One snowcat generally starts at 11 pm or 12 am.
The goal is for groomers to have completed their tasks and will be off the trails by 9 a.m. for opening.

During the normal grooming shift or prior to 9:00 am the snowcats will be traveling in any direction on the trails as this helps move snow to where it should be, can help with track setting, and contributes to an economical grooming route. The snowcat may frequently back up as the operator rebuilds a section of trail, carves into the sides to widen the trail, collects snow to fill in holes in creeks, and fills in the dips between steep pitches. This is why, out of safety for staff and guests, the trails do not open until 9 a.m., to ensure the groomer is safely off the trails before skiing commences.

• The trails also take time to set and firm up if a skier uses a trail immediately after it has been groomed, the surface will still be extremely soft and will cause significant ruts in the trail until it is groomed again.
• The indented tracks the skier leaves behind are there until the trail is re-groomed the next day or other skiers gradually wear them down. This means that other skiers have to contend with the ruts in the trail and that can trip them up.
• Tilling the snow removes air within the snowpack, heats the snow crystals with friction, and breaks off the arms of the snowflakes. The snow then requires some time to cool down and “re-freeze”. This is why it is important to let the trails set after grooming, rather than having skiers on the trail immediately after the operator is complete, particularly in the skate ski lane.
• A fresh, deep snowfall only allows the tracks, the tiller, and the blade to physically disturb the top layers. This compresses and hardens up the top layer of the snow but there often is a soft layer immediately underneath that affects skaters.
• Classic skiers can ski in the tracks immediately after the snowcat has passed by as the pans compress the snow.
• Skaters are a different story. The process of cooling and consolidating the skate lane takes from 10 minutes to 25 minutes depending on the humidity, age, and temperature of the snow. Fresh snow takes longer than old snow.
• Out of continued safety for our staff and guests and as a standard set by commercial operators and the Canada West Ski Area Association, we do not operate a snowcat on the trails while operational. In some circumstances, this is not the case. If by chance the groomer is caught out on an area later than normal, then the resort will use a snowmobile escort to ensure the machine is safely off the trails and to indicate to skiers that a snowcat is following.
• We have a close working relationship with BC Parks and maintain safe operating procedures based on our permit to operate within Strathcona Park and environmental impact management and therefore cannot operate within the park until we have at least 1 meter of settled snowpack.
• All guests using the trails we manage within Strathcona Park must obtain a valid trail pass or Season Pass to gain access.
• Those going into the park and not following the marked trail may do so without a trail pass, however, you must know where you are going, have proper route-finding skills, and carry adequate supplies to ensure safety on your trip.
  
  

If snowing, or significant snow is predicted, the grooming protocol will shift to quality over quantity, focusing on a smaller loop of trails, that will be packed in and groomed as much as possible during the snowfall. The snowcat may stay out as late as 10am on these mornings, however users must respect trail closures in this case while the machine is in operation.

Grooming late may be the result of challenging conditions of the day. Every day is different due to snow conditions, the melt freeze cycles we experience, as well as the coastal wet snow pack. These factors may result in the groomer having to travel at half the normal operating speed, or redoing sections of trails multiple times to achieve a quality product. All factors which could result in fewer trails being groomed on a given day.

During the day, trail maintenance may occur using a variety of different grooming implements, which can be towed using the side-by-side buggy or snowmobile. These include:

• Ginzu: Attached behind the tracked buggy (side by side), which has teeth to till the snow, as well as a mat to lay corduroy and track setting pans.
• Roller: Towed behind the snowmobile or tracked buggy, useful in packing down large amounts of new snow, also equipped with a mat to lay a nice chord finish.
• Mat: this is generally used to clean up the sled tracks on the trails. Inevitably, we have to use the sled throughout the day to perform various trail maintenance tasks or to respond to first aid calls. The mat is towed behind the sled and leaves a track of corduroy to erase the sled tracks.

*All of these grooming devices, including the snowcat, experience challenges in the wet heavy snow, as the snow can build up in the tiller, mat or pans, which can leave ruts in the trail if not cleared off. The operator then must stop frequently while working to clear the chunks of snow out of the undesired locations of the machines.
Unfortunately, these implements will never produce quite the same quality of grooming that the snowcat does, as they do not carry the same weight and ability to move snow, especially when the snow is too wet and heavy or when the surface of the trails is rock hard.  However, they do help with maintenance and touch up the grooming and provide a safer alternative to midday grooming for all.

• The snowcat can’t be operated in preseason, low snow conditions due to the depth of the cleats on the tracks and the aggressiveness of the cutters on the tiller.  This prevents it from being used in early season as the tracks and tiller will bring debris to the surface and spread it through the snow pack.  Low snow levels can also cause damage to the machine resulting in equipment being out of service for repairs for a given period of time.
• Throughout the season, the groomer is used when we have new snow; however, it must be used carefully for refreshing old tracks.  Each time the snow is tilled, the snow crystals are altered and become finer.  This improves the skiing surface in the short term but when the snow is tilled too much the crystals become small and rounded, creating a less than ideal surface. The snow can actually get “worn out” if we groom too often.   
  
  
• During warmer periods throughout the season and into the spring months, we frequently experience freeze/thaw cycles. This is when the snow softens during the day, becoming quite slushy with sun exposure and then hardens up and refreezes overnight, with no new snowfall on top. During these cycles, the tiller has trouble cutting through this layer of ice and often has to go over the same section of trail multiple times to achieve the minimum desires finish.
  When soft, older snow is tilled, the snow pack is reduced and the ability of the snow crystals to adhere to each other is further diminished.  Snow crystals have a finite capacity to be worked. We will still groom spring snow but there is a lot of science, art and luck in deciding on the frequency and timing that will best extend the season.

Mount Washington has 55 km of trails and in ideal conditions the snowcat can average 5 km per hour.  Theoretically, it should take a minimum of 11 hours to groom all the trails. In practice, it can take up to 16 hours due to extra time on junctions, connecting trails, out-and-back trails, and removing fallen trees, hardy icy conditions, heavy snow fall, etc.

In an ideal world, we would receive moderate amounts of snowfall every couple of days that could be mixed into the existing base to keep the trails fresh, smooth and firm. However that is rarely the case. When the area experiences cold temperatures and low humidity and receives no new snow, good trail conditions can be maintained if there is already a firm base. Too much snow all at once makes the trails too soft and as a result, trail users’ poles punch through, which creates challenging skating conditions. No new snow conditions, accompanied by significant temperature fluctuations and higher humidity create a freeze-thaw cycle. When this happens, the trails become icy and require significant mechanical assistance to churn up the ice and set nice corduroy and classic tracks. In the case of wet and heavy snow, it’s best to wait until it dries before grooming rather than risk creating a groove in the trail.

Only one track is often set on advanced or black diamond runs because these runs are predominantly used by skate skiers and it allows them more room. But a track is still available for those skiers that prefer to use it. Single tracks on steeper hills give skiers more room to navigate up or down.

Sometimes the radius of the corner is too sharp for the groomer to set a smooth consistent track throughout the curve. In some cases the track radius is too small and skis are too long to negotiate the curve while inside the track. With no track, the skier can pick their own line through the curve.

This season we will continue to have two Prinoth snowcats plumbed for use with the Nordic tiller. One new to us groomer for the nordic area.
New YTS (track setting) system and backup.