2014-15 Trail Report Archive
Gary says December 13, 2014 at 7:31 am
Actually Kathy, there were three of us who skied ahead of you on Friday, 12/12. We broke trail through about 12″ of powder. Great skiing although it was a bit warm.
Kathy says December 12, 2014 at 7:54 pm
The pics found in the Facebook link below show two trees not far down on the first entrance to Sweetwater (one on each side) that will need to be cut down for safety reasons. Thanks for all you do!
Kathy says December 12, 2014 at 7:51 pm
Ahhh… Pure beauty! I had the whole woods to myself. Only one had gone before me, thankfully breaking trail as they were not groomed.
Here are pics: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152575521001989.1073742121.732711988&type=1&l=c7caf69373
With no other distractions, my senses had a little party with the deep soft fluff cushioning underfoot. Always enjoy the feel of pushing the poles off that consistency of snow. (There was about 7 – 9 inches.) The trails I skied on were protected, but wind blew in the surrounding woods creating little crystal-ly sounds, occasional popping and setting tiny leaves scampering at times like little mice.
It was the most fun I experienced with changeable skies – totally grey going in, then sun bursting snow for seconds – gone before I could get the camera on. Then lots of bursts of blue which at times topped trees like colorful leaves – they too moved quickly, my “draw” with the camera, never quite quick enough. When deep blue emerged, the snow appeared a light blue/purple – so pretty. It was like being inside a kaleidoscope with flecks of light dancing and gone then black and white contrasts, then blue colors “popping.”
Thanks to the person who broke trail! Was surprised that trails weren’t groomed.
Skied the Allegheny River dikes last night, skiing behind a deer (Blitzen?) Going to try Hanging Bog tomorrow! Get it while you can folks! It was a little colder at ASP and will be at Hanging Bog, so it should be good.
Happy weekend!
Kathy
12/19/14- ASP J SNYDER: The Art Roscoe Ski Trails officially opened on 12/17/2014. The upper trails have between 3 and 6 inches of wet snow that has accumulated over the last several days. The lower trails have little to no coverage. The ground has not had an opportunity to freeze and the wet snow is insulating the warm ground. Park staff is on the upper trails now, Sweet Water (seems to have the most snow), Christian (shallow tracks, wet spots and open spots), Leonard’s Run (shallow snow and a lot of bare spots). The lower trails are almost bare.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
rob walk says December 21, 2014 at 9:00 am
12/20/2014 Upper trails have been rolled and tracks set! Surprisingly good track on the Sweetwater considering that the base is still pretty shallow. Best earobly season ski conditions I can remember. Will try Leonard today (Sunday).
Kathy says December 21, 2014 at 5:14 pm
Thanks so much, Rob, for reporting on trail conditions. With no snow in Olean, I would never have guessed conditions would be great at the park. I headed right up after reading your post and skied Sweetwater, the Crossover, and Leonard. All were fantastic, considering the light base. Thanks to the groomers, who did a nice job. Tracks were a little icy and crunchy in spots (much more ice and some bare spots on Leonard). Conditions were fast for me but I have no-wax skis. I had no problem, tho, skiing in the middle or on the sides in fresh snow on steeper parts. I found the most perfect conditions were on the section turning on Summit trail going out (instead of going up Firetower). Beautiful day in the woods! Here are photos: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152595452461989.1073742122.732711988&type=1&l=6896f9c17e
ray says December 22, 2014 at 11:16 am
I would like to thank the park for taking advantage of our recent snowfall and getting out to groom and track set the upper trails. Sweetwater is in the best condition with the deepest base. While the base is thin, conditions are currently excellent. I would recommend using “rock” skies, since there are spots where leaves and sticks are coming through the base.
Unfortunately, there has been some foot traffic on the tracks and I noticed that there is no signage restricting hiking and snowshoeing. It would be a great service if the administration could place notice of these restrictions at the entrance to the trail system. While signs won’t stop everyone, many non skiers and snowshoes are simply ignorant of how their use negatively affects the tracks.
