Very Good Skiing Continues

 For the first time in several days, we do not have any new snow to report. But that's OK because we now have plenty. All trails were groomed yesterday, and for the most part, that grooming is still looking good. There are some spots that are drifted in as a result of yesterday's high winds. I will not be grooming today, as I have other commitments.

It's currently -11 here, with a forecast high of -2. Hopefully it won't go higher than that. Looking ahead, there are a couple of days coming up, where the temperature may get a bit too warm. Friday's forecast high is around 0, followed by a very cold Saturday, and then near 0 again on Sunday. We'll have to wait and see what impact this has on our snow.

If you come to ski, please remember that most of the northern trails are still closed due to damage from logging operations. The furthest northwest that you can ski is the intersection of #14 and #1a.

This is getting repetitive

 We received new snow again overnight. This is probably the largest single snowfall we've got so far this year; it's close to 10 cm. It's beautiful powder, so right now, we have great "backcountry" conditions.

Yesterday, I groomed about 2/3 of the trails, including lots of track-setting. This morning, that is all buried. I will start grooming right after breakfast. With this amount of snow, I think I will start with the roller/comb only, and then maybe follow up later with the track-setter.

Additional snowfall is possible today, in squalls, and the wind is going to pick up, so there will be some drifting.

The temperature is comfortable; currently -2 and it will drop to -8 during the day.

Noon Update: All trails have been groomed with the roller/comb, and some in the central area have been track-set as well. Skiing is very good. It is getting windy, and there is some drifting in open areas.

Please note that none of the trails in the most northerly part of the network are open. Logging operations have made them unskiable. The furthest north you can go is trails #9 and #14, and the connections of these to trails #1 and #1a.

More Snow, More Terrain

 We received 3 to 5 cm of new snow overnight. It's hard to tell exactly how much, because there was a lot of drifting yesterday, so the depth is variable.

We also have some "new" terrain to ski on. As I reported yesterday afternoon, some additional trails have been opened in the north part of our network; #9, #14, #1a, and #1 Mainline as far north as its junction with 9 and 14. These were all affected by logging operations as recently as 2 weeks ago, so they all have some rough spots on them. Last night's new snow will help to cover these.

I will do a little bit of grooming this morning, mainly cleaning up trails that had heavy drifting yesterday. I will not groom the entire network, because it looks like we are going to get more snow this afternoon and tonight.

Skiing is good, on powder snow over a packed base. Temperature now is -12, with a forecast high of -5.

Good Skiing Continues

 Conditions on the trails today are still good, although not quite as nice as yesterday. We have a strong wind blowing, which is causing snow to drift over some trail sections that are out in the open. I will not attempt to groom again until after the wind has died down.

Today I'm going to check a couple of the northern trails to see if they can be re-opened now that logging operations have finished.

Afternoon Update: I have opened four additional trail sections in the northern part of the network:

1. #1 Mainline downhill section from #12 to the junction of #9 and #14

2.Trail #14 from Mainline #1 to the one-way uphill #1a.

3. Trail #9 The Pasture

4. Trail #1a

All these sections have a few rough spots on them. Up until 10 days ago, heavy logging machinery was operating on them. You can expect to see very thin snow cover, dirt bleeding through, and lots of twigs.

Another Gift of Snow

 We have received more new snow overnight. The amount so far is about 4 cm, but it's still snowing, and the forecast says heavy flurries will continue until past noon.

There will be no grooming until it looks like the snowfall is coming to an end. In the meantime, we have very nice conditions, with fresh powder over a packed base. The temperature is a comfortable -4.

As reported in yesterday's afternoon update, trail #12 has now been opened for skiing. This is the most southerly of the northern trails, which were impacted by logging operations. Please do not ski further north beyond #12. Many trail sections in the north end are totally blocked and unskiable.

Noon Update: All trails have been groomed, including track-setting wherever it's appropriate. Skiing is very good; we're getting close to a 9 out of 10. One little drawback, is that the temperature is creeping up toward -2 in sunshine, so the snow is starting to get just a little bit sticky. Glide is not great. Make sure you have a good glide wax on your skis.

A Gift of Snow

 Yesterday, we received an unexpected gift: about 5 cm of new powder snow. Most trails were groomed, but snowfall continued after grooming finished, so you will find a little bit of fresh powder on top of the packed surface. I will be going out early this morning to tidy up a few trails that have not been done since Thursday.

It looks like it will be a nice day to ski. Current temperature is -12, heading for a high of -4, with light to moderate winds. There may be some additional flurries.

