Update Friday night, beautiful full moon.
It cooled down, so it seems the snow is setting up. And, snow is forecast for Saturday night! who hoo.
Well, its been a bit of a dreary week up on the Pass. Very wet, snow then rain, then snow repeat. The good news is we hung onto a base. Holidays are here and the winter solstice is Friday 2:22 PM in Seattle (according to Google). Less than 8 hours of daylight, so get out there early! It will get better.
As you can see from this photo, there is a utility line down. This happens. This week there were power crews on repairs and some grooming was destroyed. Many of you probably remember a couple years ago where so much snow coming down that trees fell by the hundreds and power was out up on the pass for a long time. Well, that didn't happen this week, but the crews were still out in their various over the snow vehicles / cats and just a reminder to all of us that we all have to roll with it.
There is NO GROOMING on Christmas Day which is Tuesday.
Generally there is around 12-16" of snow and limited grooming.
Cabin Creek is in good shape and the trek up Amabilis should be fun!
South Loop and Erling Stordahl generally need 2 -3' before they can groom. But LandTec is working hard on Erling as I update this blog, so there will be something for tomorrow.
the P2C* is scheduled for tomorrow thru Monday and then back on the day after Christmas.
Sled Dog trails - limited. State Parks reports beginning to groom this Monday, but the basic schedule is grooming on Monday and Friday afternoons. These trails generally need 2-3' before all can be groomed, but some trails should be just fine. So I really have no idea what is groomed out there right now. Expect a washout on the Crystal Dog Trail that you will probably have to walk around.
Hyak Sled Hill closed
Lake Easton State Park, no grooming, but there is about 10" of snow to play in!
Salmon La Sac, no grooming for this weekend, but its on the schedule for next Wednesday, the 26th. Salmon La Sac is in a micro climate with generally good snow, but its been a bit warm lately. You can still go touring with your back country skis and make tracks out in the voluntary non-motorized areas.
If there is a federal government shutdown, which it appears will happen in a few hours, there will be no grooming until there is a federal budget approved.
There will be a Skijor clinic this season. Sunday Jan. 6th. Free and limited to 10. Please email winter.recreation@gmail.com if you are interested. This will be on the snow and includes you and your dog. It is a really good idea that you can ski comfortably on cross country skis as it is not a sport for beginner skiers.
I will also update the Winter.Recreation@WinterRec twitter account and Facebook as I have time.
PS - I am still adding final touches to this website for this season. Not quite there yet.
* Palouse to Cascades State Park Trail
