Welcome to February! Here’s hoping we start to see lots of snow this month so we can continue to get outside and ski!
- The Nicola Nordic Ski Club maintains the Kane Valley Crosscountry Ski Trails near Merritt, British Columbia.
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Its March 3 and there is lots of snow up at Kane valley! Had a great 3hours playing in the snow today up at North and Lynx. The groomers really need thanks as making tracks on the higher trails is fun when new snow falls, without their hard work of packing all winter we would not have such a marvelous place to ski. Thank you groomers. It has been a super year for skiing. jh
Skied Menzies, Gulch, and Ravens back to P1 today. The temp was -7 to -5. The sun was shining above a high cloud layer with snow sprinkling down. The snow was delightful underfoot. The trail had ski tracks and dog prints but it moved when gently pushed so no ridges, no divots, no ice. Just a superb winter day to enjoy Kane Valley. And the groomers were just starting up Ravens to make the experience even better!
Feb 25
We left from P2 at a pleasant -5. Someone else had made 1st tracks until we turned off at Hills Homestead. The trail was ungroomed but easy to ski through the fresh snow. Enjoyed a stop at the bench and then it was mostly downhill back to P2. A beautiful ski once again.
My wife Diane and I and friends made the Feb 25th 1st tracks on Kane that Herta refers to. It was a lovely ski in the fresh snow. We had a nice lunch at Bertha shelter, although the snow was so deep and untouched we had a few laughs getting up the slight incline to the shelter. The ladies returned by the same route but, being the adventurer, I opted to ascend Ravine to Skyhigh. Big mistake as it appeared to be untouched by anyone but a meandering moose. The snow was very deep and I had to climb over several small blow-downs en-route. Quite the workout. I would not recommend anyone take this trail, especially downhill, unless they have the time (and a saw) to clear it.
We have received more snow in Kane Valley and more on the way! The season is not over yet.
I skied yesterday with a passel of friends who all happened to show up at 11:30 at P1. It started off at -22 yesterday morning but by 11:30 it was a balmy -14. Leaving from P1 and climbing at a steady rate, we were warmed up by the time we hit Ravens. We made “first tracks” on fresh snow. We came down Asp, which has seen activity of either moose or snowshoe tracks so it was a bit challenging, but other than that the conditions were good.
It was a wonderful ski and great to be out.
Come out and play:) And let us know about your ski here on this blog.
Feb 17 2023 wanted to see what condition the trails were in. Parked at p3 at 11 am with temp 0 degrees. Had to get through snowshoe tracks which had made divots in the middle of the Vale trail. There is a snowshoe trail starting right at the bottom. Big decision to a) use the snowshoe trail or b) abuse the ski trail while shaming the snowshoe experience.
Turned onto Gulch to make the first ski tracks most of the way up since the latest snowfall. Turned up Harmon as it was untouched snow. There is one dead small tree across Harmon just before Panorama. Enjoying the softness of the snow and the sunshine it seemed right to go onto the untouched trail to the north pole . There were no tracks as there was no trail left. Just the tree signs confirming somewhere ahead under the drifts was the direction to go. What an incredible experience to feel what adventurers must have felt. There is something magical to be able to make first tracks in snow. Came down Lynx as it too has not seen a skier since it snowed. The hill down Harmon was just wide enough with the soft snow to stay in control, then back down on Gulch and Vale. There was no sticking. It was 7 degrees at 1:45 back at P3. The road is a mixture of good gravel, mud and wet slush. Can not believe that conditions were this good, but don’t know what tomorrow will bring.
Feb. 11
Skied from P1 with Sandra and did a loop from Raven’s Ridge, Tillicum, through ungroomed Neil’s Valley ( which was the best) up to Lunchbox shelter and back along Ravens Ridge. The snow was great, a little sticky in one sunny area otherwise it was clear sailing. Perfect temp, blue skies, and silent beauty all around. Perfect morning!
It’s -9 this morning and 3-5 cms of fresh snow, and no melt yesterday, so I’m pretty sure the skiing will be decent. It’s sky blue and a morning ski would be a ticket in paradise if you can get up here.
Another great day on the trails! Temperature around 0 or just above, mostly cloud with a few sunny breaks, and a few centimetres of fresh snow. A bit sticky around P1, less so higher on Raven’s Ridge, and then sticky again from Harmon up around North. The glide was still good on the downhills: we flew down Lynx, Crossover, Overeasy, and enjoyed them so much that we climbed back up. Nice ski out on Menzies. Not many animal tracks but very peaceful among the trees. Huge thanks to Ian for excellent grooming. And to Ian, Kate and John for the warm welcome and for going the extra mile today.
Did not see Kate, at 10am starting up Harmon from Harmon lake. Surprised to find the trail up groomed and tracked. Even North Pole was perfect. The snow is really user friendly. It is a hill 3.45km to the dam and then a few more lesser hills to Panorama then the North loop back to Harmon down to the lake. The sun did not shine so there was no sticking and the ski down was worth the walk up.
9am: It’s -8 and no melt yesterday. Groomers were out all day yesterday and the trails are in good shape. Ian reports that there is more snow (than the 3-5cms I commented on) up on Hills Homestead.
Come on out and play:)
The Vancouver Skiers are coming up on Sunday which includes a bus and 35+ skiers during the day. Fingers crossed for temps to stay below zero…
Sunday Evening at 7pm we are building a fire at P2 and having a full moon ski, everyone is welcome.
I’m glad the groundhog saw his shadow!
I’m so happy to report that overnight we received 3-5 cms of fresh snow over an excellent base and wide trails. I just got back from a ski with my dogs (and sweetheart) and it’s great skiing!!! It’s -3 right now (9:30am) and my unwaxed skis started to stick at the end a bit, time for a wax!
Definitely come out and play… and leave us some comments if you’ve been out and about. Maybe there is even more snow up top?
I just skied the lakes and back up through Harmon to my house… where did you go?
Kate