11 Jan 2019 7:39 PM | Douglas Norman

Friday 11am. What an amazing day. County forest from Old Water Plant to the South Entry.Beautiful blue sky and trail covered with lots of untracked Champagne Powder & no rocks anywhere. On some parts of the trail that were wide enough I was even able to twin the track. I hope that is OK. Awesome! As Good as it gets for me anyway.

Since the rain and thaw on Monday and Tuesday, Kolapore has received about 20 cm of beautiful powder snow.  The base was significantly reduced or eliminated by the thaw.  This morning we broke trail through County Forest - Kingsway - Jackrabbbit - John's Portage.  County Forest was very pleasant, although there are still some wet areas.  The more northerly loop was fair to good.  The main problem was that we hit a lot of rocks and added a lot of scratches to our rock skis.  It will be somewhat better for subsequent skiers, because it will be easier to see where the rocks are lurking.  Gaiters are strongly recommended.  Kolapore Trail Guide 

In spite of the rain yesterday and today, there is still a base of snow in the bush at Kolapore.  However, it is thin, and ski conditions would be poor almost everywhere.  We desperately need new snow.  The area had very high winds yesterday, so there are likely to be numerous branches down on the trails, and possibly some trees.  Please help us by tossing branches off the trail where possible.  If more work is needed, send an e-mail to info@kolaporetrails.org   Kolapore Trail Guide

As of 8 AM Kolapore has received 6 cm of new snow overnight, and it's still snowing.  There may be some passable skiing in selected areas, although rock skis are recommended.  Kolapore Trail Guide

The warm weather and sun yesterday substantially reduced the already thin snow base.  Lots of bits of ice came off the trees.  The trails will be icy until it warms up later today.   I would recommend staying off the trails until we get some new snow.  Kolapore Trail Guide

Kolapore received 6 cm of snow overnight.  This may be enough to make some of the less rocky trails skiable.  Rock skis would still be recommended, because the underlying base is quite thin in many areas.  Kolapore Trail Guide

Kolapore had the rain and freezing rain last night, which left a crust.  The crust is relatively thin, with rocks showing through.  On top of that there is about 2 cm of new snow, plus lots of branches that were knocked down.  There are wet areas after the rain.  I don't think that the trails will provide safe or enjoyable skiing until we have more cold weather and a significant amount of new snow.  Kolapore Trail Guide

I had a pleasant ski in the County Forest this morning.  The snow cover is still thin, so I recommend rock skis.  The snow gauge is at 16 cm - fortunately part of this is a firm crust covered by fresher snow.  Skiing on rockier trails is not recommended.  Kolapore Trail Guide

Kolapore received 4 - 5 cm of snow overnight, and it's snowing as I post this at 9 AM.  In areas where we held a base (like the south end), there should be some OK skiing.  I would stay away from rocky areas until we get a bit more snow - in other words, I wouldn't go in at the Kolapore entrance at the moment.  Kolapore Trail Guide

:o(

Hopefully soon. We will let you know.

Highlands Nordic is holding on with 10km and Scenic Caves is open.

Stephen