Just went out and reconnoitered the trail this evening with hopes of grooming it up for the weekend. Unfortunately, the trail is in pretty rough shape. Although there are few dirt patches, there are numerous stretches that are fully converted to ice. In particular the west side of the bridge hill has large ice patches on both the up and down sections which would make it very difficult to navigate on skis or with the groomer. I would recommend not skiing here until we get more snow.

(Mike Keyes)

Unfortunately, grooming didn't hold up well in the 40 plus degree weather. It appears that somebody skied on it at the warmest today, so there are large ruts. In portions of the North loop somebody walked their dog leaving deep boot prints. I had a look on the hill heading down to the southern loop, I wasn't comfortable going down the hill in the dark with the deep skate ruts coming up the other direction -- I didn't want to risk a fall or breaking equipment on the downhill turn. Reserve this for rock skids in the daylight until the groomers can get out and repair the damage ahead of cooler weather. In all honesty, you're better just going to Wirth right now.

(Alexander Risse)

Groomed the skate deck this morning. Right now the snow is very firm and I suspect it will be very fast until it starts to melt. I did not touch the classic tracks. They are in good shape, but are probably pretty icy. The Four Oaks stretch (on the west side under the trees near the Pickleball club) is mostly ice for about 30 yards, and there are a few other ice patches here and there, but mostly the snow looked OK with full coverage with some sort of frozen water.

(Mike Keyes)

Super soft squishy skate deck with hard smooth ice in the thinner spots. Classic tracks icy but decent overall. I was skijoring and the soft snow made things a little wild. Big concern with walkers using the ski trails instead of the walking trail next to it. I fell due to hitting someone's bootprint the wrong way on a fast downhill. I got scraped up but luckily my dog is ok.

(Branden Smith)

Lovely to be back out on Columbia again. There was some leaf litter that seemed to have been blown down during the rain and a couple patches here and there that were a little thin. The thin spots were easily avoided with the nice and wide grooming. Great job groomers!

(Chance Davis)

Groomed and set new tracks at Columbia tonight. The course is in great shape and has a wide skate deck. The tracks set well but may have a few shallow sections. It should set up nicely and will be great skiing tomorrow. Enjoy!

Photos:

(Jim Daggett)

Good conditions and the classic tracks are very good besides a little ice under three trees. Overall loop is longer than past years, my phone GPS recorder over 7km. Wide skate lane.

(Mark Bushinski)

Groomed the skate deck and reset the tracks. I also hauled some snow to fill in in the last two spots where dirt was showing through. It's looking almost perfect out there, good skis should be no problem. Enjoy!

(Mike Keyes)

Great conditions at Columbia, groomer was out and trails were gorgeous. Just a little debris in one area.

(Julius Odde)

Just finished grooming and setting tracks at Columbia and it looks great! I am still recommending B skis because of a few thin spots but everything looks avoidable and very skiable. The additional snow was welcome and has helped some of our windswept areas. There are some leaves that may be irksome on the east side, but it's only a few meters and everything else looks good. Skiing at Columbia would be a great way to start off a new year. Happy new year, everyone! Enjoy!

Photos:

(Jim Daggett)