Saturday morning update

Telephone Loop at West Bragg Creek. Photo by Alf Skrastins.

Thanks for all the trip reports and photos yesterday. Alf Skrastins found lots of fresh snow on Telephone Loop at West Bragg Creek. 

Telephone Loop. Photo by Alf Skrastins

The weather forecasts are all calling for a significant snowfall event on Sunday pm/Monday in the mountains. The snow will be followed by at least a couple days of cooler temperatures. 

Keith Bagnall was informed by Parks Canada that grooming by PC has ended at Lake Louise(Moraine Lake road, Great Divide, Pipestone, Bow River Loop). The Chateau grooming team will continue grooming the Upper Lake Louise trails until Easter. 

Yesterday’s grooming at Lake Louise included the Lakeshore, Lake surface, Upper Telemark, and Peyto. 

PLPP tracksetting last night included Pocaterra from hut to Packers, Lynx, Rolly Road, and Come-Along(partial). It’s -1°C at the Lower Lake this morning with an expected high of +7. 

“On Friday night, between 2 and 5cm’s of new snow was mixed in to the icy base, and as of 3:30 Saturday morning, no new snow had fallen overnight.  Expect about 2 to 5cm’s of snow on all trails not groomed Friday night, likely a little more in some higher elevation locations, and probably less in some places in the direct sun. The base is getting very thin in a few places in the north end, as well as some of the middle trails, particularly on a number of spots on Come Along; use caution on Wheeler as well, as a few sun exposed areas are very thin and may expose ground if high daytime temperatures continue.  The middle section of Come Along was not groomed due to a patch of bare ground south of Rolly Rd junction.  Without some significant new snow and colder temperatures the north end (and possibly some of the middle trails) will develop bare spots and no longer be groomed for the season.”

At the Canmore Nordic Centre, the man-made snow on Banff trail to the meadow was trackset. The natural snow trails(Bow, Banff, Meadowview, Coal Cut, Cold Shoulder) had the skating lanes groomed.