We have closed Exit Strategy, Droopy Muffin steep hill-between Intersection 30 and 30A and Lichen Rock. We have problems with freeze thaw cycles on these particular trails throughout the winter into early spring. Please respect closed trails. Thank you your hard working volunteers.
Category Archives: Snowshoeing
Memberships
We are an all volunteer organization that keeps the trails in Pine Hill Park in nice shape.
We are constantly working on drainage, downed trees being removed.
Your membership, contributions, donations all go directly back into Pine Hill Park. We have a lot of trail maintenance to get done in the next couple of years so your membership dollars and contributions will go directly back to the park.
We do have some cool swag associated with our membership levels. Dave Jenne our volunteer graphic person who does our maps, swag graphics and fantastic picture taking came up with Bone Spur this year.
Joining Pine Hill Partnership is easy! Check this link out! https://pinehillpartnership.org/membership/
Snowdog is BACK!
Nate N has been out grooming in the park as of Monday, January 23rd. He will continue to groom as we appear to be getting a little more snow on-and-off over the next 10 days.
With Rutland Cold-Rolled just around the corner (February 12th) we are kindly asking people to treat our groomed trails with care. That means lowering your tire pressures so you’re not leaving ruts. Run 4″ or wider tires PLEASE! No regular mountain bike size tires pretty please!
Walkers, runners—please use snowshoes or X-C skis. Those little toe divots are not fun to ride on, and are very tough to groom out once the snow sets up. If you need snowshoes the Community Center has them to loan out.
This is a huge event that showcases Pine Hill Park to the mountain bike community in the northeastern US. We really could use everyone’s help in keeping our trails in tip-top shape!
(^-^)/ Thank you!
Winter grooming under way
UPDATE 3/12/2021: Please no bikes until the park dries out in April. We are in a very trail tread fragile time of year with freeze/thaw cycles. If winter really shows back up again and everything is frozen solid you will want studded fat tires. Thank you for respecting all our hard volunteer work efforts into making Pine Hill Park such a cool place to play.
UPDATE 3/8/2021: We are done grooming for the year. With warm weather this week and wanting trails to unthaw for spring it is best to leave them alone. It has been a great winter for fat bikes, skis and hiking in the park. Not often we see snow that stays for a long period of time in Rutland.
As we approach spring with freeze/thaw cycles we are asking folks not to use the trails. It does a lot of damage to the trail tread when they are in that fragile state. When trails get rutted up water runs down that rut when it rains or when the frost is coming out of the ground. The water running down the rut then washes away all our hard earned soil we have moved by hand. We appreciate your cooperation. Thank you.
UPDATE 2/25/21: Nate N tried to groom today-Thursday 2/25. Snowdog kept falling off the track he had set earlier in the week. So instead of plugging long he headed back to the barn. Studs and ice cleats are highly recommended. Please do not ride/hike on the trails later Saturday or Sunday when temps get warm and turn everything to mush. Thanks!!!!
UPDATE 2/20/21: Nate N groomed more late this afternoon. Everything is in great shape. Check it out before the 45 degree weather shows up on Wednesday.
UPDATE 2/20/21: Nate N did groom some on Friday 2/19. He is planning on hitting more trails today to make them a little easier to walk and ride. Bikers and hikers if you are sinking in more than an inch please stick to the Pond Rd. When the bike tracks and foot prints freeze solid it’s not a lot of fun to walk or ride on. We can do some grooming but getting frozen tracks out of the trail tread isn’t something Snowdog can do unless we have fresh snow to smooth stuff out. So think about long term for trail use and what you would like it to be-smooth or rutted? Please 4″ or wider tires please. Thank you!
UPDATE 2/19/21: Nate N is planning on grooming later today(Friday 2/19) to try and get some of the foot and snowshoe prints out of the trail tread. The idea is with a little bit of snow and warmer temps he can smooth some of it out. Hearing the report on riding fat bikes in the park is not a lot of fun right now with all the frozen foot prints.
UPDATE 2/13/21: Nate N has been able to groom the last two days with the metal drag sled. Everything packed down really well and should be great walking, running and fat biking until next snow. Please leave a donation in Tinman or join Pine Hill Partnership to help offset the cost of running Snowdog. www.pinehillpartnership.org Thanks.
UPDATE 2/4/21: Nate N has done a bunch of grooming the last two days. It still might be a touch soft but should set up nicely. Hopefully we won’t get too much rain on 2/5. Here is a grooming map on what has been done.
UPDATE 1/19/21: Nate N did some grooming today. It’s still a little soft but we have a good track set. What is groomed: Escalator, Svelte, Sisyphus, Watkins, Shimmer, Overlook, Jigsaw Milk Run, Salamander, part of Droopy, Pond Rd. Plus a width swath on the ballfield.
UPDATE 1/16/21: It’s a soft and slushy weekend. We would appreciate folks to stay off the single track trails so they don’t form slushy ruts that freeze. Thank you.
