Conditions Report: Cold Storms and Conservative Terrain Choices

January 26, 2023

Winter’s grip will remain firm this week as a storm rolls in with some snow and then cold clear skies will take over. There’s 19 cms of new snow forecasted in the next week and grooming operations remain steady. The complex and weak snowpack is not going away anytime soon and conservative terrain choices should continue to be your game plan.

Keep reading to hear more about sledding in Golden this week.

Finding the goods on Jan 24, 2022

powder turn in Quartz in Jan 2023

Travel

TCH-1 Highway

Highway 1 is open east of Golden with scheduled stoppages and overnight closures. It’s always good to check : Kicking Horse Canyon Calendar

SNOW AND WEATHER

Snow will accompany two cold fronts sweeping across the province over the next two days before the arrival of the arctic airmass for the weekend.

Looks like it could be a cold weekend but with sunny skies. Pack your balaclava!

Avalanche

Please make sure you check Avalanche.ca everyday you ride.

“Large natural and human-triggered avalanches have occurred in our region over the past couple of days.

The complex and weak snowpack is not going away anytime soon. Conservative terrain choices should continue to be your game plan.” – copy and pasted from Avalanche.ca on Jan26.

There have been 5 avalanche deaths this year in Canada. Our thoughts are with those affected and we urge continued and utmost vigilance when riding.

Grooming

Grooming operations for all 3 staging areas Quartz, Gorman and Silent are in full swing with grooms on the main trails scheduled as needed.

Trail Area Conditions Reports

Quartz Creek

Conditions: packed powder

Grooms scheduled: Regularly / As needed. Wed/Fri/Sun

Fees: $30

Parking: At main lot - Trucks in the upper west, Trailers in the upper lots to the east.

Road: groomed

Additional notes:

Quartz is fully operational. Regular grooming to the cabin is occurring. Day tickets will be sold and passes checked 7 days a week.

Gorman Lake

Conditions: still thin, but getting better

Grooms scheduled: Friday

Fees: $30

Parking: 3.5km lots

Road: Watch for ice spots

Additional notes: DFD warming cabin has been installed on Dec 8. Very thin snowpack.

Silent Pass

Conditions: packed powder

Grooms scheduled: Thursday/Saturday - as required

Fees: $30

Parking: 31km - leave room for large trailers to turn around.

Road: active logging on road.

Additional notes: Dress warm for the ride in.

East Quartz

Conditions: Early season but doable

Grooms scheduled: waiting for avalanche clearance

Fees: $30 as per Quartz

Parking: Main Quartz

Road: N/A

Additional notes: The road to East Quartz has not yet been groomed this season but several groups have been up there. We’re waiting on avalanche clearance to proceed.

Old Man

Conditions: very thin

Grooms scheduled: Waiting for more snow

Fees: $0

Parking: At Quartz Creek upper lot

Road: N/A

Additional notes: We took the cat up Oldman without the drag but it’s not ready yet for a groom. We will access as we get more snow.

Westbench Trail

Conditions: not passable

Grooms scheduled: N/A

Fees: $0

Parking: Gorman or Quartz

Road: N/A

Additional notes: not open at this time

Grooming Map

The map below is linked to the safety InReaches we have in our groomers and we have been able to make the tracks public. How to use the map: (works on Chrome but may not work on Safari. iPhones may or may not work properly)

Press on the + next to the groomer/zone you want the latest information for.
Once the line is visible, press on the line to see the date & time the groomer was last in action.

This map only shows the most recent groom. You can inquire at any of our trailheads for additional grooming information, including number of riders since the last groom.