In El Nino winters like this, thank Nate, Kyle, Eric and other folks at ABR for keeping things going. Yes, it's getting super thin and many trails are closed but there was enough good skiing to keep us entertained for two hours with temps approaching 40F. We skated but others were enjoying decent tracks and getting purchase with skin skis. ABR has also been grooming up some new connector trails that have fresh snow to take pressure off the main loops which have been pounded with heavy traffic over the past week.

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(Mike Ivey)

We had a groomers meeting with five of us this morning. We discussed plans to survive the warmer temps coming up this weekend. We came up with four loops totally about 10 k of gentle terrain using multiple trails and new connectors that holds snow well and is fairly debris free. We then set out in three groups and hauled snow, shoveled snow and beefed up the weak areas. We finished the day by grooming the 10 k loops. Some of the new short connectors were soft but overall skiers were quite impressed. In conclusion, we have a 10 k loop for good skis and we have an additional 30 km open but for B skis due to debris.

(Eric Anderson, ABR Trails)

Snow is holding up remarkably well on most combi trails. Good or B skis if you know where to go. Steepest downhills wisely roped off. Very fun and skiable. The groomers are making contingency plans for the warm days ahead - my money is on our snow surviving.

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(Will Andresen)

Trails are a bit rough. The grooming has kept conditions fair. I stayed on the river trail as they recommended. Had a good time. The snow base is getting pretty thin.

(Laura Arts)

Skied 40k on natural snow today, fast and fun. Conditions very variable, from very good to a bit rough - but easy to see and avoid any bare spots. Mostly because of the speed, I'd recommend staying away from the biggest downhills for now.

(Will Andresen)

Incredibly fast and fun skate skiing conditions this early morning from 9am to noon. Overnight freeze (26F degrees) really helped firm up the skate deck. Thankfully, ABR used the PB to reset the frozen deck and made for some really enjoyable skiing this morning. Classic tracks were good throughout most of the course as well. There were a handful of spots where the dirt was brought up to the surface, but I would say 90% was clean snow and 10% was a bit dirty - and easily avoidable. The only loop you probably want to skip is the Turkey Hill. It was quite chopped up. Everything else was pure joy.

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(Bill Oyler)

Pretty good ski this morning because the snow had refrozen, making for nice gliding.
Some lumpy bumpy areas and dirt coming to the surface. Overall well worth it. Tracks not regroomed but mostly solid with occasional ice and dirt.

(Brian Ciske)

We had some pretty decent skiing today! On a thin base we had decent coverage on the 42 km groomed again this morning. We have been using the light equipment the last six days because it has not been freezing. Grooming plans: Tonight looks like it will freeze hard so if the light equipment is struggling, I will get the PistenBully out to powertill and reset classic tracks.

(Eric Anderson, ABR Trails)

ABR was phenomenal this morning. The skate deck had excellent glide with expected bare spots here and there, but easily navigated around. Poles had good push too. We skied all open skate trails for four hours this morning and there are some phenomenal stretches out there where you can V2 with ease and speed. However, the heavy damp snow grooves and open areas on some of steep downhills means you have to proceed very slow and cautiously. Our B skis had a deep warm-snow stone-grind, with warm-structurite added due to the high snow moisture. Today we skied on a High Performance Yellow Toko with a dirt-resistant black wax mixed in for outstanding and durable glide for the entire time we skied. With the challenges of the warm weather and thin snow, kudos to the ABR groomers. Thanks again for a very fun fast day.

(Luke Fortney)

Classic skied something in the 30 km range this afternoon, 2 hours 43 minutes. The snow is soft but the ski and experience is second to none. Conditions are great for the weather. There's many bare spots showing up here and there, but they are avoidable. I used good skis because I didn't find an up to date report. No damage to my skins and no gouging to my bases. The highland was epic and serene, a few of the hill climbs and downhills had gravel and dirt but it was easy to ski around. Ski this now! Thank you so much for always giving the best conditions ABR groomers! That was awesome Birkie training, who knows what the conditions will be.

(Kevin Grand)