Conditions today are an 8 out of 10.

Northern trails are still closed, due to damage from logging operations.

2 p.m. Update: I've just re-opened trail #12 Southfield for the first time this year. This is one of the trails that was impacted by logging operations, and you will see that if you ski it. There is dirt bleeding through the snow in a few spots, especially at the NE corner where it intersects #1 Mainline.

Moderating Temperatures

 After a couple of very cold days, the temperature is moderating. Yesterday afternoon, while I was grooming, it was -5. This morning it's -10 and will probably reach -5 this afternoon.

It's snowing lightly right now, and flurries are in the forecast. We are gradually accumulating some soft powder to cover the icy base. Yesterday's grooming is still very nice, and I will do some more today.

I would rate today's skiing conditions at 7 out of 10.

Remember that all northern trails are closed, due to damage from logging operations.

Noon Update: We got a gift this morning. A snow flurry came and parked itself right over us for over 2 hours, leaving behind 3 to 4 cm of new powder. I have groomed all southern trails and any of the central ones that didn't get done yesterday afternoon.

I'm upgrading my rating from a 7 to an 8. The sun is coming out and the temperature is -8.

Slight Improvement

 There have been some slight improvements in conditions on the trails. First, it's not as cold as yesterday; the current temperature is -12 (although there is some wind). Second, we received about 1 cm of new snow overnight. This gives us a little more softness on the trail surfaces, over the hard, icy crust below.

I will do some grooming later today. Since there is more snow in the forecast, I'm going to wait and see if I can groom after the snowfall.

4 p.m. Update: I did a partial groom this afternoon, mixing in the small amount of new snow we received last night and this morning, with the older snow. I think the result was good; trails that were groomed are skiing significantly better than before.

The forecast says we will get some more snow tonight; time will tell how much.

Extremely Chilly

 It's -20 outside, with some wind. We're into potential frostbite territory. However, it should warm up to about -14 this afternoon.

Trail conditions are about the same. We received a tiny bit of new snow in flurries yesterday. I also did some grooming to reset track in some drifted areas, and I lowered the cutting teeth on the groomer to soften the surface on some of the downhill sections. When I skied yesterday afternoon, at a temperature of -12, I was actually very comfortable.

I would give the trail conditions a 7 out of 10 today.

Northern trails remain closed due to logging.

Very Chilly

 It's currently -18 outside, and the wind is blowing, so it feels pretty cold.

Trail conditions are about the same as yesterday; we received 1 or 2 cm of new snow in flurries yesterday, so trails have a firm, slightly icy base with a small covering of loose powder. Trails in open areas are drifted in. I would rate conditions today at 6 out of 10.

I did some grooming yesterday on trail #12, which is in the territory where the loggers were working up until last week. Parts of it are quite good, but there are also areas that are poor, where the loggers plowed the snow off their access roads. This trail will require more snow cover before it can be opened again.

None of the northern trails are open at this time.

Chilly

 It's cool out there this morning; -17 on my thermometer. If you're using waxable skis, there is no doubt which wax to use today: Polar.

Trail conditions remain about the same. There is a firm, crusty base, with just a little loose snow on top. We received about a half cm of new snow last night, which is helping to soften the surface a little. The grooming I did on Saturday afternoon is still looking pretty good.

Northern trails are still closed due to damage from logging operations.

A New Regime

 Things have changed a lot in the past 24 hours. Yesterday morning, we had some wet snow, sometimes mixed with rain, at a temperature of +1. Around noon, the temperature dropped through the freezing point. By 3 p.m., when the temperature was -3, we were beginning to see an icy crust form on the surface of the snow.

At that point, I got out on the groomer and re-groomed all the central trails. The result is not bad. Inevitably, the trail surface is a bit icy or crusty. It's fast. But it's still possible to control your speed, as the crust is not too hard.

The forecast says we will get some flurries later today, and that would certainly help to soften the trail surface. I would rate today's conditions at 6 out of 10.

Current weather, although colder than we've been having, is not brutally cold. It's -10 and there is almost no wind. I was very comfortable on my morning ski today.

Changing Conditions

 A change in the weather brings a change in ski conditions. The temperature did go a little above 0 yesterday afternoon for a short time. I don't think we lost any snow, but the character of the snow changed; it's now a bit less powdery, and more granular.

Then last night we had some strong winds, causing snow to drift into the groomed tracks.

