Disappearing Act

 The two photos below were taken at the same location, two days apart. You can see how much snow we've been losing.

Ski trails are closed.

Trail #3 near north junction of #5. Friday afternoon

Same location, Wednesday afternoon

Trails Are Closed

 We have gotten to the point where there are too many bare spots and patches of glare ice. Skiing is no longer practical.

Trails are closed.

Poor Skiing

 The warm weather is taking its toll. Heavy, wet, slushy snow, bigger and more numerous bare spots. Skiing is just about done for this year.

Typical Spring Skiing

 After yesterday's warmth and sunshine, the snow has re-frozen overnight into a hard icy crust. The temperature today is forecast to rise quickly to about +8, with a chance of rain showers this afternoon. This is typical spring skiing: icy and fast early in the morning, slow and slushy later in the day.

Some thin, or bare spots are developing. It's starting to get very wet at the southwest corner of trail #5.

Deteriorating Conditions

 Warm sunny days are hard on ski trails. We lost some snow yesterday, and a few thin or bare spots are beginning to show up. Skiing is not very good.

More of the Same

 Although we received a little more snow flurry activity yesterday, conditions remain poor. Trails are skiable, but just barely.

Not Good Enough

 We did receive perhaps 3 to 4 cm of new snow since yesterday, but it's not enough to produce decent skiing conditions. I've just been out to give it a try, and it's not much fun. The hard, lumpy, uneven surface of the old snow is just below the soft new powder,  making skiing very difficult. I would not recommend skiing here today.

Ice!

 After yesterday's warmth and rain, the temperature has dropped to -4, and our snow has changed to ice. Skiing is next to impossible. However, there is some hope for tomorrow. There is a possibility that we will get heavy flurries or snow squalls today and tonight, so there may be skiable snow by tomorrow morning.

A Poor Day for Skiing

 This looks like the beginning of the end. Skiing is poor this morning. The snow is very wet, and the structure of the snow is collapsing. It's basically slush. We've lost 10 cm of snow in the past 48 hours, and a few thin spots are starting to show up.

Becoming Icy

 Yesterday's warmth, combined with cool overnight temperatures, has begun to change our powder snow to icy, granular crust. Trail surfaces should get softer as it gets warmer this afternoon. Right now, trails are definitely on the icy side, and very fast.

Variable Conditions

 We still have lots of nice, powder snow. However, we had a lot of wind yesterday, initially from the north and then swinging around to the west in mid-afternoon. Some trails experienced a lot of snow drifting; those with the worst drifting include The Pasture, Mainline at the east end of Southfield, the north leg of Southfield, Northfield, and the top end of North Plateau.

I've considered doing some remedial grooming, but decided against it. The forecast for the next 3 days is for warm temperatures and rain. Given that, doing a lot of grooming today would seem to be a waste of time and fuel.

Skiing this morning will range from fair to good. Snow will start to deteriorate this afternoon as the temperature hits +3 under sunshine.

I plan to tap my maple trees this afternoon, so you may see me working along the Hockleycrest or Westside trails.

Noon Update: I was just out for a short ski. Conditions are still pretty good; snow is predominantly still powdery in texture. However, the temperature is just reaching 0, and in the sunny places, snow is starting to become a bit moist and sticky. If you find that your skis are sticking, or accumulating caked-on clumps of snow, you may need a product such as the one pictured below. This is just one of several brands that are available. I've used it, and it works.

Rex liquid glide wax

Good Skiing

 Conditions on the trails are very good again this morning. There is a tiny bit of new powder over a packed base, giving a soft, silky feel, and good glide.

It is cooler than what we've gotten used to: currently -8 with a brisk north wind. Dress accordingly.

Based on the weather forecast, this might be our last day of really good conditions.

Noon update: It's a beautiful sunny day out there, but still cool  (which is good for the snow). I've reset the track on some of the central trails. With the north wind blowing, there is some drifting of snow on the open fields at the north end.

Black Cherry trail this morning

More Snow

 It seems like we are getting January's snow in March. Starting yesterday afternoon, we have received about 5 cm of new snow, and flurries will likely continue through today. Right now, with a temperature of -5, skiing is very good.

I will begin grooming after breakfast. The only concern today is that the temperature may reach 0 this afternoon, so the snow may become a bit sticky. Skiing will be best this morning.

11 a.m. update: Trails have been groomed with the light rubber comb. Some trails in the central area have been track-set. Although there wasn't a lot of new snow to work with, the track went in pretty well. There is light snow flurry activity right now; temperature -1. Skiing is very good.

