Monday 2/20/12: Mike Kinziger wrote, “Spent the morning on the Meadow Creek route…… skied counter-clock wise for the first time. The first two miles downhill through the trees were wonderful with the recent snow. Only one other skier coming from the other direction. The groups that were out yesterday did a fine job of opening up the trail”.

Friday 2/17/12:
Pete Minard wrote on 7:51pm Feb 17, “Well the good news is that the trails were all groomed and tracked Thurs and Fri, the not so good news is that conditions didn’t lend themselves to the best grooming. The warm weather of last week, that softened the entire snow pack, gave way to freezing temps the hardened up the entire base. We then picked up 1″ to 2″ of new snow Wed/Thurs overlying this hard base. The result was that the trails groomed up and smoothed out well but it was difficult to set a good track. So the track is quite shallow in places with hard conditions with some icy spots on the trails. But…the trails are quite skiable, I did Big Loop and out to the end of Hume Creek this afternoon and had a great ski.
On the west side, the first 1/2 mi is hard and icy then Sampson/Loggers Saddle are in good shape. The hill going up Dennis is hard in places (metal edge skis are recommended for the trip back down) but East Dennis Loop is in good shape. On the east side, Divide, Big Loop, Little Loop, and the wooded part of Meadow Loop below Little Loop all are pretty hard with some icy spots. The lower part of Meadow Loop and Hume Creek are in great shape. Skate skiers will find good conditions on Sampson/Loggers Saddle and Divide/Hume. And all this can change depending on how much snow we get Sat and Sun. At the upper end of the predictions, the tracks will all be obliterated. Thanks to Bernie for help grooming today, he did a great job grooming Divide/Hume Creek . The skiing is good, get out and enjoy.”

2/17/12 Mike Kinziger wrote: Challenge Completed…….. Loggers and Dennis on Thursday. The other side of the road on Friday (plus a good section of Loggers Saddle again). Lots of snow but still quite icy under trees. Good skiing and the best snow conditions increase with elevation (the Loggers and East Dennis trails). Meadow Creek was difficult over the last two or more miles. Big Loop was great.

Get out there! There’s a chance for snow over the next few days. Plan to arrive early before it warms up too much. (I prefer the quiet and softness of the powder). Pete and Bernie have spent many hours grooming the trails for us….. it’s very much appreciated. They do an excellent job.

email your ski report to: wh_thomson@yahoo.com and I will post them here.

A Reminder: Please don’t pull kids sleds or toboggans down the set track, use the groomed part of the trail off to the side. The skating trails,Divide, Hume Creek, and Logger’s Saddle, are suitable for sleds and toboggans the other trails might be too narrow.

Grooming Schedule. The plan will be to groom and set track on the Divide, Hume Creek, Big Loop, Little Loop, and East Dennis trails each week. I’ll do this generally on Thur/Fri or Fri/Sat depending on weather. Grooming won’t start until mid-December – depending on snow.

Don’t forget to get your Park and Ski Pass. These can be purchased at Hyper Spud Sports in Moscow or at the Palouse Ranger District in Potlatch. They are not available at the trail head. You run the risk of a ticket if you don’t have a pass. When you purchase your pass make sure to designate the Palouse Divide Ski Trails to ensure the funds are given to this area.