FORECAST: ​Last week’s rain hasn’t put a damper on the conditions report.

Across BETA land the lows in the next couple days will drop to abt freezing, but we probably won’t dip into a freeze-thaw cycle.  Even so, please keep an eye out for esp. fragile soils this weekend.

Some rain on & off all week, the worst of it falling in western BETA land Tues-Thurs, 
~0.14in per day.  Friendly reminder: please avoid riding while it's actively raining and pay close attention to whether you're leaving tracks after we've gotten a bit of recent rain.

THE TRAILS
Changes from last week: 

• 🟢 Mt. Pisgah and Fowler's Crossing, Saranac Lake -- Last week they were yellow, now they're green (EXCEPT for The Cure at Mt. Pisgah which is still too soft to ride -- please avoid it entirely).
• ⚠️ Lussi/Loggers, Lake Placid -- Last week we initially reported LL as green, but it's truly hovering more around yellow since there's still a bit of work to do and a few stubborn wet spots.  Shoutout to the LP trail committee, esp. Nick Z, Stefano, Bob, and Dusty for getting the LP trails clear.
• ⚠️ Flume, Wilmington -- After a week of volunteer work and a bit of drying out, all trails are considered yellow.  All trails have been leaf blown except for Upper Connector to Bear Den & res hiking trail to CCC.  Awesome work done by the Wilmington trails committee + friends in getting the spring maintenance done and dusted.

All the Trail Networks:
🟢 Cobble Hill & Blueberry Hill, Etown
🟢 Three Sisters & Hardy Road, Wilmington
🟢 East Branch Community Trails, Keene (including Trail 7)
🟢 Mt. Pisgah & Dewey Mtn, Saranac Lake (except The Cure, Mt. Pisgah)
🟢 Henry's Woods, Lake Placid (these are not BETA trails, but they're riding well)
⚠️ Otis Mtn, Etown
⚠️ Flume, Wilmington 
⚠️ Lussi/Loggers, Lake Placid
❌️ Dewey Mtn, Saranac Lake
❌️ Craig Wood, Lake Placid

​Even more trails are ready for riding -- WOOHOOOO!  
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But get it quick; lots of rain in the forecast starting on Wednesday and not letting up for a few days at least.  Trails may need another break from riding come next weekend after they get all that rain; we shall see.

UPDATES on the info contained in the pictures below: Trail 7 at East Branch, Keene is ready for riding.  Lussi/Loggers, Lake Placid is hovering more around yellow than green as there's still a bit of blowdown and a few wet spots.

TL;DR -- East Branch, Blueberry Hill, Cobble Hill, Three Sisters Trail, and lower Hardy Road trails are confirmed rideable for now (with caution and with good judgement); might be fragile again all of next week due to freeze-thaw cycle.

We've been hammering on "please protect the trails during mud season by staying off of them" -- that still holds true now and will continue to hold true likely for the next 6 weeks (Dewey is notorious for holding onto a lot of moisture even into June).  We finally have good news: after a stint of drying out, some of BETA's trail networks are ready for hiker and biker traffic. 

EAST BRANCH COMMUNITY TRAILS -- Rideable, but proceed with caution.  There is a decent amount of blowdown that needs to be cleared with a chainsaw (pssst -- we're fundraising for a chainsaw (and other tools) right now!).  Volunteers have been visiting East Branch and will return soon to rake trails that have a deep layer of leaf litter from fall/winter.  Thank you volunteers!

UPDATE 04/10: Mud season continues. 

Tis the season! Our favorite time of the year 🥰 
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Jokes aside -- spring/mud season is such a tricky time. We're all itching to get out there, but visiting our local trails before they're ready can really do a number on them. Going out too early and leaving footprints or ruts in the trail causes serious damage that requires hours of hard work to fix. From what we've seen, there are currently no BETA trails that are ready for biking or hiking traffic.

Thanks for being patient with the weather and the earth -- it is NOT easy to wait!
Hold strong -- you got this. 

​All BETA mtb trails are open and ready for riding. Please ride with caution -- leaves, blowdown, and hunting season are still top of mind.

Winter conditions are well on their way, especially at higher elevations. Avalanche Pass is still closed following the landslide in July of this year; we're keeping our eyes on if/how this will impact ski touring the route this season.

