-Moraine Lake road at Lake Louise saw a few skiers today but has not been groomed yet-
It was fun running into Diana Piggott at the Moraine Lake road trailhead today. Knowing the snow would not be packed, I didn’t even take my skis along, but I have a few photos from the trailheads of MLR and the Great Divide. You can read Diana’s report and see her photos on the Trip Reports.(If you’re new here, Trip Reports on the main menu is the 2nd most popular page on this blog, so check it often)
The snow was wet at the Moraine lake road trailhead
I believe the report from yesterday, “a foot of snow on Moraine Lake road” was close to accurate. From all reports it was light, fluffy, powdery snow yesterday but had consolidated down to about 10-12 cm of wet snow today at the trailhead.
The snow was colder at the Great Divide
I also ran into Patti a little earlier. She had just finished skiing on MLR and wasn’t having a whole lot of fun. The snow was too wet for wax to get any grip, and it was somewhat of a challenge to avoid hitting pavement. Needless to say, pole tips were hitting pavement regularly.
10-12 cm of snow at the top of Upper Tramline
The snow at the Great Divide was a lot colder and in better condition. It looked like only one or two skiers had been there today.
As previously mentioned on this blog, Parks Canada will start grooming ski trails on Nov 2, snow permitting.
The temperature in the village was +4, but was a little cooler up at the Chateau at +2. There are small amounts of snow in the forecast, so hopefully the snowpack will be a little deeper by the time Parks Canada gets around to packing it. There was no snow at valley bottom until within 10K of Lake Louise.
If you haven’t noticed, Mountaineer Lodge in Lake Louise is offering a special rate to readers of this blog. With some snow and cooler weather, by next weekend it will probably be worth staying overnight and having a two-day season-opening ski fest.
Click for larger image
Alf Skrastins skied at West Bragg Creek and has left a Trip Report. Take note, The Greater Bragg Creek Trails Association is looking for volunteers who are interested in staffing the new Trails Centre on a flexible, part-time basis. info@braggcreektrails.org
Saturday 5th Nov morning, conditions on the out journey were still good but by the return time the snow was quite sloppy, still great for an early season ski.