Right now, it's a half degree above 0 and snowing lightly. The snowfall is forecast to continue until about 3 p.m. and the temperature will start to drop during the morning. By afternoon, we should be below 0 again.

So, ski conditions are not as good today as they have been over the past few days. Depending on temperature and moisture content, the new snow today may be sticky and unpredictable. After today, we are looking at a long period of quite cold weather.

Beautiful Skiing, Right Now

 Right now, the ski conditions are very good. We had a light to moderate snowfall for much of the day yesterday, resulting in 3 or 4 cm of new snow. Trails were groomed yesterday afternoon, between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. We've received 1 cm of new snow after the grooming, so there is a soft powder surface over a firm base.

But things could change very quickly, as a new weather system passes through. The current temperature is -4, and the forecast high is -2. If it goes any higher than that, we will begin to see a deterioration in the snow. Tomorrow will probably see a temperature above 0, but will also bring some new snow. Fortunately, it looks like the warm period will be very brief.

Another Day, Another Centimetre

 Ski conditions remain good, as we received another centimetre of snow yesterday. If I have time later today, I may tidy up the grooming. The temperature is -8 and there is some wind today, so it feels colder.

 Depending on which forecast you look at, the temperature may get up to near or above the freezing mark tomorrow and Saturday. That would be bad news for us, as it would transform our soft powder surface into an icy crust. Let's hope it stays below the 0 mark.

The northern trails are closed due to timber harvesting.

11 a.m. Update: We have had a very persistent "snow flurry" this morning, which has brought us a couple of cm of new snow. Grooming will be deferred until after the snowfall has ended.

Another Nice Day

 I cleaned up drifted areas with the groomer yesterday morning. Since then, we've received 1 to2 cm of new soft powder; just enough to freshen up the surface, but not fill in the set tracks. And this fresh snow has great glide.

In spite of the fact that Environment Canada says it is -13 outside (they are measuring it at Elora), my thermometer says -9. The high should be -5 or -6.

It's another day that rates an 8 out of 10.

Northern trails are still closed due to logging.

Good Skiing

 We received about 5 cm of snow yesterday. I groomed all trails in the afternoon, finishing about 3:30 p.m. This included track-setting wherever it is appropriate. Generally, this grooming is still looking good this morning.

We've had a little additional snow overnight, so there is around 1 cm of powder on top of the groomed surface. There are also a few areas that got drifted in, due to the strong westerly winds last night.

Overall, these are probably the best skiing conditions we've had so far this year. I give it 8 out of 10.

It's cool this morning, at -10, so the glide is a bit slow.

Please remember that all the northern trails are closed due to logging.

A Little More Snow

Snow is falling right now, and based on the weather radar, it looks like it will continue for at least an hour. This is a good news/bad news situation. Of course it's good to get more snow; we need it to increase the depth of our snow base. But the snow that is falling this morning is that sticky kind of snow that forms big clumps on the bottom of your skis and prevents you from gliding. This is because the current temperature is just below 0.

The weather forecast says the temperature will drop to -4 by this afternoon, and that should remedy the sticky situation. In the meantime, you can only ski on this stuff if you apply a very good glide wax to the bottom of your skis.

Noon Update: It has continued snowing all morning, and we have picked up an additional 5 cm of snow. Based on radar, it looks like the snowfall will end in about one hour, although blowing and drifting will continue, as the wind has picked up from the west.

Once the snowfall has ended, I will get out and groom the new snow.

Looks like a nice day to ski

 The grooming of yesterday's new snow turned out very well, and it's still looking good this morning. We have a comfortable temperature of -4, with a forecast high of -2. (Hopefully it won't go any higher than that)

Conditions are probably the best they have been so far this season. I would give it a 7 out of 10.

Remember that northern trails are all closed due to logging operations.

I enjoyed talking with a number of skiers on the trails yesterday. A few skiers have asked about making a contribution to the upkeep of the trails. There is a donation box fastened to the back side of the large sign kiosk at the parking lot. It's a rusty grey repurposed electrical box. If you would like to make a donation (totally voluntary) toward the maintenance of the trails, you can put something in the box, and it would be much appreciated.

New Snow

 We've received about 4 cm of new snow. It's still snowing lightly, but the snowfall appears to be nearly finished. I will start grooming soon. Conditions should be good when I'm done.

8:30 a.m. Update: Trails have been groomed and are skiing nicely. It's still snowing lightly, so there will be a bit of loose powder on the surface.

Southern and central trails only are open. Northern trails are closed due to logging.

