We have some new snow this morning - about 1 cm. We are under a Snow Squall watch, but I don't think it's going to amount to enough snow to ski on. Looks like today is just a teaser. The next chance for a significant snowfall appears to be January 4, 5, and 6. Let's hope it becomes a reality.
For now, there is no skiing.
Tuesday, 31 December 2019
Monday, 30 December 2019
Sunday, 29 December 2019
December 29 - still no skiing
We have received no new snow, and this afternoon freezing rain is predicted. No skiing today.
Saturday, 28 December 2019
Friday, 27 December 2019
December 27 - Ugh!
Temperature first thing this morning is +7. We have lost most of our snow base. No skiing again today.
Thursday, 26 December 2019
Dec. 26 - boxing day
You might as well go shopping today, as our skiing outlook has not improved. We have 4 more days of this very warm weather to get through before a return to seasonal temperatures.
Don't ski today please.
Wednesday, 25 December 2019
Dec. 25, Merry Christmas
No skiing again today. It looks like the next opportunity for some new snow will be next Monday.
Tuesday, 24 December 2019
December 24 - not a ski day
Yesterday's high of +5 in sunshine resulted in considerable melting, and some bare spots. This morning it's -5, so the remaining snow has become very crusty. No skiing today.
Monday, 23 December 2019
Dec. 23 - Not a ski day
I am not going to call this a ski day. Although it's possible to ski, conditions are not good. Warm temperatures yesterday and overnight have reduced our snow cover. It's going to be warm and sunny again today, so we'll lose more snow.
It looks like we may have to wait until next weekend for our next snowfall.
It looks like we may have to wait until next weekend for our next snowfall.
Sunday, 22 December 2019
December 22 - still holding on
Day 21 of skiing this season.
Ski conditions are still fair to good on the trails first thing this morning. The temperature reached +2 yesterday, and then dropped to 0 overnight, so the snow has become a little less powdery. I expect conditions will deteriorate today, as the high is predicted to be +4 in sunshine.
Ski conditions are still fair to good on the trails first thing this morning. The temperature reached +2 yesterday, and then dropped to 0 overnight, so the snow has become a little less powdery. I expect conditions will deteriorate today, as the high is predicted to be +4 in sunshine.
Saturday, 21 December 2019
December 21 - Winter Solstice
Day 20 of skiing this season.
The trails and the snow are in good shape at the start of the day. Skiing will be best in the morning, as the temperature is going to rise to 0 by noon, and +2 in the afternoon. Enjoy while you can; the next few days look challenging.
The trails and the snow are in good shape at the start of the day. Skiing will be best in the morning, as the temperature is going to rise to 0 by noon, and +2 in the afternoon. Enjoy while you can; the next few days look challenging.
Friday, 20 December 2019
December 20
Day 19 of skiing this season.
Our conditions remain good. Trails are packed, with a few cm of loose powder snow on top. It's currently -10 outside, with very little wind.
It looks like it will be a great day to ski, with sunshine and a high of -6. Warm weather is coming in on Sunday, so ski while you can!
Afternoon update: I tidied up many of the trails this afternoon, with a light grooming comb.
Our conditions remain good. Trails are packed, with a few cm of loose powder snow on top. It's currently -10 outside, with very little wind.
It looks like it will be a great day to ski, with sunshine and a high of -6. Warm weather is coming in on Sunday, so ski while you can!
Afternoon update: I tidied up many of the trails this afternoon, with a light grooming comb.
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| Black Cherry trail this afternoon, after touching up with a light snow comb. |
Thursday, 19 December 2019
December 19 - Nice!
Day 18 of skiing this season.
Yesterday's snow squall left us with close to 10 cm of new snow. About half the network has been packed; hopefully the rest will get done today. The skiing is very good.
It's cool this morning, at -17, but should warm up to about -7 later on.
If you're going to ski, either today or tomorrow should provide the best conditions. There is some warmer weather moving in on Saturday.
MID-DAY UPDATE: It's been snowing since about 9 this morning, bringing another 2 or 3 cm. I groomed this morning, covering all the trails in the north end and most of the south section. A few short pieces of #7, #2 and #13 were not done. Packed trails will have a top-dressing of fresh snow on top; there's nothing I can do about that, and I'm not going to complain about getting more snow.
Skiing is very good right now.
Yesterday's snow squall left us with close to 10 cm of new snow. About half the network has been packed; hopefully the rest will get done today. The skiing is very good.
It's cool this morning, at -17, but should warm up to about -7 later on.
If you're going to ski, either today or tomorrow should provide the best conditions. There is some warmer weather moving in on Saturday.
MID-DAY UPDATE: It's been snowing since about 9 this morning, bringing another 2 or 3 cm. I groomed this morning, covering all the trails in the north end and most of the south section. A few short pieces of #7, #2 and #13 were not done. Packed trails will have a top-dressing of fresh snow on top; there's nothing I can do about that, and I'm not going to complain about getting more snow.
