Winter Has Returned

 We received about 15 cm of new snow yesterday and overnight. As the snow was coming down, at a temperature near the freezing mark, it was a bit moist and packing. But as it cooled off to -5 overnight, the snow has dried out and is now a very nice powder.

I will be grooming first thing this morning with the roller comb. I expect it will result in fairly good ski conditions. There are a couple of concerns this morning: there are a couple of places where the new snow fell on areas that were covered with partially frozen ponded water. I'm not sure what the result will be in those areas. Second, the wind is fairly strong this morning, so there will probably be some drifting in open field areas.

The predicted high temperature for today is 0, so it's possible that the snow will become a bit sticky later in the day. Fortunately, it's not expected to reach 0 until about 4 p.m.

10:30 a.m. Update: I've just come in from grooming. The result was not as good as I had hoped. There are many locations where there is hard, lumpy ice not far below the surface. There are also 2 very wet spots on trail #5. I did not groom the entire network, since there were several locations where there was glare ice under the snow, and the ATV could not get enough grip to climb the hills. The trails that were not groomed are #1a, part of North Plateau, part of #17, a portion of Mainline from the north junction of Hockleycrest to North Plateau, and the portion of Hockleycrest from #12 to #17.

Only very good skiers should try skiing today.

Trails Closed

 The continued warm weather has taken its toll on our trails. We now have bare patches and flooded areas. Skiing is no longer possible. Unless we have a return to colder weather and a significant snowfall, this may be end of our ski season.

There is a glimmer of hope that we will get in some more skiing, as the weather forecast is calling for a decent snowfall next Sunday. But we will have to wait and see if that actually happens.

No Skiing Today

 With the warm temperatures and rain yesterday, we lost a huge amount of snow. The current temperature is 0, so the remaining snow is a hard frozen crust. This will soften as it again warms up to +7, but skiing will be very poor.

I suspect we now have a few bare spots, and possibly some flooded spots as well.

Very Warm

 The temperature rose to +7 overnight and will top out at +16 later today. It is possible to ski, but I don't think it will be very much fun. The structure of the snow pack has been destroyed, and the snow collapses under your ski when you put weight on it.

As far as I know, we still have complete snow coverage on the trails, but I haven't been over the whole network to check. Some bare spots are beginning to appear on exposed hill tops.

Poor Skiing

 After warm temperatures yesterday, we are below freezing again this morning. Consequently, trails are very icy right now. Trail surfaces may soften up later in the day, as it warms up to about +4, but the skiing will not be good.

I do not recommend skiing here today.

More Spring Skiing

 A few people got out for a ski yesterday after the snow had softened up. It looks like we will have the same opportunity again later today.

At our current temperature of minus 2 the trails are very icy; it is essentially unskiable. However, after lunchtime the temperature should be up to about +4, and trail surfaces will have softened and slowed down. Conditions will not be great, but may be tolerable.

As ski season winds down, we are into maple syrup season. I tapped some maple trees on Tuesday, and yesterday I collected about 40 litres of sap: enough to make about 1 litre of syrup.

Spring Skiing After Lunch

 Yesterday afternoon, when the temperature was +3, I tried a little bit of skiing. The surface snow had melted and softened a bit, so that skiing was possible. Conditions were not great, but were tolerable.

Conditions here right now, at a temperature of -3, are very icy. But once the temperature gets up to +4 or +5, around noon, it should be possible to have some spring skiing. You will need to be aware of differences in glide between sunny places and shady spots. (Sunny will be slow, shady will be fast)

Also, if you come, be very cautious at the parking lot. On Sunday, it was a skating rink from top to bottom. I haven't been there since Sunday, but I suspect it is still very icy. You may need to park on the shoulder of the road.

10 a.m. Update: The sunshine has done its job; the ice in the parking lot has been melted. Trails are starting to soften up, but shady places are still icy. Wait until afternoon to come skiing.