​That's all, folks! ​If you've got the gloves and the wherewithal, get after some late season mountain biking or tackle the early season toll road (check out our ski conditions reports here). As always, thank you for recreating responsibly. Happy trails!

All BETA trails are open and ready for riding. Please ride with caution -- top of mind are leaves, blowdown, and hunting season.

RAIN💧
Recent rain has turned our dry, dusty trails to hero dirt. Regional drought warning persists.

LEAVES🍂
Expect leaves on the trail. Wet leaves are slippery. It can be easy to lose a leaf-covered trail, especially at night. Leaves can hide rocks, roots, and ruts.

BLOWDOWN🪵
Expect blowdown (tree limbs, trunks) from recent windstorms. Assessment & clearing efforts are underway – please send in reports of blowdown.

HUNTING🔶
Hunting season is open. Hunting is permitted at many trail networks, including East Branch Community Trails and Hardy Road, among others. We encourage mountain bikers to wear blaze orange and avoid riding at dawn/dusk. Consider putting a bell on your four-legged riding partner and decking them out in orange, too.

Snow has started to grace mountain peaks, but so far none in the lowlands. Winter is coming -- ride while you can! Maybe we'll see you at East Branch Community Trails this Saturday, October 25th, to celebrate the opening of two new trails. Weather is looking mighty cold, but we'll have free hotdogs straight off the grill to warm you up. These new trails are thanks, in part, to grant funding from NYS Smart Growth Grant and People for Bikes.

Happy riding everyone!

We're so close to having green lights top to bottom, but for now we have one holdout: Dewey.

Changes since last week: 

• Work is underway on the climbing section of Back Nine at Craig Wood.  There is heavy machinery in use; the trail will be closed at times and signed as such, but we'll do our best to keep those closures to a minimum.
• Dewey graduated from red to yellow -- conditions are highly variable and will likely take a step back after the rain we're forecast to get in the next day or two.  If you ride at Dewey, please remember to ride straight through puddles and wet spots but call it quits if you're leaving ruts.

Things that remain the same from last week: 

• Keene, Etown, and Wilmington are all still green lights and will likely remain good to ride for the rest of the season unless we get a big weather event (aka lots and lots of rain over a short period of time).
  
• Lake Placid is open for riding with some trails marked as closed due to poor conditions or construction -- please respect those closures to protect the trails, the folks working on them, and yourself.
  

As always, thanks for doing your part to protect our trails by visiting the ones that are ready for riding and being patient with the ones that need a bit more time.  If you notice any hazards or sections in need of trail work, please report it on Trailforks of comment below -- we appreciate your help.

Happy riding!

We're heading into another cool, wet weekend -- you know what that means: friendly reminder to turn back if you're leaving ruts, avoid riding while it's actively raining, and ride straight through puddles if you happen upon them.  All these practices help protect the trails we love and keep them in good shape for as long as possible.

Now, for the updates...

Changes since last week:
✅ Lake Placid networks (Lussi & Loggers, Craigwood/Scott's Cobble) have both graduated to green status.  They will still have seasonal wet spots and whatnot, but they are ready for riding.  Please note: BETA staff are working on a reroute of the climbing section of the Back Nine at Craigwood.  Starting on June 2nd and ending around June 16th, a mini excavator will be on-trail.  This may result in periodic closure of the trail which will be signed but will not be announced beforehand.  Stay on your toes for signs that Back Nine is closed while riding at Craigwood between June 2nd and June 16th.  Thank you!
✅ Flobus at Three Sisters is back open!

Things that have not changed since last week:
Keene, Etown, and Wilmington are all still green lights and will likely remain good to ride for the rest of the season unless we get a big weather event (aka lots and lots of rain over a short period of time).  Saranac Lake is still 2/3rds good to go with stubborn Dewey holding out as our last remaining red light network.  It is still soft and wet -- please continue to avoid that network for now.

As always, thanks for doing your part to protect our trails by visiting the ones that are ready for riding and being patient with the ones that need a bit more time.  If you notice any hazards or sections in need of some trail work, please enter it on Trailforks of comment below -- we appreciate your help.
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Happy riding everyone!