12/31/14 ASP Report: The Art Roscoe Ski Trails only have an inch of fluffy snow at this time, leaves and rocks are still visible on all trails . The warmer temperatures this past weekend melted all of the previous snow. The ground is now saturated and the cold temperatures will accelerate the freezing of the ground, these conditions will help us establish base. Currently we are under a Lake Effect Snow Watch however it is very difficult to predict exactly where those bands of snow will land.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
Allen Knowles says:
Jan. 2, 2015: Ridge Run trail damage: I went around Ridge-Patterson today on my rock skis. There were 4-wheeler tracks in the snow, dusted over, so probabley left yesterday. As I got further out Ridge, the areas that get wet were seriously rutted by older, frozen motorized vehicle tracks that look like ATV tracks to me. In front of the Ridge lean to it is just a churned up frozen mess. Going down towards Bova it is also pretty badly rutted in many areas, and there were tracks going down Bova. Going up Patterson was just the recent tracks over frozen ground. I drove around to Bova; there are new cabins in the Camp Allegany area. At the Bova parking area, the ATVers have made a path around the gate and headed up the trail. I went to the Admin Building and spoke to a nice lady who took the info and said she would pass it on to the superintendent Monday (he was not there this afternoon). I asked her if perhaps some temporary barriers could be put up at the Bova entrance to the trails, as with a thaw this weekend more damage could be done. She picked up the phone and said she would try to get that done.
I infer that the new cabins close to the Bova trail entrance brought hunters and their ATV’s in. I think it will take some advocacy on our part to get better gating, signage, and hopefully some enforcement, or I fear this will be a recurring problem. I do not know what can be done for Ridge this year; my non-expert opinion is that it will take a lot of snow to be able to groom over these ruts.
Allen Knowles says January 3, 2015 at 6:07 pm
An update on my post of 1/2/15: Park management states the ruts in the trail are from park equipment doing trail work. I gather it was necessary to repair a culvert. I think it will take some fairly deep snow before I will attempt that section of trail on anything but rock skis.
1/5/15 ASP Update-The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have about 2” of fresh powder on the upper trails. The winds are strong out of the west and this is creating bare spots on some of the trails. We are expecting to get more snow over the next few days and park staff will begin rolling as soon as we get the additional forecasted snow.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
1/7/15 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have about 5” of snow on all trails. Strong winds are blowing this fluffy snow around and it is drifting in the usual locations. Park staff is on the trail system now rolling with the LMC Groomer in order to develop a base. If we receive the additional snow that is forecasted we anticipate rolling and setting track before this weekend. Conditions are still poor as there is not enough snow to cover up branches and other imperfections on the trails.
Allen Knowles says January 8, 2015 at 2:52 pm
I went around the 3 uppers Wednesday, mostly after the packer went by. The packing left about an inch and a half of packed base with one wet spot on Sweetwater and one on Leonard. No bare spots that I encountered. Today (Thursday morning) there was another inch of new powder on top of the packed base. I went around Sweetwater and Christian with no problem, using a VR30 wax. Skiers (including me) have picked up most of the sticks. So anyway, no tracking but enough snow on the 3 uppers to ski without scraping . It appears they also took the packer around Ridge-Patterson, but I did not go around those trails.
1/9 2pm ASP Update – The Art Roscoe Ski Trails received another 3 inches of snow since yesterday. Park staff is on the trail system now rolling and setting track with the LMC. We anticipate that these tracks will get covered up with the additional snow, but some skiers are already taking advantage of the first good track of the season. Conditions are marginal as there is not enough snow to cover up all branches and other imperfections on the trails.
Brad Schottin says January 11, 2015 at 3:03 pm
Almost did not make the 1 1/4 hr trip to ski today because of the last ASP 1/9 comment about skiing being marginal. Conditions of SW & LR were surprisingly good with a little drifting on LR. Skiing was fast but not too fast, just easy gliding. Decent track considering the limited amount of snow that fell. A little amount of debris coming through the snow but overall well worth going out to ski the trails. Not sure about Ridge Run and Patterson.
Steve says January 11, 2015 at 4:41 pm
Ditto on Brad S. comments ref. conditions today. Just would add that Christian Hollow also was good as well. All in all a very enjoyable ski.
dave says January 12, 2015 at 11:26 am
Skied on sunday am january 11. We were surprised that the tracks were pretty good. A few weak spots here and there, but worth the drive to ski.
Allen Knowles says January 12, 2015 at 7:03 pm
Monday, Jan. 12, 2015: About 3 inches of new snow; temps did not get above freezing up on the trails today and all precipitation was snow, not rain. People have skied tracks into the fresh snow on Sweetwater, Christian, and proximal Ridge. Full snow cover and minimal debris on those trails. Park personnel told me they hope to groom tomorrow. Even without fresh grooming, skiing today was good.
1/13/15 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails received an additional 3 inches of snow yesterday. Park staff is on the trail system now rolling and setting track with the LMC. You will truly enjoy the pristine conditions of the trails that journey through the Allegany State Park back country. Today is the day to make the trip to Allegany State Park.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
1/14 Bjorn- Great conditions- hard, fast well-formed tracks. All trails including Snowsnake are groomed/tracked. Skied all trails but Snowsnake. VR30 worked like magic, then added VR40 as temps rose.
