It looks like we may have finally crossed into the winter season...and not a day too soon, as my New Year's resolution was going to be "stop wearing flip flops in the winter and spend more time shoveling snow."  

The National Weather Service is forecasting snow showers every day through Sunday night for the Lake Placid region.  The old "foot of flurries" adage might well come into play this weekend.  

The storm on Monday night dumped 4-6" of heavy, wet snow throughout the region, and was quickly followed by sleet, freezing rain, rain, and occasional snow showers over the past 3 days.  The heavy snow proved beneficial to cross country ski centers in the region, and as of today Mt. Van Hoevenberg, Cascade XC Center and Dewey Mountain are all reporting skiable terrain, though its probably best for skate skiing or waxless classic gear at this point.

Since Tuesday morning we've received reports from people skiing the Whiteface Toll Road (not recommended until we get more accumulation and colder temps), the Peninsula section of the Jackrabbit, area golf courses, and even the new Cobble Lookout trail in Wilmington.  At least one party managed a ski to Marcy Dam via the Truck Trail on Wednesday, and reported good coverage.

The next report will be published on Saturday, and will include the latest information on backcountry conditions in the High Peaks Wilderness.  At this point all backcountry travelers should be equipped with skis or snowshoes and should be prepared to encounter full winter conditions on all trails, especially at higher elevations.  

This is also the time of year when we start planning the annual Pool Party at the Crowne Plaza Resort.  This family-friendly event will take place on January 24, and will include the bi-annual meeting of the members of Barkeater Trails Alliance-Adirondack Ski Touring Council.

Lastly, we'd like to close with a friendly public service announcement regarding uphill skiing (aka. skinning) at Whiteface Mountain:  

With the lack of snow so far this season, and the growing popularity of backcountry skiing and splitboarding, increasing numbers of local and visiting skiers are taking advantage of Whiteface Mountain's uphill skiing (skinning) opportunities.

Over the past couple years there have been a number of incidents of skiers/splitboarders skinning-up or descending trails while the groomers are operating on a winch cable. Not only does this violate Whiteface Mountain's very reasonable uphill skiing policy AND interfere with the hard work of Whiteface groomers...it's also just plain dangerous (and frankly stupid).

"Dawn Patrol" is not a new thing...many folks have been doing it for years at Whiteface. It has become an important part of the ski season for many of us who are looking to stay in shape for backcountry missions when the real snow starts flying. No one wants to see these privileges revoked (and Yes it is a privilege, many ski areas across the country are not so progressive and forbid uphill skiing altogether).

Please see the Whiteface Uphill Skiing Policy below. Learn it. Love it. Live it. And help keep Dawn Patrol going for many years to come. Help spread the word by sharing this post. Thank you!

Whiteface Mountain - Winter Uphill Skiing Policy

Well folks it looks like our friend Old Man Winter has finally stumbled into town...although he's bringing with him a few unsavory types that we won't acknowledge for now in the hopes that maybe they'll just go away without crashing the party.  

The National Weather Service is forecasting a short window of heavy snow starting late Monday night, with possible accumulations of 4-6" of new snow by early Tuesday morning (perhaps more at higher elevations).  With temperatures hovering around freezing for most of Tuesday, its likely that we'll experience some combination of snow, sleet and freezing rain throughout the day...hopefully more snow than anything else.

A crew from Barkeater Trails Alliance will be out on a "fact-finding" mission tonight and we'll be sure to update this report as new evidence of the existence of winter presents itself.  Its entirely possible that the Whiteface Toll Road will be skiable on Tuesday, but the window will likely be pretty short.  

If you've been out skiing and would like share a conditions update, please email Josh at beta trails@gmail.com with "December Ski Conditions" in the subject line.

Finally, Cascade XC Center plans to have trails open tomorrow (and the bar and restaurant), and Mt. Van Hoevenberg will announce their status by 8am tomorrow.  Check the Facebook pages for both for the most current info (click links in this paragraph).

Christmas Eve day saw high temperature records smashed in many locations  Lots of folks out on the trails in shorts and t-shirts.  There is still some ice on the trails above 3,500 feet on north-facing slopes, but the ground in the valley is still not frozen.  This means that, while there is a chance of a few inches of accumulation by Tuesday, it still won't make for very good skiing.  But stay tuned, we're sure it will come sometime.  

​And finally, thanks to all who heeded the request in the last post to come and at least watch some skiing and snow.  "Jumbo Wild" was our most successful fundraiser to date.

Still nothing to report to all you skiers out there, but then again, you already knew that.  This unseasonable pattern doesn’t look like it will break anytime soon, however the forecast for this week looks like a step in the right direction with temps in 20s and 30s and possible snow showers over the weekend.  The good news is that its warm enough to ride bikes still, and our trail work season seems to just keep going and going.

It will snow soon enough, so in the meantime you might as well have fun watching other people enjoying the white stuff.  This Saturday, December 19 is the annual Barkeater Trails Alliance - Adirondack Ski Touring Council SKI MOVIE FUNDRAISER at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts.  See here for more details and to RSVP on Facebook:

​https://www.facebook.com/events/1648400015413670

This is a great opportunity to get psyched for the winter that will eventually arrive, while helping us raise money to support our work to advocate for, build and maintain a world-class network of trails for ski touring and mountain biking in the Adirondack High Peaks region.

We hope you'll join us to watch an awesome documentary, “Jumbo Wild,” by Patagonia and Sweetgrass Productions.  You can watch the trailer here: http://pat.ag/JumboWild.

DETAILS:
Tickets are $15 at the door (kids 12 and under FREE)
**Special BETA Membership offer - $25 gets you a movie ticket and a one-year membership in BETA**
Doors open at 6:00pm
Movie at 7:30pm
Enter to win raffle prizes from these local sponsors:

Placid Planet Bicycles, Cascade X-C Ski Center, High Peaks Cyclery, Mountaineer Keene Valley, Origin Coffee Co., prAna...and more!

We hope to see you there!

The tenth of December was not covered with snow
And nor were the ski trails at Placid and Van Ho
And the hillsides looked dreary without any frosting
With few flakes behind us and ten million more to go.
With apologies to James Taylor

Unfortunately, it appears that it will stay warm through the weekend and into next week, but as soon as there is snow you will hear about it here.  While we wait for snow, check out http://www.barkeatertrails.org for maps of mountain bike trails in Lake Placid and Wilmington.  Hardy Road and Flume trails are equally nice for walking or running.

As of Friday afternoon, the Lake Placid golf courses are white and there is just barely an inch of snow at the toll house on the Whiteface Highway.  There will likely be bare stretches in the first mile or so on the highway because this snow was accompanied by some strong winds.  This snow should last through Saturday, but valley temperatures on Sunday will be around 50, so "ski it while you can".  Next week appears to be dry with temperatures in the 40s.