Panhandle Nordic Club
October 16, 2026
Newsletter
Welcome to the 2026/2027 season of our Panhandle Nordic Club.
I hope you are all enjoying the last bits of Summer weather. It was another great summer of PNC organized activities including a BBQ with the Lewis’s, hiking, biking, and paddling.
I am excited and very much looking forward to the start of another great ski and snowshoe season. Lets all hope we are in for a cold and snowy winter!
Our club will hold our first seasonal kick-off meeting on Tuesday November 10 at 7:00 PM:
United Methodist Church
1470 W Hanley Avenue
Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815
One of our primary objectives for this first meeting will be to collectively plan for our clubs winter outings and events. I plan to bring a preliminary list of suggestions for events but will be counting on all of you to come with your suggestions and preferred dates. Please be thinking of both local daytime and extended multi-day outings for our club during the upcoming season. We will then finalize our schedule for the season during our 2nd Club Meeting on December 1st.
I am currently working with the Forest Service to see if we can move our annual Best Hand Fundraiser Event held at our 4th July Pass Trail network to early February instead of our historical first Saturday in January. I am hopeful the later date will greatly improve our chances of snow and good ski and snowshoe conditions which have been severely lacking over the last several years.
One exciting new development for this year is the clubs purchase of a new snow machine to support our trail maintenance and grooming activities. We received this new equipment this August. As you may recall, our club was able to obtain this new equipment thru a Federal/State Recreational Trails Program Grant. The RTP Grant covered 70% of the cost with PNC funds covering the remaining 30%. Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to our club funds over the years via annual club dues and/or special donations. This is a great addition to our grooming fleet and will; be put to good use for many years to come.
Do not forget to obtain your annual Park N Ski sticker at any participating retail outlet or you can order online for home delivery at: www.idahostateparks.reserveamerica.com.
When you purchase your sticker, please select Fourth-of-July Pass-Area 4 as the designated location. This ensures these supporting funds are directed to support the maintenance and grooming activities for our home trail network.
Please join or renew your membership for our club. This is critical in supporting the maintenance of the trails and facilities at the 4th of July recreation area and ensuring that the club will endure for many years to come. We strongly encourage you to join or renew your membership electronically via our club website at: www.panhandlenordicclub.com. We would prefer you pay for your annual membership thru the electronic payment methods available within the registration process. If you wish to be on our email list, please make sure you select the box [Add to PNC Group Membership List] within the registration form. Also, make sure to Key [Submit] after you have completed the form and payment process. Please sign up as soon as you can. It really helps to get the membership list for the year completed early. Thanks again for your support!
The fall season brings several required preparation activities to the fourth-of-July Trail network. We will soon be looking for volunteers to support a couple of trail workdays to get things ready for an enjoyable season. Stay tuned for a request for volunteers from our Geoff Harvey. The more the merrier!
Look forward to seeing you all on November 10th to kick-off another exciting season. I will be there with cookies and hot chocolate.