Jack L. says January 13, 2015 at 8:57 pm
Skiid Leonard around 4. Wax:Blue. Tracks: Excellent. Coverage: very good. 15 degrees. Sunny. Just tracked today. Just about as good as it gets. Track could set overnight to be a little faster. Highly recommend.
1/16 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails received an additional inch of snow overnight. All trails have excellent coverage and conditions seem to be getting better and better, this is great news for the upcoming long weekend. Park staff is on the trail system now rolling with the LMC Groomer and track setter.
Dan S. says January 16, 2015 at 9:37 am
Skied upper 3 loops and upper part of Ridge 1/15. Excellent tracks and good coverage. Used good race skis. VR45 worked well for 2 hours till sun on tracks and rising temp required VR50. Should still be good for Saturday. Thanks park crew.
Jack L. says January 16, 2015 at 7:17 pm
1-2pm. Received a fair amount of new snow by the pm slowing things down a little and got cooler. 16 degrees. Fresh track tomorrow am would be awesome. Either way, it’s worth the trip, especially tomorrow or early Sun., before warmth and the games.
Kathy says January 16, 2015 at 7:52 pm
Skied at about 4:30 pm on 1/16. Base was a nice cushion, tracks were still in good condition and glide was nice. Here is a link to some pics:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152672265381989.1073742129.732711988&type=1&l=9ac2a81cb9
Jo Ann Dombeck says January 19, 2015 at 1:45 pm
Skied Patterson/Snowsnake on Saturday. Conditions excellent. Snowsnake was a little sticky where the sun beat on it. Skied upper loops on Sunday. Conditions were good. Tracks worn out on downhills from heavy Saturday use, but still very skiable. Great conditions and snow is falling again today.
Allen Knowles says January 19, 2015 at 8:00 pm
Monday, Jan. 19, afternoon: An inch of new snow and temps back into the 20’s. Skied upper 3 and Ridge-Patterson. All have good snow cover; no new grooming but skiers have been over all the tracks and snow is moderately fast. SW and CH are OK but tracking is pretty much obliterated on downhill curves. Leonard and Ridge-Patterson are in good condition. No reason not to ski! Seemed to be lots of people, some with children, taking advantage of conditions and the holiday.
Doug Bargar says January 21, 2015 at 4:25 pm
Jan. 21, 2015: Had a good day of skiing at Red House today. Track was a little crusty and glazed over in places with ice. As I used waxable skis, figured out pretty quickly that rubbing on stick wax would not provide enough grip. The blue klister I put on my skis worked well, providing adequate kick for all but the steeper hills, and glide was good. Coverage remains adequate in spite of the warm-up and subsequent hard freeze. Enjoy!
ray says January 22, 2015 at 7:38 am
There is a good 2-3 inches of packed base on the trails. The tracks are OK. However, the system shows a lot of use and is in need of grooming, especially the Ridge/ Patterson loop which has not been done in at least a week.
1/23 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have not received any additional measurable snow since 1/16/2015. Park staff performed limited grooming earlier this week while performing trail maintenance. Park staff is currently on the trail system now with the LMC and double track setter. Although there is very little base conditions are surprisingly good. Come to Allegany State Park and enjoy the fresh tracks!
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
Kathy says January 23, 2015 at 8:35 pm
Skied Sweetwater & Crossover at the end of the day today. Tracks were shallow and in some places worn down; snow pack was dense. Glide was very good making those long downhills on Sweetwater enjoyable and uphills easier. Loved the thicker fluffy snow on Crossover – it made for a lot of fun.
Was grateful for my timing – as I left Crossover, the sun had set and I ran into a couple at the “w” (Crossover, Leonard, Ridge) who planned to go the wrong way. They were grateful, too. 🙂 (The signs can be confusing.)
Here are pics: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152685171856989.1073742132.732711988&type=1&l=c1a2868215
And here’s hoping for a nice weekend for skiing.
Jack L. says January 24, 2015 at 4:58 pm
11 am. Upper Ridge. 23 degrees. Old spec. red over blue extra.
Track was fast and solid. Tons of glide. Not many on Ridge. Do it again tomorrow. These conditions are why we ski.
1/25 Bjorn- Trails yesterday were in fair condition. Cat has compacted minimal base so hard that old tracks weren’t renovated on last groom, especially on Ridge. Lots of washboard bumps. Trails badly need renovating. Extremely hard, fast, shallow and sometimes multiple tracks that divert skis make for dangerous downhills for beginners and intermediate skiers.
Jack L. says January 26, 2015 at 9:31 am
Sunday 11am. Leonard. Fresh snow slowed things down. Track getting fairly chewed up in spots. Still good skiing. Hopefully with new snow early this week, we’ll get some needed grooming.