The Ash Grove trail, showing set track

 

Further update at noon. The new-fallen snow has become very sticky, as the temperature is now sitting at 0. You may need a glide-enhancing anti-stick wax on your skis. Otherwise, you may end up with big clumps of packing snow stuck to the bottom of your ski.

Another nice day

 Ski conditions remain good today. We have good coverage, and the snow is still powdery. I will do some grooming to tidy up trails that were last groomed Friday night.

9:30 a.m. update: Touch-up grooming is done. Skiing is good.

Improved Conditions

 We received about 8 cm of new snow yesterday. This has given us just enough soft powder on top of our old firm base to produce comfortable skiing conditions. I groomed part of the network last night; those trails will have just a little fresh snow over a packed base. I will begin grooming the rest at 6:30 this morning. There will be no set track, as the new snow is not deep enough.

At the current temperature of -6, this snow is giving nice glide. Conditions should be good all day today.

8:30 a.m. Update: All trails have been groomed, either last night or this morning. Skiing is very good. These conditions are likely to last only a couple of days, so enjoy them while you can.

Mainline trail, toward the north end, 8 a.m.

Hoping for New Snow

 Skiing is still poor right now due to icy conditions. However, both Environment Canada and the Weather Network are predicting a snowfall of about 7 cm starting later today. If that happens, then conditions should be much better tomorrow.

Poor Skiing

 Poor skiing conditions continue here, as we seem to be locked into a pattern of sunny afternoons with a bit of melting, followed by cool nights. The result is a very icy, crusty surface on the trails. It's almost impossible to ski on this stuff.

There may be a bit of hope for improvement: The Weather Network is calling for a snowfall of about 5 cm on Friday, overnight into Saturday. We'll have to wait and see if it happens.

Still Icy

 Conditions are still about the same on the trails. Although we have lots of snow, it has gone through several freeze/thaw cycles and is therefore very crusty. Skiing under these conditions is not fun, and not safe.

I do not recommend skiing here today.

Very Icy

 Another warm day yesterday, followed by a cool night, has made the trails very icy. I may try my scarifying groomer, The Piranha, this morning but I'm not optimistic about the results.

Trail surfaces might soften up a bit later on, if the temperature goes above 0.

Skiing is NOT recommended today.

Update: I've been over a  few trails with multiple passes of the Piranha, and my original recommendation still stands: Don't ski here today. The grooming made a slight improvement, but it's still pretty awful out there.

Rapid Transformation

 Despite our abundance of snow, ski conditions are a bit difficult this morning. The deep powder that we were celebrating 24 hours ago was quickly transformed by sunshine and warm temperatures yesterday afternoon. A little bit of melting, followed by an overnight freeze, has left us with an icy, crunchy base. We've received 1 or 2 cm of fresh snow overnight, but this has not been helpful, as the temperature is right on 0, and the new snow is sticky. Glide is poor right now. Ski conditions may improve later on, as the temperature will reach about +3 this afternoon.

Snow!!!!

 We have lots of new snow. I have a snow-measuring stick out in my yard. Yesterday, it showed 30cm of snow on the ground. This morning it says 50cm. So that's 20 cm of snow since 8 p.m. last night.

If you like "back-country" skiing in deep powder, today is for you. I will start grooming right after breakfast, but with this much snow, it will take quite a while to pack it all. Even after one pass, the surface will still be soft.

11:30 a.m. Update: All trails have been packed with at least one pass. The more challenging hills have had 2 or 3 passes. I will not be setting a track, as the temperature has gotten a bit warm, and the snow is now of the packing variety. Setting a track in this kind of snow would result in a hard, icy rut when the temperature drops again.

Trail #1 near the north junction of #3

Not so Good

 Yesterday's warmth, combined with this morning's -8 temperature, has made the trails quite icy. The snow has definitely transitioned to a crunchy, granular consistency. It looks like it will not go above freezing today, so trails will remain icy. Skiing will be difficult.

A major winter storm is coming through tonight, so conditions will probably be much different tomorrow.

Still Good

 Our temperature yesterday reached a high of +1, so there was a bit of melting and the snow started a transition toward a granular texture. However, for the most part, the snow is still quite powdery, and ski conditions are still good. It's going to go above freezing again today, so the snow will become a bit wet and sticky.

The next couple of days look like a good news/bad news story. We may have a significant snowfall on Friday, followed immediately by a very warm Saturday. We will have to wait and see how this plays out.

Good Skiing

 Yesterday's snow groomed up nicely, and skiing remains very good this morning. The temperature yesterday topped out at -1, so the snow has not transformed from powder to granular.

Skiing will be best this morning, with the temperature below freezing. This afternoon, it's likely to be above 0, and snow may become heavy and sticky.