Every year, the Loppet Foundation holds a festival called the City of Lakes Loppet Winter Festival. This festival takes place throughout the Twin Cities metro area, much of it on various lakes around the city and in Theodore Wirth park. The festival consists of a variety of events over a two-day period: Feb. 4–5. The events this year include cross-country skiing, fat-tire biking, skijoring and snowshoeing events — with both competitive races and casual tours and activities for many. 

The most popular event of the festival, a lights festival called the Luminary Loppet, takes place on Lake of the Isles. People from all over come to participate, making their way around the candlelit lake, whether that be by foot, ski or snowshoe. Originally set to take place on the evening of Saturday Feb. 4, the Luminary Loppet was rescheduled to the evening of Saturday, Feb. 18 due to existing weather conditions and their effects. More information on the rescheduling can be found here.

Marketing and communications manager for the Loppet Foundation, Devin Sundquist, said the foundation’s goal is to grow people’s love for the outdoors by holding competitions that anyone is able to participate in. 

“Our mission is connecting people to the outdoors through experiences that grow community,” Sundquist said. “We want everyone to come together in a way that makes sense for them. So you don’t need to be an incredible athlete, you don’t need to be an absolute newbie, but we’re going to have something for everyone. It’s a really cool way to get people connected to the outdoors.”

Pat Hartman, assistant Nordic ski coach at Park, said he appreciates the accessibility of skiing in such a large city like Minneapolis, which the festival embraces.

“It’s really cool that in a major metropolitan area, we are able to ski this much,” Hartman said. “There’s so many people that ski in this big metropolitan area and we embrace it. That’s what this festival is centered around.”

Junior Nordic skier Hanna Wilsey said she is most excited for the Luminary Loppet, as it is a good teammate bonding experience, as well as an opportunity to indulge in a complimentary hot treat.

“I am most looking forward to going to the Luminary Loppet, which is super fun,” Wilsey said. “I go out there with my cross country ski team usually, and I’m especially looking forward to the free hot chocolate.”

According to Sundquist, the festival can be accessible and entertaining for anyone wanting to participate, no matter their level of experience.

“The fun thing about the Winter Festival is that there’s really an event for anyone. It’s not just something where all of a sudden you’re jumping in and doing a 37-kilometer race. If you want to go snowshoeing, if you want to skijor or if you want to be on your fat bike. If skiing and orienteering is your thing that’s really awesome,” Sundquist said. “We also hold the world’s largest winter Kubb tournament during the winter festival and that is just an absolute blast to see how much fun people have with that.”

According to Hartman, he is thankful for Loppet growing the interest of the outdoors in younger generations.

“Loppet does a lot of really cool stuff like getting kids from the city to ski, mountain bike, canoe, among other outdoor activities,” Hartman said. “They’re trying to foster appreciation for the outdoors and healthy lifestyles for these kids and I appreciate that.”

The City of Lakes Loppet Winter Festival takes place Feb. 4–5. More information is available on the Loppet Foundation website.