Base 18+ inches. Two feet of new snow fell on Thursday and Friday. About half of the system (12K) has been rolled, combed and tracked. More will be completed tonight. Expect soft surface conditions.

(Chas Curry)

Santa delivered! All we wanted were groomed ski trails for Christmas, and the letter to the north pole paid off. This most recent snowfall was unusual in that a weak low was slowed down by weak onshore breezes creating a slow moving snow event. The snowfall totals at Pincushion were graduated from lower to higher elevation. Base: 3 inches. New Snow: 3-5 inches The entire system was rolled last night and all trails were combed and compacted. This morning the skate lanes were combed and 80% of the trails have classic tracks set. This is definitely early season skiing, the skate deck is uneven and needs to be worked when we receive more snow. Classic tracks set nicely, they are a bit uneven in places but skiable. Generally ski conditions are good. Happy holidays to all.

(Jim Shinners)

Base 0-3 inches. Due to thin snow cover, consistent sunshine and above freezing daytime temperatures, our current ski conditions have morphed into what we typically see in April. Daytime thawing followed by nightly re-freezing makes for a challenging outing; in both skate and classic techniques. Unfortunately, our limited base depth prohibits us from doing the type of grooming we need to do in order to improve the skiing surface. Caution is advised as you will encounter bare ground, ice patches, uneven terrain, ruts and scary-fast icy snow.

(Chas Curry)

Base 1-3 inches. Skate lanes were groomed on our wider trails yesterday morning. North Advanced loop was combed and tracked for additional skate and classic skiing options. Morris Maze and Hilfiger Hill were groomed for the first time this season. These two circuits are in poor condition due to uneven terrain, bare spots and debris poking through thin snow cover. They should be considered as back-country, classic style routes at this time. Warming temperatures forecast for the coming week do not bode well for our system. Although we expect skiing to continue, there will be more bare ground, wet spots and ice patches. Use caution.

(Chas Curry)

Base 1-3 inches. Skate lanes were combed on 4k of our easier trails yesterday afternoon. Although the surface is uneven, the snow consistency is dry and soft making for an acceptable early season skate outing. The classic tracks have held up well despite being a week old and are not glazed, but they have worn down to grass and dirt in a few spots. Snow depth prohibits us from resetting them. Caution is advised as there are a few icy patches throughout the trail network and an occasional protruding rock.

(Chas Curry)

3-4 inches of new snow was combed and tracked today. Base now 1 to 4 inches. Classic skiing would be the better choice since the skate deck is lumpy and groovy. We don't have enough snow yet to smooth it out. Caution is advised as there are still a few bare spots, slushy areas and ice patches. The southwest corner of the stadium should be avoided as ice is prevalent there. Approximately one-half of our trail network has been groomed.

(Chas Curry)

Base 0 to 2 inches. Due to a recent period of above freezing temperatures our snow cover has thinned out. Following the re-freeze the trails have set up with a hard and uneven surface. Currently, there is not enough snow depth to deploy our tilling equipment, so skiing is not advised at this time. New snow is forecast and we are hoping to get enough to bring out the grooming equipment again soon.

(Chas Curry)

Base 1 to 3 inches. Approximately 50% (12k) of the system has been compacted and combed. No tracks have been set due to limited snow depth. People are skiing, but caution is advised due to uneven surface conditions, thin snow cover and occasional ice patches. Rock skis recommended.

(Chas Curry)

Much of the trail is pretty rough (ruts and lumpy grass under scant snow), but a few sections looked like this. We had a lovely pole hike: 20F, blue skies, no wind.

Photos:

(Anne Flueckiger)