Mother Nature blessed us with about 12 inches of snow in our little micro climate on Spirit Mountain so we took advantage of it and skied Magney! The snow on the grassy portions of the trail was double that what it was on the gravel/horse trail portion. If you get out there today or early tomorrow I'm thinking you will still have something to ski on! My Zero's worked great and my husband's junkers worked well too...no clumping amazingly enough. The road is closed so you have to walk in about a quarter mile.

Photos:

(Eve Graves)

Magney is done for the year. I walked to the snow and was able to ski some stretches, but there is not enough connected anymore to make it fun.

(Eve Graves)

The main loops of Magney are still completely covered. I skipped Bardon's loop with it's south facing hills. The classic track was good in the late afternoon warmth and pole planting was firm. There are edges and spots that look ready to melt through. I think it will be good crust skiing with cooler temps returning.

(Bruce Bauer)

Everything is still entirely skiable. However, after the heat of today I'm not sure how much track will be left. When I departed at 10:00 AM after skiing the system, the snow was still lovely rocket fast but by now it's probably going to be a pretty slow march out there. Save your energy and hope that the trail traffic will be light enough and temperatures will go low enough tonight for the snow to firm back up for fast and fun crust skiing again early tomorrow morning. Or Monday morning. Yes, the road is closed but the trail system is maybe only a 1/8 mile walk further down from where you have to park. I marked the "good skis" option on this report because I saw no sign of any rocks, but this is spring skiing and it will get more unpredictable.

(Sara Zimmer)

Was surprised (but understood) that due to the very poor condition of the road, it was closed just before the Stewart Creek bridge. Walked in no problem. The trail was in excellent shape for spring skiing. Very happy I chose to skate ski. Temp was perfect for one layer and no hat. A great workout. The connector to Spirit was also in fine condition. Any earlier in the day and it would have been rocket fast due to low temps at night.

(William Humes)

4pm start. 35F. The skate lane was glazed in areas and soft in areas, overall fantastic. The classic track was perfect. There's no subsurface water flow yet, so all parts of the trail were fully covered and skiable. In my ideal ski fantasy world, the skate lane would be groomed again tonight after the temperature dips below freezing.

(Louise Levy)

Magney was groomed earlier this morning. At 11am and 28F, it was absolutely spectacular for skating--pretty much the best I've ever seen it. I noted some leaf litter in the classic tracks here and there, but I'd still think classic skiers could do worse in the latter half of March. Note: Skyline Drive as you approach the trailhead is in terrible shape. Navigate carefully--I'd advise getting in and out early before the road thaws, as parts are clearly super-soft.

(Erik Riker-Coleman)

Groomed before the rain and warmth, and needs another grooming. The tracks were poorly set with the light equipment and are usable but not very good. In many places the track was set directly on the old tracks and there are three or four grooves. The base is over 2 feet so there is no reason not to groom again, so let's hope that happens a few more times!

(Bruce Bauer)

The good news is they finally groomed Magney! Other positives are the tracks are almost completely clear of tree debris! I saw the groomer leaving early afternoon, temps were already at least 30 by then. The trail is very soft and skaters left deep grooves throughout. The classic track is impeccable from the grooming, unfortunately some skaters went right over it and since it was so soft it collapsed in throughout much of the start and the Bardon's loop leaving a pile of snow in the left track, which is all I did due to the conditions. Timing will be key as those ruts are deep and will freeze!

(Eve Graves)

We were disappointed to see that Magney has still not been groomed since last week. The skate lane is very well used and like concrete with an edge due to warmer temps. The classic tracks are in good shape, with lots of leaves in them. It was a beautiful day out there with the sun making the snow look like diamonds. There is about 3 feet of snow in the woods, hopefully they will groom soon!

Photos:

(Eve Graves)