For Olympic curlers Tara and Tabitha Peterson, outdoor adventure is a family affair

With a baby on her back, Tabitha Peterson was determined to complete a trip around Snail Lake on skis.

As mom kicked and glided around the lake, daughter Noelle peered out from a thick, gray onesie and watched the scenery pass by. With her 25-pound child secure in a backpack carrier, the Olympic curler was a little off-balance but able to complete the 3½-mile loop.

Snapping photos throughout the endeavor was Tabitha’s younger sister and curling partner, Tara Peterson.

The sisters grew up cross-country skiing with their family in Eagan, and through the decades it remains an activity they do with each other, with or without their babies.

“We love it because it’s a good way to get outside, and we’re very active people,” said Tabitha, 36, of Vadnais Heights. “It gets cold, so you have to embrace winter sports.”

We asked Tabitha, who is entering her third Olympics, and Tara, 34, of Shoreview, who is entering her second, more about their favorite outdoor activity. Their responses have been edited for clarity and length.

Tabitha: We grew up in Eagan, and our house was right by Lebanon Hills. It’s like 2,000 acres, and there are cross-country skiing trails. It was just very convenient for us to get out there. And my parents cross-country ski, and we’d just go out as a family and do little loops. It kind of became a Christmas Day tradition. We just grew up doing it because we could literally go out our back door.

Tabitha: Something that I’ve learned about myself is I need to be outside, even if it’s cold, it doesn’t matter. And [to] dress appropriately. Even if [I’m] only going to be out for 30 minutes to an hour. It’s like the perfect amount of time to get exercise and clear [my] mind.

Tabitha: My favorite is taking a walk with my dog and my husband and my baby outside in the woods. Behind the house, we have some trails, and we adore all the changing leaf colors and the smell of fall. That’s probably my favorite day outside. Sunny, of course — I always like the sun — and 40 to 50 degrees, like just that crisp fall weather.

Tara: Well, then, my best day outside would be about 70 degrees and sunny and I’m on the golf course and I’m walking and carrying my bag and I’m getting lots of pars and birdies. That’s my best day outside.

Tara: We played a golf tournament two summers ago, we were both pregnant, and it rained all day, and we had 27 holes. Granted, it was fun and we were in carts, but I really am a fair-weather golfer, and I don’t enjoy golfing in cold, rain and wind. It wasn’t just raining. It was pouring for 27 holes. I couldn’t even grip the club. It made for hard golf.

Tabitha: We were in the Boundary Waters on a canoe portaging trip, which was a great trip, super fun, but there was one day where we were out for our paddle — and you can’t reserve your campsites ahead of time, it’s first come, first serve — and so we’re paddling, paddling, and it was getting to the point where it’s starting to get dark and we started looking for a campsite and everything was full.

It was kind of scary, but we found a spot eventually and got dry.

Tabitha: We go up to Ely a lot. We have family up in Ely, so we do a lot of hiking on those trails up there.

We’ll do day trips [to the Boundary Waters] instead of going overnight. We’ll just bring the canoes out, and we will go paddling and portaging, but then go back to our cabin instead of pitching a tent. It’s great up there because it’s so peaceful.

Tara: Sailing. I’d like to learn to sail.

Tabitha: The only thing I can think of is hockey. We never played hockey growing up. We learned to skate — we were kind of into figure skating for two years when we were little — but we never went the hockey route.