Photo by Mo, April 6, 2019
2019 April 7, Grooming Report; To quote a great grooming report writer from the second to last century, “The report of my death was an exaggeration.” Following howls from the ski community grooming is back on. I am reminded of John Hersey’s A Single Pebble. I must apologize for spoiling it in case either of you have not read it yet, but the young engineer thinks he understands what is going on and in the end realizes he has only seen a microcosm. We had a room full of chin pullers talking about how difficult it would be to get the grooming equipment back to the barn once the snow melted and how few people were skiing and all manner of other justifications for pulling the plug on grandma while she was perfectly well.
So, Andy drives the sled back to the barn yesterday with Ginzu in tow…and the crowd burst into applause. No less a personage than Mo reported, “Incredibly good skiing today. (there is a) 2’-4’ base all the way to 11.5k mark from 510. Only about .3k of trail disruption. (I had) one of the best skis of the year today (ie, yesterday)!
Following his impassioned plea, funds were sourced and a plan was formulated. Grooming will continue until further notice. Of course, weather continues to dictate when grooming is useful. However, fully transformed snow takes on remarkable properties following dozens of freeze/thaw cycles. The “corn” crystals become so porous that water drains away as fast as it melts regardless the temperature. Warm sunny days can yield spectacular tee shirt skiing. Overnight freezing temperatures are forecast to return Monday and continue through the six day forecast. Grooming following a freeze knocks down the sharp edges of the prior day’s skate tracks and extends the Goldie Locks Zone such that good skiing begins very early in the day.
With great groomed skiing beginning on Armistice Day we are now on the cusp of five full months of excellent skiing with no end in sight. With apologies to all my Badger friends, I had the great misfortune of being in southern Wisconsin yesterday. Now, back in paradise I feel so blessed to have my bike still on the mag trainer and skis on the wax bench.
See you out there
Sondo
See map below for trail closures due to logging.
FOLLOWING IS A RE-RUN GOING OVER COMMERCIAL FOREST AND THE NTN (PLEASE READ ONCE) In
Over 99% of the trails we ski, bike, run and walk are owned by private land owners. Most of the trails are on commercial forest land. These land owners wish to see their land used by skiers, bikers, runners and walkers for 99+% of the time. All they ask is that we understand they need to use the land for a few months per decade.
I really want both of you to understand how important our commercial forests are to life in the U.P. In much of the country where commercial forestry has fallen behind other uses as the highest and best use, trails like the entire NTN are not possible. Land in such areas is owned in small private blocks and the public is locked out.
Effective March 25th, parts of our trail system were closed for logging. One of the keys to the NTN’s success is the fact our users understand this symbiosis. Our part in this process is to stay out of the way of the loggers and thank them for their support. Logging is a dangerous and capital intensive operation. We need to help them be safe and look out for their equipment. Trails will be marked as closed and we trust you will stay away from the logging operations.
The land owners always wait until late in the year to allow as long a ski season as possible. In addition, they attempt to keep as much of the trail open as possible. Beginning next Monday, several sections of trail near the power lines will be blocked and logging trucks will be driving on them.
The NTN is committed to providing top quality skiing if at all possible. You have come to expect nothing less and we are used to providing nothing but. We will continue to groom trails between Co Rd 510 and the logging areas. Most skiers (especially the spring time skiers) know the best skiing is near Co Rd 510 anyway.
Sondo