Ski tour on 11/22

After learning from BREIA's web site that the trails had received 12" of snow on 11/17, I decided to drive to Boonville on 11/22 to give the Canal Trail a try since temps did not reach 30 and there was also no rain during the week following that snowstorm. I'm glad I went.

I skied the length of the trail (trailhead to trail end) and back (15.6 miles in all). Saw 6 other skiers and 2 snowshoers along the route.

I saw/heard mallards, turkeys, crows, a muskrat, a belted kingfisher, a dark-eyed junco, bluejays, black-capped chickadees plus many deer tracks and a set of coyote tracks and a set of fox tracks.

It was a beautiful mostly sunny day with temps in upper teens/low 20s during my visit - perfect conditions. The trail is bordered for most of its length by forest, so it is shielded from wind. The photo above is a view of the gorge.

The snow storm that dropped this foot of snow was very localized. Snow depths varied along the Canal Trail with a lesser amount near the trail end than in the upper portion - likely associated with the elevation difference. Less than 10 miles away, the ground was bare!

Looking forward to my next visit...

Dave Behm
Clifton Park, NY

BREIA Photos

That's a very good idea. We'll be changing the mix of photos as time
goes on and will add pictures of children and families, as you suggest.

BREIA

Ski trip report 11/23/08

I visited the ski trail for the first time ever on Sunday Nov. 23. I skied from trailhead at Search/Rescue barn in Boonville to the State Park at Pixley Falls. Conditions were very good for early season, with very few bare spots at all. Tracks were set in about 8” of snow. Weather was great…met a group of three women early on, and a young couple near the State Park…otherwise, I had the trail to myself. I can’t wait to get back out and ski the trail again. Thank you to all who have made this trail so special. I hope everyone who uses this system makes yearly donations to the organizations responsible for upkeep.

John Gosier
Chaumont, New York

BREIA Photos

I love the new web site and the photo gallery, but it would be nice to see some photographs of kids skiing as well. My son and I ski there often and enjoy meeting up with people across the whole range of ages.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Robert Halliday D.Phil.
Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor of Philosophy

Utica College
Utica NY 13502-4892

Trail Conditions

Love the new webcam and format of the site. After seeing Carl's posting I thought I had to give it a go myself. I went to the Egypt road complex and parked at the lower parking lot. Man -- the temperature is holding steady cold. I only skied from there up the hill to the Echo lake road and back because I'm an out of shape wimp, but I can testify that it was real skiing. No scraping or grinding and only a few easily avoidable roots and sticks to contend with. No grooming but it's been pleasantly tracked out. I plan on going again soon as there calling for more snow.

Ronald

current conditions

Hey Brad!

I skied at Egypt Rd. on 11/18 and 11/19 and the conditions are very good for November. It's too early to groom, but the snow has held due to the cold temps which will continue through the coming weekend. The Gorge area at Egypt Rd. (upper lot) has excellent cover throughout, though the Great Tr. has some open spots in the woods after the power line.

Anyone else have anything to share with Brad??

Carl Anderson
Barneveld, NY

08 skiing reports

I would love to hear from people who have been skiing since the Nov. 17 snowfall. How was it?

Brad Edmondson
PO Box 924
Ithaca, NY 14851
(607) 272-1832

2nd snowfall of the season; 11/17

Boonville got its 2nd snowfall of the season on Nov. 17th..12" and Adirondack Central was closed..could this be a record for the earliest snow-day at ACS? Let's hope this is a precursor for the rest of the ski season! Let the Tug Hill snow machine commence!