R A Kendall says January 26, 2015 at 4:18 pm
Skied upper loops 1/26 @ 1130. About 2-3 inches of fresh snow. Good skiing. Need more snow base to groom on top of ice.
1/27 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received an additional 3 inches of snow since yesterday morning. Park staff is preparing to get onto the trail system now with intentions to groom at least the upper trails. Staff will use the LMC groomer, with roller and double track setter. If staff has adequate time they may groom the lower trails as well. The NWS is predicting a snow event for Thursday of this week, we are anxiously awaiting additional snow for the scheduled Friday grooming operations.
Susan Wyss says January 30, 2015 at 5:43 pm
I skied this afternoon, Jan, 30 and the trials had not been tracked after receiving 8″ of fresh snow. Skiers had “skied-in” Sweetwater and Christian Hollow trails but conditions were poor. All of the other trails were completely snowed in. The park has posted that they will not groom this weekend because of windchills. I just checked weather.com and the windchill tomorrow afternoon is 9 degrees which is not cold when your cross-country skiing. I’m sure the slopes at Holiday Valley will be filled with downhill skiers this weekend and it’s much colder on those open slopes. I met a skier today who came from Ohio with a large group of people and have rented cabins to ski for the weekend. I wonder if they will come back here again. I met a woman from NY city skiing here with her dad from Buffalo last weekend. She comes to ski with him once a year. I’m glad she was here last Saturday instead of tomorrow. I have been counting cars in the parking lot. On weekday afternoons there are usually 3 to 6 cars. On the last 2 Saturdays and Sundays there have been over 50 cars. I talk to people. There are lots of couples and families skiing for the first time or their one time each winter. The season is usually only 8 to 10 weekends. We need fresh tracking every weekend and especially after new snow. If you are reading this please post on the State Park Facebook page and ask them to track tomorrow.
Jack L. says January 30, 2015 at 6:05 pm
Sue Wyss reports poor conditions this afternoon. Some skied-in tracks but mostly totally blown over. 8 inches of fresh snow but the latest Park post says no grooming until next week. Many people could enjoy the trails if they groomed. Please post on the Allegany State Park Facebook page requesting grooming Friday night or Sat. am. Maybe it’s not too late. Otherwise, good base but poor tracks this weekend.
1/30 ASP Update- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 8 additional inches of snow since Thursday morning. Strong winds out of the northeast are creating bitter wind chills. Conditions are perfect for hearty souls that enjoy bushwhacking. We expect grooming operations to resume next week.
Brad Schottin says January 31, 2015 at 1:19 pm
Skied SW and LR this morning. Conditions were good if you don’t mind the trails not being groomed. Conditions would have been excellent had the trails been groomed. I really hope that the previous skiers report, stating they were not groomed because of the wind chills, was wrong because the grooming is done inside a machine. I would like to know the reason because of the limited weekends we get with this amount of fresh snow.
1/31 Bjorn- It is a considerable disappointment that there is 8″ of new snow and the park does not intend to groom for weekend skiing. Allegany Nordic was founded to elevate the X-C skiing experience at ASP and raise the parks commitment to maintaining the trails, yet not enough individuals participate. If the park response to trail management this weekend concerns you, please help us. Email us at info at allegany nordic dot org.
ray says January 31, 2015 at 3:27 pm
WOW, what an epic fail! The possible best weekend for skiing this season and the park won’t groom the trails. It seems the managers don’t understand Nordic skiing. This failure underscores the need on the part of the park management to better engage the local skiing community. The Park seems to be telling the skiing community that we could not factor in to our planning conditions of cold and snow. The park management may have a perfectly legitimate reason for not committing the resources necessary for grooming, but hearing that wind chill is a determining factor is in truth unbelievable. Showing up at 9:00 AM, I noticed that there was no wind at all and the air temp was not out of the ordinary. Why won’t they groom?
Susan Wyss says January 31, 2015 at 7:49 pm
Apparently the park had time to groom the snowmobile trails. Take a look at the photo posted today on the Allegany State Park Facebook page. And their post for snowmobilers to watch out for their grooming equipment this weekend.
dan proto says February 1, 2015 at 8:35 pm
Skied Sweet H2O, Christian,& Leonard @ 28 degrees F. Sunday . It was pretty good even without tracking. There is a lot of snow on trail. Why the Park did not track is beyond me.
kent says February 1, 2015 at 11:37 pm
I usually only get to ski one weekend a season. I choose Super Bowl weekend. I have raved about the trails to my friends and there were a total of 7 of us. Two were visiting from Florida and never had skied. 3 people rented skis. On Saturday the only parking I could find was in the overflow lot. The weather was perfect for sking. no wind, sun shine and plenty of snow. I have skied for probably the last 5 years at Alleghany and the trails are always groomed. I was in disbelieve that no grooming was done. Someone said the groomer was broken. What a shame. I may be better off going somewhere else where I know the trails are in good condition for skiing.
