Enjoy the fresh powder! Every kind of snow activity will be great this weekend!

Today at Bogus Basin ... 

Today at Brundage Mountain 

Skiing pow at Bogus today (courtesy Rick Gerrard) 

Hi all,

Well, I picked one heck of time to get injured! The ski areas and the mountains are getting doused with multiple coatings of fresh snow, and I'm stuck working on rehabbing the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in my left knee. At least I can walk!

The accident occurred in a hockey game at Idaho Ice World. I play in the men's C league, which you'd think would be mellow and low-key since it's the lowest level available. But unfortunately, the league is full of younger ringers who should be playing B-league, and there's always that testosterone-charged male who loses it going after the puck in the corner. That's what happened to me in a high-speed collision with the boards after this guy checks me from behind, twisting my left leg badly to the outside and tearing the ligament.

So much for my romantic weekend with Wendy at Grand Targhee we had planned over President's Day weekend, and so much for skiing with my son Quinn in early March, when we are booked to visit Waterville Valley, N.H., and spend a long weekend with our cousins. Damn! Wah!

So that's my situation right now. I am approved to do light snow biking or Greenbelt riding, I can hike in a brace, and I am approved to do classic xc skiing. It could be much worse, I know.

My outdoor tip this week is to GO PLAY IN THE SNOW! Even if I can't go powder skiing, you should!

The latest conditions at the SW Idaho ski areas are stellar by all accounts.

• Bogus Basin - 10 inches of new today, 11 inches in the last 24 hours. I saw some several pics and video of light blower powder on Facebook ... it's been staying cold up there, to keep the snow light. Another foot of snow is expected on Saturday. 
• Brundage Mountain - 5-7 inches of new today, 19-24 inches in the last week. Cold smoke! 
• Tamarack Resort - 5 inches of new today, 6 inches in the last 24 hours. Probably more up high. 
• Sun Valley - 3 inches of new snow today, 2 inches of new in the last 24 hours. 

The good news is that more snow is expected through the weekend. Coleen Haskell, a meteorologist and author of the Idaho Daily Snow blog, says "Computer models are in good agreement through the short term this weekend. I'm expecting a foot of snow between now and Sunday morning, coming in several surges including the one today. It will be closely followed by the stronger wave Friday night and Saturday, while yet another one strikes on Monday."

Predicted snow amounts through Monday, Feb. 26 (courtesy OpenSnow.com)  

This is the forecast for the West Central Mountains. Are you excited yet?

All of the Nordic areas should be in a great shape, too, with fresh snow. The Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas received 6 inches of new snow on top of a firm 24-inch base. Idaho Parks & Recreation is grooming the Gold Fork loop tomorrow as well as the Skyline loop. You can go xc skiing, snowshoeing or snow biking on these trails. "Should be perfect skiing," says Leo Hennessy, non-motorized trail coordinator for IDPR.

All of the McCall Nordic areas are reporting 2-5 inches of new snow with fresh-groomed conditions. This includes Ponderosa State Park, Bear Basin, Activity Barn/North Valley Trail, Tamarack Resort and Jug Mountain Ranch. Don't forget that you can go snow biking at Jug ... probably the best snow-biking trails in SW Idaho in my opinion.

All of the Wood River Valley xc trails are open and skiing great, especially in the upper valley. Being a gimper, I hiked on snow-covered trails in Adams Gulch and Greenhorn Gulch last weekend while Wendy went downhill and xc skiing.

Military Reserve trails had nice packed powder today ... Love this view of the city of Boise! 

Closer to home, with the new dose of snow in Boise, the Foothills are perfect for hiking, snow biking, trail-running and snowshoeing right now. I went snow-biking in Military Reserve this afternoon, and there was a 1-foot wide singletrack with packed powder. Perfect!

Hope you have a fun weekend playing in the snow! I'll be dreaming of skiing powder while I dial it down to do gimper activities and work on my MCL rehab.

- SS