Note: This page was updated December 4, and now includes the minutes of the November 27, Boardmeeting. click here for that.

December Newsletter. ..

President’s Message

As this is written snow is sintering down into the woods. Already eight inches of snow cover the Fourth of July Area with two and half feet on Lookout Pass with all its promise for the winter ski season.

It is difficult to describe the promise the first snow imparts. In his introduction to his collection of short stories “Snowwalker, ” Farley Mowat comes as close as I’ve read. He describes snow in its many forms and facets, so many that the Inuit had nineteen separate words for types of snow. It is no wonder in that no two snowflakes are identical.

Mowat goes on to describe how snow is a major interference with our modern lives. He describes how snow snarls our modern traffic pattern, delays flight schedules, must be pushed or hauled off to accommodate our busy mechanized life styles. As the first snow sinters down it marks a major disruption to our very adult mechanized and rushed lives. He then supplies the contrast of the Inuit people of the far north. To them, snow had very different meaning. It would soon build up to preserve their food supplies. It would be hardened by the wind to create the ideal building materials of an insulated winter home. It would make travel over their landscape much more efficient and easy. Snow was greeted with joy in camps across the north as an essential element of life.

Coming from a ski town, I know the feeling first hand. Snow was our livelihood. Snow was greeted with an almost child like joy for its promise of a good winter. I hope that you share that optimism as the late November snow promises a fine winter season. A skier at Fourth of July summed up for me just this morning, “its just great to be out.”

Expect the Fourth of July Area to be groomed the weekend of December 2 and 3rd. The snow is there, but we are waiting for the hunters to depart before we deploy the groomers, stoves, signs and ski racks. With the eight inches of heavy snow on the ground and that being added as this is written, we should start with a great base.

(The Forest Service trail crew cut out about 30 trees that had fallen during the wind storms).

There will be new opportunities for new routes for snowshoe and ski enthusiasts alike. So buy that Park & Ski sticker and designate area 11. When you do, the funds come back to support the Fourth of July Area.

The Panhandle Nordic Ski & Snowshoe Club will meet Tuesday, December 5th at 7:00 PM at the Fernan Ranger Station at 2502 East Sherman Avenue in Coeur d’Alene.

Bring Cookies For Cookie Exchange.

Bring Extra Cookies for Highway Snowplow Drivers because they plow our parking lot out of the goodness of their heart. It is not part of their job or route.

We have planning to do for Free Ski Day in early January and updates on winter ski trips. The program will consist of a short talk on a visit to the Tour de France and riding some of the routes of this legendary race.

We also hope to have time to talk about ski waxing: the basic principles and advantage, where to have it professionally done, and waxing basics for the more ambitious. Hope to see you next Tuesday evening, December 5th.

Panhandle Ski and Snowshoe Club Board Minutes
November 27, 2006

Glenn Truscott has purchased the wood for the snowshoe bridge. He is looking for some help to cut it.

The club is still looking for a stove for the new warming hut. There was one on Ebay, but it seems to be about the same price as one located in Coeur d’Alene. Since small stoves are light in weight, putting bricks inside would make them harder to carry away. Glenn also is looking at chaining the stove to bolt in the floor.

Thursday, Van is going to the ski area to cut some of the downed trees from this month’s two windstorms with the USFS.

Bea Christopherson reported that the club has about $3,198.89 at the moment. Some is owed to the State of Idaho for Park n Ski stickers, but the State also owes the club some money for maintenance and improvements.

Placing of signs has been put on hold until just after hunting season has ended. The initial grooming will be Thursday.

Geoff suggested that the club laminate a sheet and put it in the new hut telling people of alternate routes back to the parking lot.

Free Ski Day: a volunteer sign up sheet will be at the next meeting. Dwight and Jim have offered to teach newcomers to the sport. Geoff will help out. We need cookies for Free Ski Day.

Van suggested building benches around the fire pit at the old warming hut so that people can gather there. Some people merely ski the trail and never go inside the hut, thus, they don’t see our brochures.

Cookie Basket: Members will be encouraged to bring cookies for the cookie exchange and the cookie basket for the Transportation Road Plowing Crew. Jackie Beery will deliver the plowing crew’s cookie basket.

December 5 meeting will include a program by Steve who attended the Tour de France two years ago and rode some of the routes in the Alps. He will have a power point presentation. There will also be information on waxing by Dwight and Van.

Jack O’Brien has offered a speaker to be part of the January club meeting. They will speak about the Cabinet Mountain Wilderness area, a proposal to put land in Montana and Idaho into Wilderness.

Groomer’s Raise: Jackie made a motion to increase the groomer’s wages by $4 an hour. Glenn seconded the motion; the motion passed.

The club would like to build yet another shelter above the other two on 905 to house the grooming machines. That way, the groomers won’t have to travel over what’s already been done by the groomers working down below.

Hilma Volk is available to help groom this year.

The club needs another grant for another grooming machine. Our oldest one is not of much use and is very hard to operate. Carol and Geoff will pursue a grant process to obtain an additional grooming machine. Van looked into machines last year. Van and Glenn remembered the cost of the “Sherpa” to be around $23,000.

The club must work on documenting how many people use the area and they must justify the expenditure to Idaho Parks and Recreation. Parks and Recreation’s main concern is improving Idaho’s recreational areas to attract more users and so the club must emphasize the use the 4th of July area gets.

The meeting was adjourned.

To view November's Newsletter and Minutes of the November 14th meeting Click Here.

Links of Interest

For information about Mt. Spokane x-country ski events,
trail maps, permit information, trail conditions etc. go to
www.selkirknordic.org

Farragut State Park 208-683-2425

Cross country skiing in British Columbia
http://www.canadatrails.ca/xc_ski/xc_bc.html

Priest Lake ski conditions www.priestlake.org
208-443-3191

Bitterroot Cross-Country Ski Club http://www.bitterrootxcskiclub.net/index.htm

KYRO Ice Skating Arena (West of CDA on Seltice Way) 208-765-4423