Allen Knowles says February 2, 2015 at 5:36 pm
ASP rolled the trails today; no tracking but with blowing snow tracks would just fill in. Lots of snow. It can be skied without breaking trail.
ASP Update 2/2- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received 8-14 additional inches of snow over the last 24 hours. Snow is still falling at a considerable rate at this time. Park Staff is on the trail system now with the LMC and roller with intentions to roll all trails today. We expect additional grooming operations to take place this week.
Scott C. says February 3, 2015 at 7:18 pm
Skied 2/3/15 Leonard and Christian. Nice job grooming today. Great conditions, trails newly rolled and set tracks. Sorry guys, I’m a no-waxer, but even I was gliding well.
ASP Update 2/3- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails received an inch of snow overnight. The sky is bright and sunny with very little wind. Park Staff is on the trail system now with the LMC Snow Groomer rolling and setting a double track. We currently have about 10 inches of developed base at this time. Conditions look very promising for the upcoming week with additional snow expected on Wednesday and Thursday.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
Post pictures leave feedback and get daily updates from Allegany State Park @ http://www.facebook.com/alleganystatepark
Allen Knowles III says February 4, 2015 at 1:28 pm
2/4 Noon: 1 inch fresh snow, fairly fast. Then I met the groomer on snowsnake. They did SS and Paterson; then stopped, perhaps for lunch. Anyway, whether they complete grooming or not conditions are good.
Jack L. says February 4, 2015 at 6:49 am
3 pm. Sweetwater. Nice fresh rolling and tracks. Slight slip on the main spine. Extra blue. Somewhat breezy. Not blowing in tracks though. Track should be faster today after setting overnight but fresh snow will moderate. Predicting another 4-8 through Thurs. Hopefully get grooming again before weekend. If so, oh boy!
Dan S. says February 5, 2015 at 8:05 pm
ASP staff, thanks for the recent update. Planning our weekends skiing, we always need to decide whether to make the 2-hour trip from Batavia to ASP and chance no grooming, or to drive 3 hours to Tug Hill area for guaranteed good grooming. Would much rather spend our time and money in the EVL/Salamanca area and continue to enjoy ASP, as I’ve been doing year-round for over 50 years. Along with the improved grooming of the last few years, having honest, timely updates helps make the decision easier.
Jack L. says February 5, 2015 at 1:17 pm
I completely concur with Ray. It is great that the Park is working the trails during the week. Most people ski on the weekend. Weekday grooming is of little use if we get substantial fresh snow on Friday and no grooming. We are asking that the Park schedule grooming to benefit the majority of the users. It’s not rocket science.
ray says February 5, 2015 at 8:22 am
As noted in earlier posts, the trails have been groomed, and the groomer did a nice job on the Paterson. However, as I left the park Wed nite, fresh snow had almost completely filled in the tracks and it was still snowing. Hopefully, the park administration will groom again for the weekend.
ASP Update 2/5- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails received 4 inches of snow fresh snow overnight. Park Staff is on the trail system now with the LMC Snow Groomer rolling and setting a double track. The entire trails system has about 10 inches of developed base at this time. The current conditions are excellent and are probably the best they have been this year. Additional parking is available and encouraged in the rear lots as they were just plowed.
Jack L. says February 6, 2015 at 5:44 pm
3:30. Upper Ridge. 19 degrees. old blue extra. Track was great. Thanks Park. Few had skied Ridge. Without more snow, tracks will continue to be great. Should be really good weekend if it doesn’t get too warm. Enjoy!
Jo Ann Dombeck says February 9, 2015 at 8:42 am
2/7–skied three upper loops. Tracks were good with the exception of the downhills. Those were a little chewed up. Ski waxless so I’m no help with the waxing voodoo. I would say conditions were very good.
2/8–skied at 11:30 am. Some glide, but tracks were getting sticky. Skied Leonard, Ridge and Patterson. Things in good shape but the warm weather was taking it’s toll. Hopefully more snow for the coming weekend.
ASP Update 2/10- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received very little additional snow since last Thursday. The current conditions are not the greatest as we experience warm weather this weekend and ice on Monday morning. The upcoming forecast is promising for additional snow later this week. Park staff went out today and groomed the crossovers and to see how the trails were holding up. The general feeling is trails are hard but enjoyable and we should wait patiently for Wednesday evening’s snowfall.