New Snow Needed

 After 5 days with no snowfall, the trails are starting to look a bit "tired". Some new snow is needed to freshen up the surface. And fortunately, the forecast says we will get some snow tonight, possibly about 5 cm.

Until then, conditions are tolerable: on a scale from 1 to 10, about a 5.

Northern trails are closed for logging, and will probably not re-open this year.

Conditions Unchanged

 We have no new snow to report this morning, so conditions remain about the same. Some of the trails, especially those shared with hikers, are getting quite hard and trampled down. There is not much I can do about this, until I have some new snow to work with. There is no point in me grooming, trying to rework the thin layer of snow we now have.

The forecast predicts a snowfall of about 5 cm for Friday night. Let's hope it's correct.

Incremental Improvement

 We received 3 to 4 cm of new snow yesterday. I groomed all trails yesterday morning, during the snowfall, and that grooming is still looking good today. On a scale from 1 to 10, I would rate today's conditions at 6 or perhaps 7.

It's cool this morning, at -12, but the snow is still providing reasonable glide. A snowfall of 2 to 4 cm is predicted for Friday night.

North end trails are closed due to logging. Do not try to ski there.

A Little New Snow

 We've received 2 to 3 cm of new snow since yesterday, and it's still snowing lightly. This snow has excellent glide. Nice temperature (-8) and no wind.

I will go out with the groomer after breakfast, and clean up the tracks. The skiing is improving, little by little.

Southern and central trails are open. The north end is closed due to logging.

Cooler Today

It's a brisk minus 11 outside this morning. Conditions on the trails remain about the same. We had a light snow flurry, so trail surfaces have a light dusting of new powder on top.

The weather forecast looks good in one way, bad in another: continuous below-freezing temperatures for the next 2 weeks is good, but there is no significant snowfall in that period either. We really could use some additional snow, as our coverage is quite thin in spots. 

Much Better Skiing

 We had a snowfall of about 8 cm yesterday, which brings our total accumulation on the ground to about 15 cm. The snow came on a strong west wind, which means that it is not uniformly distributed. In a few areas, the new snow has been totally stripped away by the wind, and deposited in a deep drift somewhere else.

I groomed all trails yesterday afternoon, after the snowfall had pretty well ended. However, drifting continued overnight, covering some of the grooming. I will do some touch-up grooming this morning to tidy up the worst areas.

Overall, skiing is quite nice now. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 7. Current temperature -7, with a predicted high of -5. This snow gives great glide.

Please don't try to ski any of the northern trails; they are all closed due to logging operations.

10 a.m. Update: drifted areas in the central section have been groomed again. The track is quite shallow in some spots, but it's better than nothing.

A Bit More Snow

 We've received another 2 cm of snow overnight, and it's still snowing. Flurries and squalls are expected to continue through today. So, we are gradually building upon our thin base.

All the trails that are open have been groomed either yesterday or the day before, so the trail surface will be a couple of cm of new powder over a packed base. The snow coming down now, at a temperature of -9, has really nice glide. I will not be grooming at least until the current snowfall has ended.

Please remember that all the northern trails (north of and including #9 and #12) are closed because of logging. Don't try skiing there; these trails are impassable.

11 a.m. Update: The snowfall has continued from 6 a.m. until now, and shows no signs of stopping. We've received about 5 cm more snow in the past 5 hours. The conditions on our trails right now are what I would call Fair to Good back-country skiing.

More Improvement

 We received a little more snow overnight - about 2 cm. And we have a nice temperature of about -5. Flurries and squalls are expected this morning, with possibly up to 5 cm more snow. I intend to do some grooming today, but I'm going to wait until afternoon, after the snowfall has ended.

Southern and central trails are open. Northern trails are closed due to logging operations.

Some Improvement

 We received a little bit of new snow overnight, perhaps one or two centimetres. Now there is just enough to ski on. I will try some grooming in the central part of the network this morning, and see how it turns out.

11 a.m. Update: trails in the central area have been packed with the roller/comb. There are definitely some thin spots, mainly where a trail passes under a tree canopy. Skiing is tolerable. And we are beginning to build a base.

If you come, please remember that all northern trails are closed for logging operations.

Some New Year Snow

 We have received about 4 cm of new snow overnight. It's not quite enough to ski on. In addition, the snow is moist and the temperature is 0, which means the snow is quite sticky. I would not recommend skiing today.

However, with consistent below-freezing temperatures over the next week, and flurries forecast every day, conditions should improve.