Open, 3º at 6:30 am and sunny. Forecast high 20º, sun and a few clouds.

The surface of the snow has ground up nicely. A loose granular, skiable surface with a little powder mixed in from Thursday morning. The skiing is nice, a little hard and a little fast, which I enjoy. I find it easy to snow plow and easy to herringbone.

17 km groomed, Woodcock, Turkey, Snow Goose, Grouse, Goshawk, Peregrine and Chickadee. Middle and Upper Blue Jay and Loon not groomed, but skiing ok, if you have a strong snow plow.

The animals are moving and looking for food. Watch for animal tracks and animal scat. This photo was taken by a random skier. It is helpful in identifying a track from a photo to have a scale. Put your pole or mitten down, to help determine the size of the print.

And last, but very important for future planning, next weeks temperatures. The middle of next week the temperature is going up. We can and will be open as long as our road is passable and safe. When the temperature goes up to around 50º and doesn’t freeze at night, dirt roads get really, really soft. Please pay attention here, as we will close if the road gets really soft and muddy.

Just some mud season tips. Go slow, aim high, don’t stop. Mud season mantra.