West Elk Pass on March 4. Photo by Steve Riggs
Thanks for all the comments on the Kananaskis Grooming issue. SkierDoug’s suggestion gets my vote although rejuvenating the Chester-Sawmill trails is a long shot and not likely to see the light of day. Nordiq Alberta gets an A+ for their handling of the entire process so far.
Take heed of Steve Riggs'(and others) cautionary remark regarding Elk Pass: “Friday morning, there will be plenty of icy sections on Thursday’s grooming. The south facing downhill over the powerline hump may well be terrifying without metal edges!”
The Calgary Ski Club’s Virtual Lake Louise Loppet continues until Sunday March 7.
Avalanche danger is rated Considerable at Alpine, treeline, and below treeline today.
If you stick to groomed trails, you’re pretty safe, but there is still some risk on a few trails: Groomed trails with avalanche risk
Mt Shark
“Thursday night’s grooming at Mt Shark took place under a clear sky. Before the grooming, there was a range of 4 to 8 cm’s of snow in most places, much of it reasonably dry and powdery, though in some wind swept or fully sun exposed areas there was not much snow noticeable on top of last week’s grooming and there were some icy areas. Trails should be fast early on Friday before the temperatures rise above the freezing mark, but the new grooming should offer plenty of control on the downhills. The remainder of the trails were being groomed and trackset in the early hours of Friday morning.”
West Bragg Creek
“Multiple freeze/thaw events have made grooming challenging. We will now focus on having just a few core trails in decent condition, as trying to keep all trails in play is impractical. Be aware of hazardous conditions in various areas including debris from Sunday’s wind event, ice flows, standing water, and manure. We would recommend avoiding: Mountain Road (East of Moose connector). Moose Loop, Mountainview, Mountain View west, telephone, Hostel loop, iron Springs, iron Creek and elbow. Be careful out there!”
