INTRODUCTION: 
During the past week, we have continued to pick up small amounts of new snow which has kept the surfaces fresh but without any need for trailbreaking. It will be mid to upper 30s on Saturday, but cold again Sunday and Monday before warming to the 30s mid week.  No significant new snow in the forecast, but for  a change we really don't need more to maintain great conditions.
This will be my last report for a few weeks. Megan Gorss, who did a great job filling in last year, will again keep the report updated.

JACKRABBIT TRAIL
Every section of the Jackrabbit Trail has plenty of cover to be skied. 
McKenzie Pass Section: Fully skiable  with finally good snow right from McKenzie Pond Rd.
Old Mountain Road Section: Skiable. Use the new start that bypasses Rock and River.  Park on the left at the bottom of the field to access this new start. 
Paul Smiths Section: Trail skiable from the VIC to  Lake Clear as there apparently won't be any logging on the trail this winter.
Other sections:  Craig Wood to Birdsong Lane and the new section around Scotts Cobble both in good shape. Good skiing behind the guardrail to reach Mountain Lane, and the new trail to the top of the hill is covered and clear. 
 River Road to the Lake Placid Club golf courses also has good cover. 

GROOMED CENTERS  

        SCOTTS COBBLE NORDIC CENTER
         15 km of groomed trails on Craig Wood Golf Course - rentals, lessons operated by High Peaks Cyclery. Trail fee of $15/day - $10/half-day. Residents of the Tri-Lakes area ski for free (Donations appreciated)       scottscobblenordic.com.
518-523-9811 or 518-523-3742
          KM Open and Groomed: 15  Track Set: 15
          Remarks:  Continued good skiing with bot track and skate lanes.
          MOUNT VAN HOEVENBERG:
        https://mtvanhoevenberg.com/daily-update/   518-523-2811
          Km Open and Groomed: 45  Track Set:   40
         Remarks: Due to training for the IBU biathlon competitions, all competition loops plus the approach to the tubes that allow access to the North Brook Loop are closed. (Access to the North Side (formerly the biathlon side) and the North Brook Loop is via the bridge​. There are also restrictions on the approach to the Legacy trails from the lodge. Otherwise, all Legacy trails are open and recently groomed with set track on most sections. The groomers recommend the Porter Mt. Loops as the best skiing. So don't let the competition restrictions keep you from skiing there this weekend, and as a bonus you can watch some high level biathlon action.          
 PAUL SMITH'S VISITOR INTERPRETIVE CENTER:
         https://www.paulsmithsvic.org/trailconditions/  518-327-6241
           Km Groomed and Open: 30 km  Track Set: 30 km 
           Remarks: All trails open and groomed as of 2/26.   
             DEWEY MOUNTAIN:
           https://www.facebook.com/deweymountainrecreationcenter  518-891-2697
            Km Open:  10   Track set: 8
             Remarks: Lower and Upper Mountain trails groomed. Lower trails with  track set, and some track set on upper trails. 
           TUPPER LAKE X-C SKI TRAILS
           https://www.facebook.com/Tupper-Lake-Groomed-XC-Trails-102907273119538/  518-359-8370
            Km Open: 10   Track set:   10
            Surface Conditions:  Perfect powder conditions
​        Remarks:  Annual Brewski on Saturday.

          ADK CASCADE WELCOME CENTER (PREVIOUSLY: CASCADE CROSS-COUNTRY SKI CENTER) 
Unfortunately, not operating this winter with its long-term status yet to be determined.

