About 1.5″ of snow fell overnight Friday in Fairbanks. Added to the 1″-2″ that were already on the ground, it was enough to make Birch Hill skiable. The conditions are definitely “early season” conditions, and grass is sticking up through the snow in places. Nonetheless, it's still pretty good early season skiing.
Overnight temperatures were in the mid 20's F/-5C range, and temperatures today are hovering just below freezing. The wax du jour for classic skiing was hairies, although purple was working satisfactorily as well, and skating wasn't too bad.
The upper parking lot at Birch Hill, which holds about 40-50 cars, was about 3/4 full with the vehicles of eager Fairbanksans of all ages. The Birch Hill Cross Country Ski Center (the “new” building) was not yet open, so skiers were basing out of the “Old Warming Hut”. Skaters outnumbered classic skiers by a substantial margin.
Groomer Tom Helmers, who has been rolling the trails for the past week after the first couple of snowfalls, was out grooming again today. Approximately 10Km of trails have been rolled to some degree, although not all 10Km were freshly rolled as of mid-day today (Saturday).
