Meriden Trails

8-10" of snow doesn’t necessarily mean good skiing. Grooming was limited this morning due to the heavy snow downing trees:

Bill reports:

The fields near the school are groomed and okay. I went around the trail to the bridge and Wastewater Way and found so many saplings bent that I gave up after one pass. Across the bridge there are multiple trees down, so it will take a lot of work to get the trails skiable again.

Also, please take note, this morning, Rte 120 is closed at Grantham Mountain Rd.

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Our grooming equipment takes a beating with this heavy snow, please support its maintenance and fueling!

Make a tax deductible donation: Lots of recent snow means lots of machine use, fuel consumption and maintenance, Make your check payable to "Town of Plainfield" with "Trails" on the memo line. (They need to know it goes to our account.) Your contribution will be tax deductible, and you can either put it in the donation box at the kiosk in the parking lot OR send it directly to the town at the following address:

Town of Plainfield

Attn: Bill Knight

Plainfield Trail Coordinator

PO Box 380

Meriden, NH 03770

Thank you

Bill’s Trail Report:

The warm overnight temperatures have kept the snow a little too warm for easy grooming. We did manage to get the lower trails groomed yesterday, but kept getting stuck. We had to abandon one drag on the Smokehouse trails in order to get the snow machine back to the grooming shed, where we were able to break out most of the ice that had built up. We are headed out again this morning to smooth the surface a bit more. I expect the skiing to be very good once the temperatures are around the freezing point, so it’s a good time to go use the snow.

Welcome to March,

The entire trail network is groomed and in absolutely the best conditions of the year. Packed powder – wahoo!

From Bill Knight:

All of the trails are groomed with the exception of some steep downhill where I thought the cover was too thin to be safe. We had enough leftover ice and crust that the 5 or 6 inches of snow that fell is quite good skiing. Smokehouse, Ira’s and Sally’s are the best. While I did groom So Inclined and Not So, I would expect that snowplowing will make them quite difficult soon. I recommend Parking either at the top or at the bottom to ski the trails without a steep descent if you would feel the need to snowplow.

From Bill Knight:

The upper portion of the trails system is groomed and reasonably edgable for either classic or skate. So Inclined, Ira’s Loop and Sally’s Loop are all groomed.

There is a lot of tree litter on the trails – where the snow is really firm on the lower trails it can make it difficult to keep your skis sliding.

Bill Reports:

We have managed to flatten and soften the lower trails, but they will be somewhat icy during this colder weather.

There is racing today from 11 to 4. It will take place on the Smokehouse Trails and by the soccer fields. Across the bridge will have many fewer skiers today.

Good morning,

Bill Knight reports:

Getting some of the lower trails cut out – made it around Smokehouse and Townsend yesterday. Hope to clean Rattling Bog today and get the school fields chopped up for skiing. I may not get up So Inclined to Ira’s for a while as I will be away later in the week for the New Years end of things. More throwing and chainsaw work than any grooming I’m afraid.

Good morning!

From early bird Bill Knight comes the following grooming report:

I will be out grooming early this morning. I plan to groom all of the trails across the bridge today, but the Smokehouse Loops have too little base for me to groom. Skiing should be good today and tomorrow in the woods. With the continued spring temperatures forecast later in the week I expect the trails to be ice by late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

Bill Knight

Donation information:

Have you made your donation to the grooming and equipment fund yet this year? We’re going through gas, oil, and repairs every day! Make your check payable to "Town of Plainfield" with "Trails" on the memo line. (They need to know it goes to our account.) Your contribution will be tax deductible, and you can either put it in the donation box at the kiosk in the parking lot OR send it directly to the town at the following address:

Town of Plainfield

Attn: Bill Knight

Plainfield Trail Coordinator

PO Box 380

Meriden, NH 03770

Thanks for your support!

www.meridentrails.org

Latest grooming update from Bill:

The trails are groomed and ready to use with the exception of the Smokehouse Loops. We got out yesterday and this morning. The snow, while not all that substantial, did adhere to the icy surfaces in most spots. There are a few places where the trails are down to dirt so some caution is in order. On the flatter sections of trail the conditions are quite nice.

www.meridentrails.org

Monday morning update from Bill Knight:

I groomed for the clinics on the airstrip and Ira’s and Sally’s Loops yesterday. The conditions are definitely frozen granular – best for skating but grip is available for no wax classical skiing. Today we will groom the trails across the bridge in the early afternoon. We are planning to leave the Smokehouse Loops for the majority of the week to save snow during the late week warm up.

Souhegan High School will be hosting a sprint race on Saturday starting in the morning. The sprints will all happen on the Smokehouse Loops and the trails in the school fields. People can stay out of the action by skiing on the trails across the bridge. Or be out on the Smokehouse trails and cheer!

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We got a lot of snow! Please donate to the trails fund!. Bill and other groomers have been busy this winter. Your donations go directly for fuel and maintenance on our machines and upkeep of the trails all year long!

Make your check payable to "Town of Plainfield" with "Trails" on the memo line. (They need to know it goes to our account.) Your contribution will be tax-deductible, and you can either put it in the donation box at the kiosk in the parking lot OR send it directly to the town at the following address:

Town of Plainfield
Attn: Bill Knight
Plainfield Trail Coordinator
PO Box 380
Meriden, NH 03770

Thanks for your support!