The trail is a little beat-up from skiers and animals, and there's some tree litter. The less-traveled loops are a little better, although some spots are a little icy. I give it a 6.

(Don Quick)

I stopped here to check the conditions. I parked at the hospital lot and peeked in a little ways. It looked like the trail to the left had been rolled for biking. To the right, people had forged a path classic skiing but it was not groomed.

(Anna DeMers)

After a couple weeks of poor ski weather, Hayward has good snow this weekend. The hospital trail has been used a lot, so the tracks are beat-up, but skiing was great anyway. I give it a 9.

(Don Quick)

Ice and pine needles. It was tough going. The tracks are shallow as expected with ice but the pine needles and debris throughout made it nearly impossible to ski in a few sections. I just ran. The punch holes from deer, dogs and boots are bad in places and almost broke a pole a few times. The best loop by far was Ox loop but you do have to get there. Be careful if you venture out but maybe choose a fat bike today and leave skiing til tomorrow. I'm so glad snow is on the way.

Photos:

(Tanya Adelman)

I skied the entire trail system today. Almost everything had been freshly groomed, only the trails to the west of the Hospital Road trailhead had not been groomed in the last day or two. There were soft spots in some areas (most notably the Hilly Loop), but in general conditions were quite good, and I believe the tracks will firm up quickly. Even the sections that had not been groomed recently were quite skiable. There are some areas where brush could be trimmed back from the tracks a bit more, but it's not a major inconvenience.

(Wade Pearson)

Skied all trails except the Ox Loop. Most tracks are excellent with little forest debris. The Beaver Pond loop had a bit more debris and my ski stuck on something going downhill-causing a pretty hilarious fall. I enjoyed that the hills were tracked so well that it didn't take a lot of skill to make the curves at the bottom! Forgot my new skis at home so used my old 1988 backup skis we keep at the cabin, and it was still one of the best days skiing I've had. Felt like I could glide forever. Thanks to the groomers and volunteers that cleared the trails.

(Anne Risen)

I skied most of the course in the early afternoon. The tracks are well-formed and fast. There's minimal forest litter and it's mostly in the heavily wooded stretches. It doesn't get much better - I give it a 9.

(Don Quick)

Arrived early this morning to freshly set double classic tracks. Joanie and I skied all the trail segments and the tracks were firm throughout. A fun, gently rolling system of trails provided two hours of very enjoyable skiing. The tall pines here are a highlight. Thanks for the great grooming!

Photos:

(Darren Blankenship)

We had 2 inches of snow yesterday morning and the trail has been groomed since then. It's been used a bit and sideswiped in a few places, but overall great condition. I give it a 9.

(Don Quick)

Trail is groomed with deep double tracks. The tracks set up well in the cold weather. There are scattered thin spots with grass showing which can be stepped around. Nice early season classic conditions.

Photos:

(Mark Oswood)