Can someone give a quick conditions report on the snow conditions around the area?

I know it's supposed to snow tonight/tomorrow but just curious what conditions are like currently.

Thanks...

there's mostly ice, but kind of crusty stuff. IMO there's enough right now to at least provide a decent base. at mohonk I'm pretty sure they would have gone over it, which might make decent skating. best to call them in the morning.

If the steeper slopes in the Catskills have the sort of icy top layer that my yard does, and we get a dump of snow tomorrow night, I can imagine places like Deep Notch will avalanche. (I've seen it happen in Stoney Clove)

How are the x-c skiing conditions this weekend (1/17) at Mohonk? We're heading up for the weekend...

Jannette

Here's what Larry Kosofsky posted on the mhxcss Yahoo group:

"Wonderful conditions continue at Mohonk...still kind of cold for
skating: didn't see too many skaters on the hotel side, at least.
A bunch of us skied down Kleinekill, around Oakwood and back up Laurel
Ledge...nice tracks, great hard wax conditions. Temperature rose (!)
to 17 by 2:30 p.m., but it seemed warmer, with very little wind,
mostly sunny skies. Eagle Cliff was spectacular; the Mohonk vistas
are incomparable. Lots of cars in the lot, and tomorrow should be as
good or better with more moderate temperatures. Larry K. "

Kathy

hey, good old Larry! he's quite a skier. he's out every day usually. you might see him as a blur as he shoots by you.

I am also on the mhxcss group, it's great. I think we should do more around these parts.
anyway an update ...
conditions this weekend were extremely good. everywhere. mohonk is grooming crazy good. it should only get better as things set up during the week and stays cold.
look for fantastic conditions next weekend.

Thanks for the updates Phlan.

can't resist posting / raving about fantastic conditions this weekend. unbelievable hero snow for skating at mohonk today. saw larry and a slew of the locals out getting their jollies today... especially if you're skating conditions almost can't get better than this, but classic should be pretty good too.

dunno whats up at minne but I suspect things are purty good there too.

wish I could ski all weekend but my dad is having terrible health problems and I have got to drive up to Ithaca tomorrow to see him and cheer him up.

but things should hold up pretty well into next weekend when I am taking another 3 day weekend.

enjoy all the nice krusty fun snow. :-)

Minnewaksa was awesome on Saturday.

Lots of trails closed though cause of "blowdown".

It was like that last year. Best time to ski 'em is when they're closed!

it's looking like we'll get another foot o' fresh pow-pow in time for the weekend. ya hoo!



yo homies. update on the update... we got a lotta snow down here by the wallkill... a little bit wet tho. up on the ridge it's gonna be a lot more like powda.

Chris, or anyone else, do you know if the Jenny Lane parking area is plowed at the moment?

any update on the snow from here to the catskills after the rain we got down here?

Another foot between now and the weekend? At the Gunks? I think phlan you are reading optimisticweather.com again. Not that there's anything wrong with that... sorta.

Friends from up at Plattekill and Hunter mtn ski areas report powder early on Wed morning, then the same as throughout the valley, sleet, freezing rain, then just rain. Parking lot to summit. There is now a thick layer of ice over powder. Fun, fun, fun. Breakable crust or unbreakable boiler plate. It's going to take a couple of passes of the groomer to fix this around Minne and Mohonk. RC

Folks - I found a Mid Hudson x-c skiing group on Yahoo, and they frequently correspond about skiing conditions at the various places in the area.
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/mhxcss/

Jannette

yep, gonna be fantastic for skating. at mohonk. classical may not be so bad too. more update tomorrow as I will be out skiing all day. =p

An update would be much appreciated. RC

well, it was interesting today. a little icier than I had thought, but pretty good for skating. the downhills were a bit weird. as the day went on it got better, due to the grooming equipment being run over the same trails several times. this eventually got things milled up pretty well. the result is a mix of icy granular and powder. like I said, best for skating. don't even try minnewaska right now, it's probably pretty bad. I parked at the mohonk gatehouse and skied all afternoon on the hotel side and did not go out the other way, but it should be good out the bonticou loop and spring farm area as well.

Thanks for the heads up phlan. RC

Hopefully you did not end up in the same condition as these guys.

good one lisa. for this reason I actually carried a small medical kit this weekend in case of falls, as there were some death cookies on some of the descents. but there was no blood. good parts of the trail network were just heavenly for skating i.e. even better than powder.

Sunday morning at Mt.Van Hovenberg may have been the nicest snow I've ever been on, with more to come Tuesday.

Conditions into Marcy Dam on Saturday were great too. Hopefully it was not too warm today and nothing was lost.

Just so people know, the conditions for cross country right now on the ridge are less than ideal. The whitewater however is splendid!!!

RR

TWO FEET of rain in the last 2 months. Wettest summer on record in Albany, with another month to go still!

Yippeee. Keeps the yellow jackets at bay and sets us up for a great autumn with lots of dry rock.