Updated: 11 a.m.

People all across southern Minnesota were clearing driveways and digging out cars — or making plans to get out skiing or sledding — on Saturday morning after a winter storm dropped close to two feet of snow on parts of the region.

The National Weather Service received snowfall reports of 21 inches on the east side of St. Paul, and 20 inches in Woodbury. There were many more reports of a foot or more of new snow in the southern and eastern Twin Cities metro, as a narrow band of heavy snow — with snowfall rates of 2 inches an hour at times — parked itself over the area for several hours on Friday evening.

There also was a sharp cutoff in snowfall, with only 3 to 5 inches of snow reported in the north metro.

Plows were back out Saturday morning but highways remain snow-covered and slippery across the southern half of the state.

The State Patrol reported 286 crashes on state highways between 6 a.m. Friday and 8 a.m. Saturday — one of them fatal — in addition to 266 vehicles off the road and 21 jackknifed semis.

Metro Transit reported Saturday morning that there may be some ongoing minor delays, but most bus routes in the Twin Cities are back on schedule. Light rail lines also are running on time.

The Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport reported more than 60 canceled flights on Saturday morning, and more than 30 flights delayed.

Snow emergencies remained in effect in St. Paul, Minneapolis, Mankato, Brooklyn Park and several other cities across southern Minnesota. That means a variety of parking restrictions are in effect to allow city snowplow crews to more easily clear streets. Find more details on street signs, or on city websites.

As the cleanup continues, skiers, snowboarders and sledders were eagerly making their way to the hills and trails to take advantage of the fresh powder.

At Trollhaugen Ski Area south of St. Croix Falls, Wis., dedicated skiers have been on the slopes since late October when the first trails opened. But marketing director Marsha Hovey said this weekend feels like the real beginning of the ski season.

“We are firm believers that people don’t really start thinking about winter until there’s snow in their backyard, so this pretty significant snowfall is the jump start to our winter season,” she said as the heavy snow fell Friday.

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board reported that cross-country ski trails were groomed and ready for skiing at Hiawatha, Columbia and Wirth parks — though there are some detours around ponds due to thin ice.

Here’s a roundup of snow reports from Minnesota and neighboring states, as relayed by the National Weather Service as of 11 a.m. Saturday. This list will be updated if additional reports are received through the day:

• 21 inches – St. Paul (east side, Battle Creek neighborhood)

• 20 inches – Woodbury

• 19 inches – Lakeville

• 18.9 inches – Inver Grove Heights

• 18.5 inches – Bloomington

• 18 inches – Woodbury, Eagan; Roberts, Wis.

• 17.9 inches – Hudson, Wis.

• 17.8 inches – Cameron, Wis.

• 17.7 inches – Jordan

• 17.5 inches – Burnsville

• 16.5 inches – Apple Valley, South St. Paul, Savage

• 16 inches – Maplewood, Shakopee

• 15.5 inches – Belle Plaine

• 15 inches – Oakdale

• 14 inches – Green Isle

• 13.5 inches – Eden Prairie

• 13 inches – West St. Paul, Prior Lake

• 12.8 inches – Carver

• 12.5 inches – Sanborn

• 12 inches – Hastings, Lake City, Hills

• 11.8 inches – Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport

• 11.5 inches – Carver, Montgomery

• 11 inches – Winthrop, St. Peter, Bloomington, Owatonna

• 10.6 inches – St. Louis Park

• 10.5 inches – Minneapolis (south); New Richmond, Wis.

• 10.4 inches – Mendota Heights

• 10.2 inches – Faribault

• 10 inches – Chaska, New Prague, Millville, Cannon Falls; River Falls, Wis.; Sioux Falls, S.D.

• 9.8 inches – New Ulm

• 9.7 inches – Rochester

• 9.5 inches – Elko-New Market

• 9.3 inches – Nerstrand

• 9.2 inches – Dundas

• 9 inches – Farmington, Chanhassen, Mankato, Windom, Jeffers

• 8.5 inches – Kasson

  

• 8.4 inches – Falcon Heights, Roseville

• 8.3 inches – Victoria, Waseca, Minnesota Lake

• 8 inches – Minneapolis (northeast), Winthrop, Montgomery

• 7.8 inches – Vasa

• 7.5 inches – Norwood-Young America, Henderson, Winona, Ellendale; Menomonie, Wis.

• 7.3 inches – Waconia

• 7 inches – Plymouth. Excelsior, Goodview

• 6.5 inches – Vadnais Heights, Red Wing, Douglas, Rochester (airport), Lanesboro

• 6 inches – Afton, St. Charles

• 5.6 inches – Oronoco

• 5.5 inches – Redwood Falls, Fillmore

• 5.1 inches – Little Canada

• 5 inches – Lake City, Elba

• 4.8 inches – La Crescent

• 4.5 inches – Maple Grove

• 4.3 inches – Circle Pines

• 4.1 inches – Winona

• 4 inches – Austin, Lewiston, Maple Plain, Watertown, Lyle, Wyoming

• 3.8 inches – Blaine

• 3.5 inches – Hugo

• 3.3 inches – North Branch

• 3.1 inches – Maple Lake

• 3 inches – Eitzen, Kimball

• 2.5 inches – St. Cloud

• 2.2 inches – Paynesville

• 1.9 inches – La Crosse, Wis.

• 1.8 inches – St. Joseph

• 1.5 inches – Dakota

• 1 inch – Watson

MPR’s Sonja Kleven contributed to this report.