Skiing is very good right now.
Wednesday, 18 December 2019
December 18 - a little snow
Day 17 of skiing this season.
We've received about 1 cm of new snow overnight. Flurries and squalls are to continue through the day, as temperatures drop. It's currently -7 here. Skiing is fair to good.
If there is sufficient new snow to make it worthwhile, I will take the groomer out to tidy up the trails.
MID-MORNING UDATE: It's been snowing fairly hard since about 8 a.m. and it's still snowing. We've got about 5 cm of new snow on the ground. It will be worthwhile to groom this new snow, but not until it stops falling. That may be late this afternoon, or possibly tomorrow morning.
FURTHER UPDATE: The snowfall continued until about 1:30 p.m. We received a total of 8 to 10 cm of new snow. I rolled about half the trail network this afternoon; blowing and drifting snow was filling in the open field areas right behind me, so I decided to wait until tomorrow to finish the rest. I did try a short section of track-setting as an experiment; most of it was OK, but in some areas the bottom of the track was in the grass. We'll need a bit more snow before we can do wide-spread track-setting.
We've received about 1 cm of new snow overnight. Flurries and squalls are to continue through the day, as temperatures drop. It's currently -7 here. Skiing is fair to good.
If there is sufficient new snow to make it worthwhile, I will take the groomer out to tidy up the trails.
MID-MORNING UDATE: It's been snowing fairly hard since about 8 a.m. and it's still snowing. We've got about 5 cm of new snow on the ground. It will be worthwhile to groom this new snow, but not until it stops falling. That may be late this afternoon, or possibly tomorrow morning.
FURTHER UPDATE: The snowfall continued until about 1:30 p.m. We received a total of 8 to 10 cm of new snow. I rolled about half the trail network this afternoon; blowing and drifting snow was filling in the open field areas right behind me, so I decided to wait until tomorrow to finish the rest. I did try a short section of track-setting as an experiment; most of it was OK, but in some areas the bottom of the track was in the grass. We'll need a bit more snow before we can do wide-spread track-setting.
Tuesday, 17 December 2019
December 17
Day 16 of skiing this season.
Our conditions remain the same. Skiing is generally good, with a few thin spots under conifers. Drifted areas on open fields were groomed again yesterday, and are good now.
The weather forecast says we may get some snow tomorrow, which would be nice.
LATE UPDATE: We've had a small deterioration in conditions today. The temperature got up to about 0 this afternoon, and consequently the snow surface got a bit moist. Now that the temperature has dropped again, the snow is a little bit crusty, and a bit less powdery.
Some trail sections in the south end also got trampled by inconsiderate hikers.
Our conditions remain the same. Skiing is generally good, with a few thin spots under conifers. Drifted areas on open fields were groomed again yesterday, and are good now.
The weather forecast says we may get some snow tomorrow, which would be nice.
LATE UPDATE: We've had a small deterioration in conditions today. The temperature got up to about 0 this afternoon, and consequently the snow surface got a bit moist. Now that the temperature has dropped again, the snow is a little bit crusty, and a bit less powdery.
Some trail sections in the south end also got trampled by inconsiderate hikers.
Monday, 16 December 2019
December 16
Day 15 of skiing this season.
Conditions on the trails remain about the same as yesterday - generally good, with a few thin spots. I will try to go over the drifted spots in the north end later today, to restore a packed surface on the open fields.
Update: drifted sections on open fields in the northern portion have now been re-groomed.
Conditions on the trails remain about the same as yesterday - generally good, with a few thin spots. I will try to go over the drifted spots in the north end later today, to restore a packed surface on the open fields.
Update: drifted sections on open fields in the northern portion have now been re-groomed.
Sunday, 15 December 2019
Dec. 15 - Winter Wonderland
Day 14 of skiing this season.
It snowed all day yesterday, resulting in about 15 cm on the ground, plus every tree and bush covered with snow. I will be grooming as soon as there is daylight out there; it will take some time to get the whole network done. At the moment, we have good "back-country" conditions.
Temperature is -3, with some wind. Forecast says temperature will drop this afternoon.
11:00 a.m. update: The southern and central portions of the trail network have been rolled. There is not enough snow depth to set a track. Areas where the trail passes through dense conifers have thinner snow cover, but still just adequate for skiing.
Further update: As of noon, all trails have been rolled at least once. There is blowing and drifting in open field areas, especially toward the north end.
It snowed all day yesterday, resulting in about 15 cm on the ground, plus every tree and bush covered with snow. I will be grooming as soon as there is daylight out there; it will take some time to get the whole network done. At the moment, we have good "back-country" conditions.
Temperature is -3, with some wind. Forecast says temperature will drop this afternoon.
11:00 a.m. update: The southern and central portions of the trail network have been rolled. There is not enough snow depth to set a track. Areas where the trail passes through dense conifers have thinner snow cover, but still just adequate for skiing.