Jack L. says February 12, 2015 at 11:53 am
Great news on tracking this Friday. Will make weekend great! Thanks Park!
ASP Update 2/12- Heart Rate Up has made the decision to to postpone the Art Roscoe Loppet until 3/1/2015. This decision was made due to the frigid temperatures and extremely cold wind chills expected this Sunday. Please vist http://www.heartrateup.com/artroscoeloppet3115.html for addtional information regarding this change.
The Art Roscoe Ski trails received about 3 inches of snow last evening and more snow is expected today. Park staff is scheduled to groom all trails tomorrow in preperation for the upcoming weekend.
If you have any questions about reservations please contact the Red House Rental Office at 716-354-9121.
Scott C. says February 12, 2015 at 7:39 pm
Went out late afternoon on 2/12. Did Sweetwater and a ways on Ridge. A couple inches new snow. No grooming yet, but a few people had cut some so-so tracks. Trees nicely frosted for a lovely scene. Seriously, they cancelled a ski race because it is going to be cold?!!?
Jack L. says February 13, 2015 at 7:58 pm
3pm. 10 degrees. Mostly sunny. Beauty, eh? Sweetwater and the spine. old blue extra. Tracks were good often; thin to nonexistent occasionally. Seemed like it had weekend wear already. Hard base caused occasional pole plant issues. Still good to very good. Still worth the trip.
ASP Update 2/13- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 5 inches of snow over the last 48 hours. Park staff is almost done tracking the entire trail system with the LMC groomer and double track setter. Tracks are a bit shallow but they are firm and with the cold temperatures they should hold up nicely. Temperatures are very cold but the sun is out and winds are tranquil.
Jack L says February 16, 2015 at 2:06 pm
From the Summit, 2pm. 8 degrees. Blue. Upper ridge was very good, not real fast but track in good shape. Should stay good. We’ll worth the trip.
dan proto says February 17, 2015 at 7:06 pm
2/17 4 PM 16F skied Sweet H2O, Christian, & Leonard -Poor to no track with 1 to 4 inches of new snow. I would suggest the Park staff just use the tracking sled and not roll first.
ASP Update 2/20- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 3 inches of additional snow since the last tracking on 2/18/2015. The tracks are hard and in some locations very shallow. We are now very dependent on mother nature to provide fresh snow. Christian Hollow drifted very badly and we are going to attempt to track it again this afternoon. When this is completed this should make for great conditions. Currently all top trails have been tracked and bottom trails will be tracked this afternoon.
Susan Wyss says February 20, 2015 at 6:02 pm
skied Leonard Run this afternoon. Tracking was set perfectly and conditions were excellent and fast. Best skiing of the year. Thanks State Park personnel.
Scott says February 20, 2015 at 6:46 pm
2/20 late afternoon. 10 degrees and calm wind. Christian and Sweetwater. Good tracks other than Ridge where they are very shallow and will be gone by mid-day tomorrow. A few funky spots on Christian, but overall it was good.
Lynne K says February 21, 2015 at 10:36 pm
Conditions were perfect for a dark evening ski! Thanks to all for the delicious food, delightful company, and special thanks to Jo Ann for the surprise trail lights and for organizing the event !
Brad Schottin says February 23, 2015 at 3:01 pm
Skied all 3 loops sunday. Conditions were good, even with the 2″ of fresh snow late sat the tracks were getting skied in. Conditions will be excellent as soon as the trails are groomed again.
ASP Update 2/24- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 3 inches of additional snow since the last tracking on 2/20/2015. Park staff is on the trail system now renovating and setting a double track. Staff is planning to touch all trails today.
The Art Roscoe Loppet is scheduled for Sunday 3/1/2015 please visit HeartRateUp for more information.
R A Kendall says February 24, 2015 at 3:35 pm
2/23 Temp -8 to -4, skied upper loops with 1″ to 2″ fresh snow in tracks, slow skiing.
Allen Knowles says February 24, 2015 at 8:49 pm
2/24: Grooming done today and snow is much faster than yesterday. Good conditions overall.
ASP Update 2/25- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about2 inches of additional snow since the last tracking on 2/24/2015. Park staff is on the trail system now renovating and setting a double track. The groomer operators say tracks are deep and solid.
The Art Roscoe Loppet is scheduled for Sunday 3/1/2015 please visit http://www.heartrateup.com/artroscoeloppet3115.html for more information.
Scott says February 26, 2015 at 9:04 am
2/25 3:30-5:30, mid teens. Very good conditions on Leonard and Christian on this sunny afternoon. A couple inches of new snow since they rolled and tracked yesterday, but enough folks had been out to pack the tracks well at least on one side.
