of Holmes City. The trail is short, with a total length of about half a mile, and it rises about 170 feet from its low point of 1,424 feet to a high of 1,508 feet. The climb is back-loaded, with the steepest stretch at about 0.17 miles in, where the grade reaches 8 percent. Winter is the natural season for this trail. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Alexandria show January highs around 19°F with lows near 2°F, while February runs about 24°F by day and 6°F at night. Spring and fall are milder, with October highs around 55°F and May highs near 66°F. The trail sits among several other cross-country ski routes. Isaac Shortcut and Haug's Corner are each about 0.2 miles away, and Finland Trail is about 0.3 miles off. For downhill skiing, Andes Tower Hills is roughly 0.8 miles away.
- Isaac ShortcutCross-country skiing0.2 mi
- Haug's CornerCross-country skiing0.2 mi
- Finland TrailCross-country skiing0.3 mi
- Cranberry ShortcutCross-country skiing0.3 mi
- Andes Tower HillsDownhill skiing0.8 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
- Whispering Pines TrailCross-country skiing · Next door
- Finland TrailCross-country skiing · Next door
- Andes Tower HillsDownhill skiing · ~1 min drive
- SkidalenCross-country skiing · ~1h 12m drive
- Isaac ShortcutCross-country skiing · Next door
- Whispering Pines TrailCross-country skiing · ~1 min drive
- Isaac ShortcutCross-country skiing · Next door
- Whispering Pines TrailCross-country skiing · ~1 min drive
- Haug's CornerCross-country skiing · Next door
- Liz's LoopCross-country skiing · ~1h 12m drive
Also worth it near here
- North Lake OscarLake fishing · ~2 min drive
- Oak Park KampgroundCamping · ~10 min drive
Hilltop TrailHiking · ~29 min drivePhoto: McGhiever, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
Mustinka RiverCanoeing · ~42 min drivePhoto: The original uploader was Malepheasant at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 2.5 (via Wikimedia Commons)
Best time to visit Whispering Pines Trail
Best months: May–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
19° / 2°
4 wet
Feb
24° / 6°
4 wet
Mar
37° / 19°
6 wet
Apr
52° / 33°
9 wet
May
66° / 45°
12 wet
Jun
76° / 56°
12 wet
Jul
80° / 61°
11 wet
Aug
78° / 59°
10 wet
Sep
70° / 50°
9 wet
Oct
55° / 37°
8 wet
Nov
38° / 23°
5 wet
Dec
24° / 10°
5 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Alexandria Muni Ap, MN, 10.7 mi away at 1,416 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Map and trail data © OpenStreetMap contributors