BACKCOUNTRY CONDITIONS
Winter conditions regarding temperatures and snow depth sufficient to require skis or snowshoes.  Wednesday 2/26,  report from Lake Colden says the snow depth at the cabin is 53".  Now 6 feet or more of snow with deeper drifts at 4,000 feet.   Lake ice crossable, but as always use care around inlets and outlets.    
Whiteface Highway:  The highway is definitely skiable with cover from edge to edge on most of the usually windy spots. However, all that looks white will not necessarily have the same depth of coverage.
Connery Pond to Whiteface Landing: There is good cover all the way to  the landing. Ice on the pond is an alternative to the up and down start.  No  slush, but as always, the outlet must be given a wide berth.
Marcy Dam, Truck Trail:  Skiable all the way to Marcy Dam. Meadows Lane now blocked off for the winter. Park on the left to leave room for ranger vehicles with snowmobile trailers in the event of an emergency. 
Fish Pond Truck Trail:   Great skiing all the way to Fish Pond.  The ponds for the alternate return are now skiable, although slush was still an occasional issue two weeks ago and may still be.
Hays Brook Truck Trail: Definitely very good skiing to both the Sheep Meadow and Grass Pond.  The parking lot was not plowed after last week's 7-8" snowfall, so it may be necessary to park on the highway. 
Newcomb Lake Road: As usual, good skiing with over a foot of snow in Newcomb.  The side road to Moose Pond also has good cover, reportedly no fresh broken track.  
Gulf Brook Road to Boreas Ponds:  Good cover.  As of 2/5 (the latest in-person inspection) there continues to be space for about five cars plowed. No guarantee that this will continue, but we like the trend. Parking for Hoffman Notch has also been plowed.  (Parking on the road is legal - just not ideal.)  Otherwise, good cover and at least an older broken track all the way to the ponds.
​Raquette Falls: Good skiing to the falls. Gate to the Seward trailhead is now closed, so no plowing or likely any vehicular traffic that might make it possible to drive to the actual trailhead. The "default" parking at the end of town plowing adds about a mile to the ski.
Avalanche Pass: Officially, the hiking trail is still closed due to the July landslide, but the ski trail is open. (Of course the two join up, but that is how at least some are reporting the situation.) Definitely skiable with plenty of cover on the slide area. There may be some amount of avalanche danger from the new slide, but to date no problem and people have been skiing the slide.. Calamity Brook Trail from Upper Works to Flowed Lands, skiable and broken out. Caution needed when crossing the Opalescent River in Flowed Lands
 ​Ausable Lake Road:  Good cover right from the gate.
Wright Peak Ski Trail:  Finally skiable up to the divergence from the hiking trail with great cover on both the approach and the top part of the trail. 
Mt. Marcy Ski Trail:  Plenty of  snow  and broken out.  

UPDATE: Saturday AM 2/21
As predicted we have some new snow. 4", 6", 8" depending on location. It started as heavy, wet snow but graded to lighter snow before the storm ended before midnight. Given that the snow is on the heavy side, trail breaking will be more of an issue that we originally thought. Groomed centers will be able to offer some great skiing, and we will hope for some reports of which trails have been broken out. We won't say anything about avalanche danger than to note that, with this heavy snow on a firm base, the danger exists.

INTRODUCTION:
Despite these few warm days, everything has remained skiable, but the  powder surfaces are now firm hardpack where they have been skied or groomed. However, there will be a significant amount of new snow on Friday and into Saturday - 3-9 inches, which is enough to cover the hardpack without being too hard for trailbreaking. Temperatures will be near 30 all weekend, dropping to 20 for a high on Tuesday, but returning to near 30 for the rest of the week.

JACKRABBIT TRAIL
Every section of the Jackrabbit Trail has plenty of cover to be skied, but until the new snow any steep terrain demands caution.
McKenzie Pass Section: Fully skiable  with finally good snow right from McKenzie Pond Rd.
Old Mountain Road Section: Skiable. Use the new start that bypasses Rock and River.  Park on the left at the bottom of the field to access this new start. 
Paul Smiths Section: Trail skiable from the VIC to  Lake Clear as there apparently won't be any logging on the trail this winter.
Other sections:  Craig Wood to Birdsong Lane and the new section around Scotts Cobble both in good shape. Good skiing behind the guardrail to reach Mountain Lane, and the new trail to the top of the hill is covered and clear. 
 River Road to the Lake Placid Club golf courses also has good cover. 

GROOMED CENTER  

        SCOTTS COBBLE NORDIC CENTER
         15 km of groomed trails on Craig Wood Golf Course - rentals, lessons operated by High Peaks Cyclery. Trail fee of $15/day - $10/half-day. Residents of the Tri-Lakes area ski for free (Donations appreciated)       scottscobblenordic.com.
518-523-9811 or 518-523-3742
          KM Open and Groomed: 15  Track Set: 15
          Remarks:  
          MOUNT VAN HOEVENBERG:
        https://mtvanhoevenberg.com/daily-update/   518-523-2811
          Km Open and Groomed: 45  Track Set:   40
         Remarks: All  competition loops open plus 40km of Legacy trails open with set track on most sections. Some disruptions near the 1980 stadium due to preparations for the upcoming IBU Cup biathlon races. Also, access to the double tubes is closed du to IBU prep work. Access  the North Side (formerly the biathlon side) via the bridge​.           PAUL SMITH'S VISITOR INTERPRETIVE CENTER:
         https://www.paulsmithsvic.org/trailconditions/  518-327-6241
           Km Groomed and Open: 30 km  Track Set: 30 km 
           Remarks: All trails open and recently groomed, so good skiing evn before the new snow.  
             DEWEY MOUNTAIN:
           https://www.facebook.com/deweymountainrecreationcenter  518-891-2697
            Km Open:  10   Track set: 8
             Remarks: Lower and Upper Mountain trails groomed. Lower trails with  track set, and some track set on upper trails. Somewhat icy until the new snow
           TUPPER LAKE X-C SKI TRAILS
           https://www.facebook.com/Tupper-Lake-Groomed-XC-Trails-102907273119538/  518-359-8370
            Km Open: 10   Track set:   10
            Surface Conditions:  Powder and hardpack
​        Remarks:  No specifics on snowfall or overall snow depth, but their Facebook page shows ample snow and fresh grooming as of 2/14. 