Brad Schottin says February 27, 2015 at 8:53 pm Edit
Skied Snow Snake and Patterson. Trails had not been groomed since Tues but good conditions with other skier traffic. Noticed the park had just started grooming trails so they should be excellent for the weekend.
Scott says February 27, 2015 at 4:16 pm Edit
2/27 1:30-3:30. Mid teens and beautiful. Followed the roller and tracker around Christian and Leonard. Great conditions! Thanks park staff.
Bjorn 2/28- Maybe the best trail conditions and day for skiing so far this year! Only upper loops were retouched yesterday and they are great. More grooming tonight for the race tomorrow.
Jack L. says February 28, 2015 at 7:00 am
yesterday, 3pm. Sweetwater and the Spine. old blue. The tracking was awesome! Thanks John, Chad et al. Even Sweetwater was great. Andy’s tracker did the job! Would highly recommend a Sat. ski. Race is Sun.
BTW, had to direct a couple with a dog off the trail. Please, NO snowshoes, dogs or snowmobiles on the trail system. If observed, please help by speaking to the offenders. Thanks.
ASP Update 3/3- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 8 inches of additional snow since Saturday. Park staff is on the trail system now setting a double track with the LMC, they should be done within the hour. The base of the trail system is currently about 20 inches.
Thanks to all who participated in the Art Roscoe Loppet Race Ski Race this weekend. It was a huge success and we are looking forward to next year’s event.
Jack L. says March 4, 2015 at 2:50 pm Edit
Kudos to John Snyder et al. Yesterday’s tracking was training for additional personnel to use the equipment on the trails. Great forward thinking.
ASP Update 3/6- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails had a layer of crusty snow on top of the base due to the warm weather we received on Wednesday. Park staff is on the trails now setting a double track with a renovator. Staff is reporting that track is a little shallow in some areas and perfect in other areas. I have included a photo taken today of what the trail actually looks like. Please come and enjoy Allegany State Park this weekend.
dan proto says March 6, 2015 at 8:20 pm
3/6/15 4:15 PM skied sweet H20 icy track dangerous. tracker did ridge and up Patterson those will be excellent. Park needs to track rest of upper trails to break up icy thin crust. I would suggest Allegany Nordic buy the Park a trail conditioner(grinder)
ASP Update 2/25- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about2 inches of additional snow since the last tracking on 2/24/2015. Park staff is on the trail system now renovating and setting a double track. The groomer operators say tracks are deep and solid.
The Art Roscoe Loppet is scheduled for Sunday 3/1/2015 please visit http://www.heartrateup.com/artroscoeloppet3115.html for more information.
Bjorn 2/28- Maybe the best trail conditions and day for skiing so far this year! Only upper loops were retouched yesterday and they are great. More grooming tonight for the race tomorrow.
ASP Update 3/3- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received about 8 inches of additional snow since Saturday. Park staff is on the trail system now setting a double track with the LMC, they should be done within the hour. The base of the trail system is currently about 20 inches.
Thanks to all who participated in the Art Roscoe Loppet Race Ski Race this weekend. It was a huge success and we are looking forward to next year’s event.
The Summit Warming hut is now open from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM every day.
ASP Update 3/6- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails had a layer of crusty snow on top of the base due to the warm weather we received on Wednesday. Park staff is on the trails now setting a double track with a renovator. Staff is reporting that track is a little shallow in some areas and perfect in other areas. I have included a photo taken today of what the trail actually looks like. Please come and enjoy Allegany State Park this weekend.
Kathy says March 7, 2015 at 5:56 pm
3/07, late afternoon – lightly snowing here in Olean. Hoping that means more snow at the park and perhaps some great skiing conditions for tomorrow! If anyone goes in the morning (Sun.) and don’t mind, will you please email me at kathy.hardiman@gmail.com to let me know conditions? Sometimes posts from AN take awhile to get through to my email. If I go, I’ll post conditions. Thanks!
Kathy
Kathy says March 8, 2015 at 3:53 pm
3/08 Skied Sweetwater and the Crossover from 11:45 to 2:30. Great base, shallow tracks, sticky in warm spots, fast otherwise. Beautiful contrasts w/ vivid blue sky. Mild temp.
3/12 Bjorn- Park reports Bova access is impassible due to melt and run-off. Base is holding system wide. Upper loops have recently been tracked. Patterson, Ridge and SS are very skiable.
Scott says March 13, 2015 at 8:45 pm
3/13/15. 4:30-6:00. Mid-40s and mostly cloudy. Not much for tracks on Ridge out to Leonard. Base still pretty hard, but mushy on top so it was kind of slow with no-wax skis. Should have gone late AM I guess. About 3/4 of Leonard had a single good track, other side non-existent for some reason. Still a lot of base left.
