Jan. 7, 2021
Happy New Year! A lot is happening in our world right now. Let’s immerse ourselves into thinking about snow and the fun that is available to us lucky enough to live here. The Sno-Park program is finally pretty much into regular operations and skiing should be improving with increased coverage. Earlier this week, it was pristine on the groomed trails. Then it snowed. Remember to check the P2C grooming schedule on this page. See button.
The holidays escalated to a new level of “wow – I can’t believe this” in our neck of the world. The photo above is not of our Sno-Park, but rather of Summit East ski hill (pulled off Facebook). I have NEVER seen so many sledders in all the years I’ve lived here, or anywhere for that matter. The demand for sled hills and play areas far outdid the parking availability and capacity. And a complete disregard for signs. The sledding I saw at an I-90 on-ramp isn’t a good idea, it’s illegal to park in interchanges and there are other options.
Everything you need to know about the I-90 Sno-Parks is found here.
Snow play options – Moving further east: Kachess for snowshoeing, Lake Easton State Park for family friendly snow play, snowshoe and groomed ski trails! Easton Reload (it’s a snowmobile funded Sno-Park, but may be quiet), Salmon La Sac, and Blewett Pass. All of these require a Sno-Park permit. And you know what, there is very little parking available that does not require a Sno-Park permit. Just remember it is the permit fees that pay for snow removal, grooming and sani-cans. NOT tax dollars. These Sno-Parks have descriptions on the website.
Out of Crystal Springs Sno-Park 2 lodges offer family friendly activities for a cost. Mountaineers Meany Lodge is open on weekends this season for day use only. Also based out of Crystal Springs Sno-Park is the Trollhaugen Lodge operated by Sons of Norway. They also have ski rentals this season. Call first. Normally both lodges give precedence to their members.
New this season are cabin rentals at Camp Koinonia. This is a private camp that is operated by the Church of the Brethren and is located between Easton and Cle Elum. This is NOT a Sno-Park.
Suncadia resort out of Cle Elum is a very busy upscale resort with sledding and some groomed ski trails when conditions permit. Also NOT a Sno-Park.
Normally, I would not post above links, because they are not related to our Sno-Parks but the demand is there and some of these lodges needed to open to the public in order to pay the bills.
Please be prepared for winter driving and a lot of traffic.
Next up – events. Kongsbergers Ski Club is planning on hosting their 3 races this year, first one starts in two weeks. See event info here: http://www.kongsbergers.org/races/GH2021.html
“The 2021 Gunnar Hagen Ski Race format will be different, from previous years, in order to maintain safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will be offering a virtual 30k and 10k race. Racers can choose their own start days and times within the 9-day race period, from Saturday January 16- Sunday January 24, 2021. Participants can complete the race as many times as they choose during the race period.”
There is a Skijor clinic scheduled for Jan. 30th 2021, 10 AM at Crystal Springs Sno-Park. This clinic is limited to 10 people so we can keep it free and you will need to sign up. More details as I assemble a flyer and update the websites.
Salmon La Sac should be groomed for this weekend. I will update home page if I can get a report from them.
See you up there!
