SARATOGA COUNTY xc skiing - Hennig Preserve & Homestead County Forest, Lake Bonita & Lake Ann, Anchor Diamond Park.

The Lake Ann lean-to has since been refurbished. Bonita Lake & Lake Ann at Moreau Lake SP, Hennig Preserve, Anchor Diamond:     Article - click here

Jan 25 - More SARATOGA SPA STATE PARK skiing, from Warming Hut. Needed to check out the non-golf course skiing. Passed Victoria Pool, crossed North South Rd & picked up the 5-Mile Trail (aka Geyser Trail) at the Ferndell Pavillion, the only well-marked trail I've seen in the park & it is most interesting with lots of sights along the way, more wooded than the golf course, intermediate skiing, some roots & rocks showing with 5" (should be fine if there is 10"+) - don't look for it on the ski trail map, look here https://parks.ny.gov/…/SaratogaSpa2015SaratogaSpaTrailMap.p… . Also did the Peerless Trail & some exploring. Attractions include Geyser Brook (the smell!) (which is a tributary of Kayaderosseras Creek), Island Spouter, Karista Spring, Peerless Pool, disc golf course, SPAC. Saw a red-bellied woodpecker & heard a pileated woodpecker. 3 hours.

Jan 21, 2020 - SARATOGA SPA STATE PARK. 6" powder. Large parking area at the Warming Hut (NE corner of the park off Avenue of the Pines) which had a wood fire going + restrooms. No entry fee in winter. Easy trails around the golf course - the skiing is not too exciting but the park is interesting. Map: https://parks.ny.gov/…/attac…/SaratogaSpaWinterSportsMap.pdf

Dec 8, 2019 - KINNS ROAD PARK is about 64 acres of Saratoga County Forest, maintained by the Town of Clifton Park NY, with another 32 acres of adjoining lands owned by the Town of Clifton Park. There is a maze of trails. The 1.23-mile perimeter loop goes past many nice suburban homes & yards. N section in tall pines is mostly intermediate skiing, the middle is easy, S section near a tributary of the Dwaas Kill is more challenging but quite scenic. Only saw 1 other skier & 1 snowshoer but lots of bare-booting dog walkers - trails were firm, so no postholes. Some trails may have been groomed immediately after the big storm but little evidence of grooming today. Very good skiing on ~18". 2+ hours. http://cliftonparkopenspaces.org/locations/kinnsroad/

Dec 6, 2019 - WILTON WILDLIFE PRESERVE, from parking area #1 on Scout Rd, a couple of miles from Northway Exit 16. This used to be a scout camp, Camp Saratoga, & buildings, lean-tos, etc. are still there like a ghost scout camp! Camping is not allowed. The area N of Scout Rd is sometimes groomed, not yet tho (I think they are waiting for winter - actually, they can only groom after hunting season has ended). Good skiing on 8" of snow, a hint of iciness early, snowing lightly at the start, more heavily when I was done - should be nice for the weekenders. Skied mostly on the blue trail - N of Scout Rd, trails are easy; S of the road, more challenging & more scenic with Delegan Brook & Pond + Cornell Hill Fire Tower. S of Scout Rd, took a new yellow trail that led to the Saratoga County natural area on Edie Rd & the Edie-Bullard Trail. 2+ hours

Dec. 4, 2019 - MOREAU LAKE STATE PARK. Skied loops around the lake, beaver pond & Mud Pond + a bit more - the lake was open water (paddling anyone?) but ponds were iced over. Nature Trail (good for tree identification, saw an American chestnut) & campground loops were tracked for classic skiing (some ignorant folks walked in the tracks), Mud Pond loop had seen light snowshoe use. 1st time for me to Mud Pond, a newer addition to the park which seems to get bigger every year - there is a house & road at the N end but the rest of it is nice. Very good skiing on ~8". Enough variety of hills to make me happy. Free admission. 3+ hours.

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