Scott says March 16, 2015 at 4:35 pm
3/16/15. 11:30-1:00. 40-45 degrees. Very good spring conditions on Leonard and Christian. Decent tracks, good glide, but not too icy. LOTS of base left, just have to play the temps right to find the best surface conditions.
ASP Update 3/17- The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received no additional snow in almost a week. The base on the trail system is holding up very well despite the spring weather. Park staff was on the trail system yesterday removing downed trees and setting track. Conditions are spring like and unless we get additional snow we do not expect to resume a regular grooming schedule for the foreseeable future.
Bjorn 3/17- Freeze-thaw cycles will make trails extremely hard and fast mornings next few days. Novices advised to wait for afternoon thaws. Ski patrol coverage mid week will be spotty. Ski with a friend and cell phone. Adventurous might try klister and parachute.
Bjorn 3/18- Confirmed… Early morning conditions are TREACHEROUS. Klister scraped off in 10 minutes.
Scott says March 19, 2015 at 6:14 pm
3/19/15. 3:00-5:00. Christian and Sweetwater. Fast conditions, but not deadly for the most part. Areas that never got sun were icy, but otherwise some grip with no-wax. Base getting thin near the overlook on Christian, but otherwise still lots of base. Tracks good for the most part.
Bjorn 3/20- Received skier post indicating trails have been closed but do not have confirmation from park to that effect.
Bjorn 3/21- Appears trails not closed, see 3/19 post for latest skier report.
Scott says March 24, 2015 at 6:51 pm
3/24/15, 4:00-5:30. Low 40s. Leonard and Ridge. A bit mushy in sunny spots, good no-wax glide in shady spots. Tracks so-so in some spots, gone in others. Good firm base is still at least 6″-12″ in all but real south facing spots. Not sure how it will hold up to warm and rain the next couple days, but may still be skiable base next week after it freezes back up on the weekend and the top softens again. Still very good spring conditions!
ASP Update- 3/26 The Art Roscoe Ski Trails have received no additional snow in over two weeks. All regularly scheduled grooming operations for this season have ceased. Conditions on the trails are spring like, good coverage in some areas and bare spots in other areas. Ski at your own risk you will encounter ice, mud, water, branches, and sticks. The warming hut will only be open weekends from now until 4/5/15.
Thank you for a great season this is the final ski report for this season.
Ski Rentals are now available at the Red House Gift Shop in the Administration Building.
kathy says March 28, 2015 at 9:33 am
Anyone know if Art Roscoe is ski-able today? Thanks!
dan proto says March 29, 2015 at 9:56 pm
3/29 left the herd to do some xc-skiing. excellent conditions 1 inch of new snow . you could probably use hard wax. The next few days should be great.
Scott says April 1, 2015 at 3:17 pm
4/1/15. 12:15-2:15. Sunny/cloudy, 40-35 degrees. Skied Christian and Sweetwater. 2″ new snow yesterday had turned a bit mushy by the time I got there (should have gone first thing this AM…timing is everything in spring skiing!). No-wax glide got better after it clouded up. Still lots of base. Not sure how it will hold up to the weather tomorrow, but it will have to melt 3″-10″ of base in order to get to bare ground. Possible significant snow on Saturday could make for some great early April skiing!
dan proto says April 3, 2015 at 12:45 am
4/2 Skied sweet H20, Christian , & leonard great conditions K50 klister no ice no bare spots
Scott says April 4, 2015 at 2:06 pm
4/4/15. 11:15-12:15. 30 degrees and flurries. Well, my timing stunk today! Should have waited for the sun to come out and the temp to get into the upper 30s. The inch of rain and warm temps Thursday and Friday took a bunch of the base and upper 20s last night froze things up hard. There was a dusting of snow overnight. Skied Sweetwater counterclockwise. Base is actually quite adequate on Ridge and on Sweetwater except for about 400 yards past the big turn where it is getting very thin. Would have actually been decent, if icy, conditions except some people had walked on the trail when it was warm, leaving lots for frozen ice chunks sticking up. I am done for the season (22 days this year), but there should be a few more days for the diehards, if you go when it is warm enough to soften the surface a bit.
Many thanks to the park staff for their excellent work on the trails this season (we just won’t talk about that one weekend in February)!
dan proto says April 10, 2015 at 11:22 pm
4/10/14 Jay Bailey ASP administrator returned my call today. I had inquired about the possibility of buying the Park a trail renovator. He informed me that this was not necessary since he just ordered a ginzu renovator! Great News!!!
