Changing with the seasons

As dependable as the changing seasons, our Seeley Lake ROCKS Board members have unraveled the winter programs, and we have turned our focus to supporting our current season of community outdoor activities. 

Each May/June, we concentrate on sprucing up the hiking, biking and all abilities trails at Placid Lake. After a stellar winter of kids skating - from finding the right sized skates in our bountiful shed, falling down, getting up, starting over and finding their stride to the fun pick-up hockey games and the brave figure skaters attempting triple lutzes - all that winter ice rink fun is done for another year.  The ice rink boards have been dismantled, and the hockey nets are stored away for another season.

The yurt at the Seeley Creek Nordic ski trails has had the same metamorphosis. After a winter of welcoming and warming our intrepid cross country skiers (both local and regional), the building has been repaired and cleaned. Plans to paint the floor for next year are in place.

This was a wonderful year for our local skiers as the world class (truly) Nordic Ski Club groomers kept our trails in the best shape we’ve ever seen.  Countless skiers - from beginners to experts - enjoyed a busy ski season with tons of help from everyone associated with the variety of Nordic events held at the trails. For both skate and classic skiing, this was definitely one of the better seasons on record.

As reluctant as our spring is to fully emerge, it IS that time of year to dust off the hiking boots and mountain bikes and head to the trails at Placid Lake. Our annual spring workdays are already scheduled to rake and repair the trails and we will be adding signage and kiosks to both the Lakeview and All Abilities trails. (No more using “getting lost” as an excuse to dodge that important outdoor exercise!).  General trail and area maintenance is on schedule to ensure everyone enjoys his or her time in our glorious wildlands.

Watching all of our ROCKS programs enjoy greater participation each year makes all that work worthwhile.  We deeply appreciate all the community support these programs receive. From donations to volunteers, none of this could be done without the wider community participation.