The trails in the Cache-Game area are almost totally snow free with just a few drifts lingering on the north side of the Cache-Game divide and the Ferrin’s saddle.  The 5 way meadows in upper Wilson Canyon are also pretty wet with spring runoff.  There are still some trees down in the burn area on the Wilson Canyon and West Game trails that we will get cleared next week.  The trails are holding up well but need a little longer to dry out after it rains as the ground is still saturated from the snow melt.  I usually say wait until the streets in town are dry but maybe add an hour to that until we get into a high pressure system.  The crews also finished clearing Munger Mountain this week and will start pushing up from the base of Teton Pass next week.  If you are out exploring this weekend and see any trees down send us a trail maintenance request and we will get them asap.  If you are going to be around next weekend come out from 9-12 on Saturday June 3rd for National Trails Day.  We will be building singletrack across Snow King to get the Sink or Swim trail off of the shared section of road.  Meet at the base of the Rafferty lift for bagels and coffee and a free ride up to help us dig.

A few more trail options are dry for this weekend.  The lower trails on the Josie’s Ridge side are almost 100% snow free and should make for some good loop options.  Josie’s Ridge was snow free up to the old snag tree and Sink or Swim was clear until you get closer to the Snow King ski area.  Putt Putt and Woods Canyon were good from the Nelson Dr. over to the Cache Creek trailhead, and the Sidewalk trail was clear up to around the Wiggle.  The first mile or so of Game Creek above the gate is good too.  In general head out and explore and if you are on dry dirt or snow you are good to go, but avoid pushing further if you are getting muddy or having to walk off trail to avoid mud and snow.  Enjoy the sunshine and look for the crews out on the trails working hard!

For the first trail report of the season there is not much to report.  Lots of snow still melting and a few dry trails down south of town between Adam’s Canyon and Game Creek.  If you’re are really itching for dry dirt head down that way and link up to the A&W trail at the junction with the S 89 pathway near Rafter J and use the underpass to climb up to Adam’s Canyon Dr. and head south on the A&W trail over to the Wilson Canyon trailhead.  This section is outside of the Winter Wildlife Closures which are still in effect until Monday May 1.  You can then cross the highway to the S 89 pathway and head south along the S 89 Singletrack to the Game Creek tunnel.  There you can hop on the Game Creek trail and go up to the trailhead and explore a bit farther to see how much snow has melted above the gate.  If you are out skinning and exploring other areas this weekend remember to obey the Winter Wildlife Closures and Dog Leash Zones and hopefully there will be some more dry trail by next weekend.

Another busy week on the trails.  We hired a crew from the Montana Conservation Corp who are helping to get Teton Pass open.  We cleared down Black Canyon and History Trail and will be hitting Ski Lake and Phillip’s Pass this weekend.  Black Canyon had just a little bit of snow left near the summit of Mt. Elly but was in great shape otherwise.  We also cleared some of the user created trails in the nordic corridors at the base of Black Canyon.  What we are calling the OPR Loops will be reviewed by the USFS this winter to see about adopting them onto the trail system, but in the meantime they make a nice quiet series of loops on relatively flat terrain.  We then switched gears and hit the infestation of musk thistle in Game Creek to prevent it from spreading further onto the forest.  We also had a great group of volunteers from the Teton Trail Runners who helped us install some stump seats at the Ferrins saddle for a well deserved rest after that climb.  Finally we cleared some newly blown down trees on West Game, Wilson Canyon, and on the Cache Creek Road.  If you see any new trees down after a wind storm use the trail maintenance request button to let us know about them and we will get out to clear them.  Enjoy the warm temps and clear trails this weekend!

We are still waiting on the upper ridges of Teton Pass to dry out but the rest of the trail system is in great shape after some sunny weather.  This week we did a little tree clearing, cleaned up the Blair Dr. Bike Skills Park, and started installing bike racks at some of the busiest trailheads.  We hope the racks will give people another option to bike to the trailhead and to go for a hike or run or ski without having to drive their car.  Enjoy a sunny weekend and if you see any downed tree on the trails use the Trail Maintenance Request button at the top of the page to let us know and we can get out to clear it right away!