Hard snow

Snow is still plentiful, but we can use a little warm up after a very cold weekend. I skied the southeast part of Rockwood on hard snow. Only a few places are postholed deeply by snowshoes, back when the base was very soft. I found a 1/2" layer of fresh snow on South Loop Rd, covering the bulletproof base of over a foot.

Once we get a few days of warm weather the corn snow will be back in the woods. Branches in the trails are more and more an issue as the base evaporates. Bring a good snowplow for the downhills while the snow is hard. The southeast is THE most hilly of all the areas in Rockwood.

From the main parking lot, I skied the Forest Edge all the way to the far east entrance, passed through the stone pillars and skied South Loop Rd.  I took D South Rd down between the Twin Peaks and back. I skied Camp Rd north to the Chimney and took Chimney Loop Trail out to D Spur. Then I went south on D spur and skied South Loop Rd again to D East Rd and out to the Forest Edge. The return to the parking lot on the Forest Edge on very firm base was fast and fun.

Started 3:30 at 36 degrees
Ended 5:30 at 35 degrees