The Mountain Trails Foundation opens over 50 miles of groomed trails for public use in Summit County each winter. Though that’s only a small fraction of the 400 miles of land the foundation regularly prepares for summer use, the maintenance and grooming of these winter trails requires a great deal of teamwork, planning, and resources to keep things running smoothly, offering a space for Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, fat biking and more.  “We groom about 35 kilometers of soft-surface trails, like Fast Pitch, Hat Trick, Round Valley Express, Quarry Road, and Two Pines, to Nordic track specs, and about 20 miles of singletrack in Round Valley,” said Lora Anthony, executive director at the Mountain Trails Foundation.“We have a four-person winter grooming crew that grooms Round Valley every morning. The crew is out early, before the sun comes up, grooming trails so that they have time to set-up before people start using them,” said Anthony. The Round Valley area services 15 trails at over 7,000 feet of elevation. With easy access from town and U.S. 40, heated bathrooms, and space for parking, Quinn’s Junction at Round Valley sees the most winter traffic. Areas including Clark Ranch and Bonanza Flat are also available this winter, though grooming schedules will depend on weather conditions. Bonanza is typically great to use in the early and late season because of its high elevation at 9,000 feet, but is only groomed on weekends. Clark Ranch also presents its own challenges with an unplowed parking area making Nordic traffic a bit more difficult, said Anthony. Clark Ranch only features a groomed singletrack this year for riding. These grooming techniques are not easy, said Anthony. This kind of winter terrain and track design requires skilled groomers and snowmobile operators. The foundation has four full-time groomers on staff who take shifts throughout the week to ensure trails are groomed daily. “In early season conditions, we use a grooming drag drawn by snowmobile to smooth out the surface. We have a small and agile snowmobile, and a special drag designed for singletrack,” said Anthony. The foundation’s winter maintenance begins long before the snow flies. Many trails, including the Big Easy and Downward Dog, are designed and built with wider tread specifically to aid winter grooming. “Some of Round Valley’s tight, old-school singletrack is really challenging to groom in the winter because the switchbacks are so tight. It takes a highly-skilled snowmobile operator to make those turns,” said Anthony. Groomers work through many obstacles and challenges, from weather to equipment issues, to maintain trails through the winter months. Oftentimes, the biggest difficulties the foundation faces each year are the result of poor trail etiquette. “Groomers work in really hard, harsh, cold, windy, early morning conditions to provide a free public amenity. But that’s all part of the deal we signed up for and, as it’s part of our mission, we’re honored to do it. The most challenging element of grooming operations is poor choices made by trail users,” said Anthony. “Don’t be THAT guy or gal,” said Anthony. Many folks using trails who leave behind doggie bags and sticks or create ruts and holes with improper use create issues that compound to make maintenance more and more difficult. These often innocent accidents are very damaging to grooming equipment and make it harder to keep these trails available, said Anthony.  “To best preserve trails and keep the crew from burning out, we ask that trail users be gentle on winter trails and turn around if they’re leaving ruts or post-holing. Also being a patient, conscientious trail user sometimes means waiting for conditions to be right before heading out. You can always check our website for conditions updates,” she said. As a community organization, Mountain Trails Foundation can always use a hand from community members and folks who love to use these trails, said Anthony. After big storms, the winter grooming becomes more and more challenging. For folks who want to help, Anthony asks that people can go out with snowshoes to help pack down the single track for grooming. However, this soft snow that comes from big storms is also something to avoid. When trails are soft, just like if they are muddy in the summers, using the tracks before they are groomed degrades the paths exponentially.The post Mountain Trails Foundation keeps winter trails open and groomed appeared first on Park Record.