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| Trail #5 West Side Story, about 10 this morning. |
Saturday, 14 December 2019
December 14
We are expecting a little bit of new snow today. Time will tell whether it is enough. At the moment, no skiing.
Update as of 6 p.m. We have received about 15 cm of new snow today - much more than forecast. I will roll the trails tomorrow and there should be skiing.
Update as of 6 p.m. We have received about 15 cm of new snow today - much more than forecast. I will roll the trails tomorrow and there should be skiing.
Friday, 13 December 2019
December 13 - no change
No snow, no skiing. However, it looks like there might be some snow coming over the next few days. Time will tell.
Thursday, 12 December 2019
Wednesday, 11 December 2019
December 11 - no change
We had some snow flurries yesterday and overnight, but no significant accumulation of snow on the ground. So, no skiing again today. At least the ground has frozen again, so when snow does come, it will have a firm base.
Tuesday, 10 December 2019
Dec. 10 - no skiing again today
It remained warm and rained quite hard much of yesterday. Consequently, we've lost most of our snow. We did manage to retain some base on a portion of the trail network, and the temperature has now dropped to 0 again, so things should start to improve. With dropping temperature, snow flurries, and possible snow squalls today, we will begin to rebuild the snow base.
In the meantime, no skiing until further notice.
In the meantime, no skiing until further notice.
Monday, 9 December 2019
December 9 - no skiing
Today is not a ski day.
Since yesterday, we have lost about half our snow. It's +6 outside, raining lightly, and will continue like this until tomorrow. Please stay off the trails.
Since yesterday, we have lost about half our snow. It's +6 outside, raining lightly, and will continue like this until tomorrow. Please stay off the trails.
Sunday, 8 December 2019
December 8 - deteriorating conditions
Day 13 of skiing this season.
Skiing is still fairly good first thing this morning, with temperature at -2. We had some damage to trails yesterday, as a large number of ignorant, inconsiderate hikers trampled portions of Mainline #1 and Hockleycrest #3. We also had a truck drive on a portion of Southfield #12, but it didn't cause too much damage.
Temperature is forecast to rise to +5 this afternoon, so there will be a deterioration in the quality of the skiing.
Skiing is still fairly good first thing this morning, with temperature at -2. We had some damage to trails yesterday, as a large number of ignorant, inconsiderate hikers trampled portions of Mainline #1 and Hockleycrest #3. We also had a truck drive on a portion of Southfield #12, but it didn't cause too much damage.
Temperature is forecast to rise to +5 this afternoon, so there will be a deterioration in the quality of the skiing.
Saturday, 7 December 2019
December 7 - good skiing
Day 12 of skiing this season.
I groomed about 95% of the network yesterday. On a late afternoon ski, conditions were excellent. We received a dusting of new snow overnight; temperature right now is -7, predicted to rise to -2, so it should be a good day for skiing.
I groomed about 95% of the network yesterday. On a late afternoon ski, conditions were excellent. We received a dusting of new snow overnight; temperature right now is -7, predicted to rise to -2, so it should be a good day for skiing.
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| North Plateau trail #20, Friday afternoon |
Friday, 6 December 2019
December 6 - snow
This is our 11th day of skiable conditions so far this year.
It's snowing this morning, expected to continue until about 10 a.m. Ski conditions are good.
I've bought a new ATV for grooming, and it arrived yesterday, so I'll be out on the trails giving it a try later today.
It's snowing this morning, expected to continue until about 10 a.m. Ski conditions are good.
I've bought a new ATV for grooming, and it arrived yesterday, so I'll be out on the trails giving it a try later today.
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| Some of the trails have now been rolled |
Thursday, 5 December 2019
Dec. 5 - revised
It got a bit too warm yesterday afternoon, so our snow conditions deteriorated temporarily. However, we got some new snow overnight and this morning, so skiing has now returned to good.
Wednesday, 4 December 2019
December 4 - a bit sticky
Skiing was good yesterday. We received a little new snow overnight - about 1 cm - but it was slightly moist and packing, so our snow surface is no longer that nice dry powder that is so pleasant to ski on. The temperature rose to +1 overnight and is predicted to stay around there much of the day.
Monday, 2 December 2019
December 2 - snow has returned
I've just come in from skiing, and conditions are not bad. Yesterday's storm started out as ice pellets, gradually changing to snow, which has continued into this morning. Total amount of snow on the ground is now up to almost 10
cm. However, there is a difference between this event and the early snowfall we got on November 11: this time, the ground surface was frozen, so there has been no melting of the snow on contact. This time also, the snow began as ice pellets, so there is a base that is firm and hard, topped with powder, so a relatively small amount of snow is sufficient.
With these snow depths, there will be no grooming. All our signage is now up, so you should be able to find your way.
cm. However, there is a difference between this event and the early snowfall we got on November 11: this time, the ground surface was frozen, so there has been no melting of the snow on contact. This time also, the snow began as ice pellets, so there is a base that is firm and hard, topped with powder, so a relatively small amount of snow is sufficient.
