December 31, 2017

I don't need to tell you that it's cold outside this morning. I've just come in from my first ski of the day; it's -25C. Luckily there is very little wind. Snow at these temperatures does not provide very good glide; it will be slow today.
Otherwise, trails are in pretty good shape. We unfortunately had a big group of hikers come through yesterday, and they did not obey the simple rules of trail etiquette, i.e. stay on the hiking trail, and when sharing with skiers, walk along the edge. This was in spite of the fact that I met them on the trail and explained the rules to them. Consequently, you will find significant portions of the Mainline trail pock-marked by about 20 sets of footprints.
I'm having some mechanical problems with the ATV that pulls my groomer, so I will not be grooming today.

Sat. Dec. 30

Skiing is good this morning. Trails in the northern portion of the network are a little better, due to less use by both skiers and walkers. It's a little warmer this morning, according to the thermometer, with a reading of -14. However, we have some wind to deal with today, so it's feeling like -22 right now. Dress accordingly.

Late yesterday afternoon

Friday, late afternoon update

We've received about 2 cm of new snow today. I managed to get over to the north end to roll Northfield Circuit and North Plateau. I skied both immediately afterward, and they were very nice.

The high point of North Plateau

Northfield Circuit just before sunset

December 29, 2017

I'm a bit late with my report today, as I was having computer problems. Skiing continues good on our trails. Those at the south end have been trampled a bit by hikers, but once you reach the central and northern portions of the network, you will not have this problem. Snow on the trails has become quite firm as a result of this cold weather. We've had a little new snowfall this morning, but only about 1 cm of accumulation, which helps to soften up the surface a bit.
Temperature right now is -13 with no wind, so it actually feels quite comfortable.

Dec. 28, 2017 - It's cold out there!

Trail and snow conditions remain good, but it's very cold this morning, at -24. Dress warmly with plenty of layers. Perhaps wait until this afternoon, when the temperature will have reached the predicted high of -13.

Dec. 27, 2017 - good skiing

It is cold again today: -17 with a few snowflakes drifting down, but very little wind this morning. The Christmas day grooming on the south and central trails is still holding up very nicely except in a couple of drifted spots. Yesterday afternoon, I finished packing most of the northern trails. The North Plateau is not groomed but is skiing nicely with a back-country feeling.
I have not set any track yet, as the snow depth is still a bit too thin in places. The first track-setting will happen after the next significant snowfall.
Dress appropriately for these cool temperatures.

Dec. 26 - blowing and drifting

No new snow to report, but the snow we have has moved around a bit due to strong westerly winds yesterday. The wind is not as strong this morning, but it is still significant, and therefore we are still seeing some drifting in open areas. The Mainline trail between the 2 ends of Southfield (#12) is very drifted. For those heading to the northern portion of the network, I would recommend using Pasture (#9) since it is much more sheltered.
It's also fairly cold today, at -16, so dress warmly and protect exposed skin.
I will try to groom some more terrain today, but I'm having some trouble with the groomer so I can't promise to get everything done.
Late afternoon update: drifted areas on Mainline between the ends of #12, #12 itself, #1a, #14, Pasture, Roller Coaster, the northern portion of Mainline and a connection across the north field to connect with Hockleycrest were all groomed today. There is still some drifting taking place, but the grooming has smoothed things out quite a bit.

Happy Christmas - we have new snow

We received about 7 cm of new snow overnight, and it is still snowing lightly. I have groomed all the south end trails and some in the central area this morning. Skiing will be very good today, but it would be best to stick to protected areas. The wind is strong from the west, so there will be blowing and drifting in exposed areas.

West Side Story trail #5, just after grooming

Sun. Dec. 24

Conditions remain the same as yesterday: fair to good. Most trails were groomed (roller and snow comb only) yesterday. There is still not enough snow depth to set track. There are still a few thin spots. The groomer suffered some minor damage yesterday, but that has been repaired overnight.
We are expecting a new snowfall of 5 to 10 cm overnight tonight. If this proves to be true, then conditions should be very good for Christmas skiing.

Mainline trail near the gazebo on Tai Chi

Sat. Dec. 23 - a return to skiing

We received close to 10 cm of new snow in the Thursday/Friday snowfall. Trails are skiable again. I have packed about half of the network this morning; there is still not enough snow to set track. The temperature is warming up to near 0 this afternoon, and the snow is getting a bit sticky. Things should be better tomorrow, and more snow is predicted. Late afternoon update: the rest of the network has been packed, except for a small section of Mainline in the south end.

Central Park trail just after grooming, about 10 a.m. today

Fri. Dec. 22

We have some new snow on the ground this morning, but I'm not sure it is enough to make the trails skiable. It will take some time to assess, once the snowfall ends. Earliest grooming will be Saturday morning.

Thursday Dec. 21

Trails are still closed for skiing due to lack of snow. However, it looks like we will get 5 to 10 cm today and tomorrow, so we might be able to ski on the weekend.

Here today - gone tomorrow

The warm temperatures have taken away about half our snow, and it's still above freezing this morning. The trails are not skiable.

New snow is good, but......

This morning we have received about 2 cm of new snow, which has softened up our surface. However, the temperature is rising, and is predicted to go a little above 0. The snow may change over to rain, or be mixed with rain, which would not be good news. Tomorrow is also forecast to be above freezing, with temperatures turning cooler on Wednesday.
In conclusion, ski conditions right now are not bad, but may deteriorate later today and tomorrow.

New snow; slight improvement

Our ski conditions are slightly better today, as a result of about 5 cm of new snow that fell over the past 24 hours. I have rolled and combed trails in the south and central portions of the network. There are still thin spots, especially in the north end.

Skiing is possible, but coverage is thin

Our conditions remain about the same. There has been some minor flurry activity, but no significant new accumulation of snow. Lots of thin spots; rock skis recommended.

Coooool!

It's cool out there this morning: -15C. We had a light dusting of new snow overnight. Ski conditions remain about the same: fair, with quite a few thin spots, especially on the more rugged trails in the north end. Only very good skiers with rock skis should attempt the northern trails.

Skiing at last!

Total snowfall Sunday and Monday was about 8 cm. After rolling, this leaves about 2 to 3 cm of packed snow, just enough to ski on. This afternoon, I have packed all the trails in the central portion of the network, where the ground beneath is the smoothest. There is no track-setting yet, but the rolled and combed surface provides not-bad skiing. Rock skis are recommended.

Westside Story after one pass of the roller.

Getting closer to ski time

After light flurries all day long on Sunday, we have 2 to 3 cm of snow on the ground. Forecasters continue to say that we will get 5 to 10 cm tonight, and a bit more tomorrow. If this turns out to be true, then I will groom tomorrow. The first grooming will probably be roller and snow-comb only; no track-set until snow gets deeper.
The long-term forecast is also good: we should have below-freezing temperatures and occasional additional snow all the way through until Christmas Day.

Waiting Impatiently

We have just a light dusting of snow on the ground. Flurries are forecast over the next 2 days, but it doesn't look like there will be any significant accumulation until Monday, when 5 to 10 cm is predicted. When we have skiing, I will let you know.

Snow is on the way?

We now have the cooler temperatures we need, and the ground surface is frozen. We had some light flurries yesterday, but no accumulation. There are lots of flurries in the forecast, and the possibility of a general snowfall Saturday. Keep your fingers crossed!

Warm and Dry

Still no skiing, as temperatures continue above freezing. Colder weather and some snow should be moving in around the middle of the coming week. Maybe next weekend we'll be able to ski.