          ADK CASCADE WELCOME CENTER (PREVIOUSLY: CASCADE CROSS-COUNTRY SKI CENTER) 
Unfortunately, not operating this winter with its long-term status yet to be determined.

BACKCOUNTRY CONDITIONS
Winter conditions regarding temperatures and snow depth sufficient to require skis or snowshoes.  Wednesday 2/18,  report from Lake Colden says the snow depth at the cabin has settled down from 50" to "only" 48".  Now 6 feet or more of snow with deeper drifts at 4,000 feet.   Lake ice crossable, but as always use care around inlets and outlets.    
Whiteface Highway:  The highway is definitely skiable with cover from edge to edge on most of the usually windy spots. However, all that looks white will not necessarily have the same depth of coverage.
Connery Pond to Whiteface Landing: There is good cover all the way to  the landing. Ice on the pond is an alternative to the up and down start.  No  slush, but as always, the outlet must be given a wide berth.
Marcy Dam, Truck Trail:  Skiable all the way to Marcy Dam. Meadows Lane now blocked off for the winter. Park on the left to leave room for ranger vehicles with snowmobile trailers in the event of an emergency. 
Fish Pond Truck Trail:   Great skiing all the way to Fish Pond.  The ponds for the alternate return are now skiable, although slush is still an occasional issue.
Hays Brook Truck Trail: Definitely very good skiing to both the Sheep Meadow and Grass Pond.  The parking lot continues to be plowed. 
Newcomb Lake Road: As usual, good skiing with over a foot of snow in Newcomb.  The side road to Moose Pond also has good cover and there is reportedly broken track for at least a mile with no difficult blowdown to negotiate. 
Gulf Brook Road to Boreas Ponds:  Good cover.  As of 2/5 there continues to be space for about five cars plowed. No guarantee that this will continue, but we like the trend. Parking for Hoffman Notch has also been plowed.  (Parking on the road is legal - just not ideal.)  Otherwise, good cover and a broken track all the way to the ponds.
​Raquette Falls: Good skiing to the falls. Gate to the Seward trailhead is now closed, so no plowing or likely any vehicular traffic that might make it possible to drive to the actual trailhead. The "default" parking at the end of town plowing adds about a mile to the ski.
Avalanche Pass: Officially, the hiking trail is still closed due to the July landslide, but the ski trail is open. (Of course the two join up, but that is how at least some are reporting the situation.) Definitely skiable with plenty of cover on the slid area. There is also a yet to be determined amount of avalanche danger from the new slide, but to date no problem and people have been skiing the slide.. Calamity Brook Trail from Upper Works to Flowed Lands, skiable and broken out. Caution needed when crossing the Opalescent River in Flowed Lands
 ​Ausable Lake Road:  Finally good cover right from the gate.
Wright Peak Ski Trail:  Finally skiable up to the divergence from the hiking trail with great cover on both the approach and the top part of the trail. Much yse on that trail this past weekend.
Mt. Marcy Ski Trail:  Plenty of  snow  and broken out.  

UPDATE 2/14/26:
This has been the easiest year yet to report ski conditions as nothing really has changed since the skiing  was good.  Sunday and Monday will continue just what has been reported below as of 2/6 with temperatures near but not above freezing. Then the middle of next week will see some warmer temperatures, but nothing that will in any way diminish the base we have built up. Perhaps the surfaces will suffer a bit, but temperatures will drop with a bit more snow to improve surfaces before the coming weekend when it will again be below - but not too far below - freezing.

Pretty much no change in the conditions reported as of last Friday. We are looking at some more new snow on Tuesday into Tuesday night. The National Weather Service still says just 1-3 inches while other forecasters say 3-6". We'll see, but unlike some recent winters it doesn't really matter except the degree to which your drive to the trailhead might be affected. 

Looking ahead, not much new snow past Tuesday, but warming to the 20s as of Wednesday and then around freezing for highs Saturday-Monday. If you stayed inside last weekend because it was too cold, you have no excuse this weekend.