UPDATE 1/13/2021: Park is riding super currently. We are asking 4″ or wider tires please. Please leave a donation in Tinman that will go toward our cool trail system. Thank you.
UPDATE 12/25/20: Christmas morning it is 55 degrees and raining out. We are very much hoping not to lose all our snow today. Once things freeze back up again and we get some snow Nate will continue to groom.
Nate N has started to groom in the park. We had so much snow last week that it was really hard for Snowdog to get through it. Waiting now for snow to compact and get some moisture in it so it will pack down. The plan is to try and get the trails highlighted in red groomed before the rain shows up on Christmas Eve. We’re hoping to get a solid base down and that it won’t all melt!
Snowshoers and skiers you could help us out by following these highlighted trails. It will make it easier for Snowdog .
Thank you.
Grooming!
Our volunteer Nate N has been out grooming the last few days. He’s been able to lay down a pretty sweet path in the woods and down around the ball field. Like what you see? Please consider a donation to the Snowdog fund. More snow in the forecast so the riding/skiing/walking should get better! If temps go above freezing please refrain from biking/walking/skiing on the groomed trails please.
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Snowdog training
Volunteers learning how to use the Snowdog.
Winter Trail Grooming Under Way
February 9, 2020 UPDATE: Nate N has been out a couple of days in a row grooming. He’s set some really great tracks for folks to enjoy. Please consider a donation to Tinman or Pine Hill Partnership to help defray the cost of operating the snowdog. If temps rise about freezing please stay off groomed trails as it really does make a mess of them. Thank you your hard working volunteers.
February 6, 2020 UPDATE: Trails were groomed Thursday 2/6 thanks to volunteer Nate N. We are hoping to groom again after this next batch of snow on Friday 2/7. The grooming map is below. Please leave a donation in Tinman to help defray the cost of running the Snowdog. Thanks your volunteers of Pine Hill Partnership.
January 20, 2020 UPDATE: More grooming has taken place thanks to Nate N. We are trying to lay a good base down for Cold Rolled Rutland fat bike festival on Sunday, February 2nd. Walkers, runners and fat bikes (4″ or wider tire please) if you like the groomed trails please consider making a contribution to the Snowdog fund using our donation page. https://pinehillpartnership.org/volunteer/
January 17, 2020 UPDATE: We have snow! Thanks to Nate F we have some groomed trails as of Thursday, January 16th. Are you enjoying the groomed trails for walking, running or riding your fat bike? Please consider giving Pine Hill Partnership a donation to help pay for the Snowdog. https://pinehillpartnership.org/membership/
January 11, 2020 UPDATE: Please no bikes of any kind, prefer foot traffic to stay on pedestrian only trails. It’s warm, wet and trails are extremely fragile today. Please wait before getting out into the park until a solid 24 hour freeze happens. The volunteers thank you.
A few folks enjoying the freshly groomed trails today December 19, 2019.
We are back to winter conditions. Trails received a light grooming Wednesday 12/18/19. Hopefully we continue to stay cold and get more snow. This is an all volunteer effort please consider making a contribution to Pine Hill Partnership to help pay for the Snowdog and the maintenance that goes with running machinery.
Well, we’re on hold now as all the snow is basically gone 12/10/19. Please do not ride if temps are above 25 degrees as it really can rut up some trails that have a western or southern exposure to the sun.
Mother Nature gave us a gift of a little more snow than we expected yesterday and this morning (Sat. Dec 7) we are out grooming.
Assuming there are no mechanical or other unforeseen issues, the trails marked on the map below should be groomed sometime on Saturday. If you happen to see Nate, our trail groomer in your travels, be sure to say “thank you”. It’s hard work.
Now Go Play !
Winter trail update
Exit Strategy, Lichen Rock, Droopy Muffin (steep hill) between Intersections 30A and 30 are closed for winter. Orange snow fencing is up please respect these trail closures. They will reopen in the spring after the freeze/thaw cycles are done.
Would you like to help groom trails this winter with the snowdog? Send us an email: pinehillpartnership@gmail.com
Snowdog time
We are looking for a few volunteers who are interested in helping groom the trails with the snowdog this winter. It could be a runner, hiker, fat biker, snowshoer or a skier. Are you interested? Shoot us an email at pinehillpartnership@gmail.com.
Winter is coming
Pine Hill Partnership is seeking donations to purchase a Snowdog. Our plan is to groom a few trails for hikers, snowshoers and fat bikers. We need to raise $5000 to purchase one.
Pine Hill Partnership is the organization who builds and maintains all the trails in Pine Hill Park, Redfield trails and the Carriage Trail. We are a non-profit so all donations are tax deductible.
Ways to contribute send a check to Pine Hill Partnership and mail to: 3424 Quarterline Rd. Center Rutland, VT 05736. Or use our PayPal button on the home page.