GRANVILLE – With very little snow so far this year, Maple Corner Farms staff is hard at work preparing its snowshoe and cross-country ski trails while they wait for Mother Nature to strike again.

Leon and Joyce Ripley, Maple Corner Farm’s owners, explained that things started off strong after the first storm in December but have slowed down significantly since then.

“We had a very good weekend the first weekend, we almost got 20 inches of snow and we had a good crowd those two days and a couple days after,” Leon Ripley said.

One of the hurdles Maple Corner Farm faced this year was a recent ice storm that knocked the power out in Granville for three days and left many trees down throughout the town.

“We spent about five days with three or four of us cutting up trees and dragging brush off the trails,” Leon Ripley said, “It was a two-step process because we had snow and ice on a lot of the stuff so we couldn’t get all of it until this week when we spent three days dragging them off the trail.”

Ripley explained that right now they are just waiting and hoping for another snowstorm. “We need about a six to eight inch snowstorm at least to get open, especially without a good base. If you have a good base it only takes about three to four inches of snow,” he said.

Joyce explained that they have been offering cross-country skiing for the past 35 years before adding the snowshoeing about a decade ago and they now offer 40 pairs of snowshoes for rental along with 120 pairs of skis, boots and poles.

While popularity for cross-country has fluctuated over the years, Ripley said he thinks it’s starting to rise in popularity again. He said, “There’s been kind of a rebirth in cross-country skiing in the last year or two. We’re seeing parents and grandparents that skied here as kids come back with their kids and grandkids.”

He added that one of the benefits of cross-country skiing as opposed to downhill skiing is that it is less expensive. Joyce Ripley said that at Maple Corner Farm is costs $29 to rent skis and ski for the day for adults, and $21 for juniors, which is children from ages six to 12.

Leon Ripley explained that one of the other benefits is that cross-country skiing can be safer as well. “You don’t have that many accidents with cross-country because you’re going at a slower speed. Most of the time you’re under control but in slippery conditions you can get going faster but nowhere near as fast as going 30 to 40 miles per hour downhill,” he said.

He added that the skiing is just a part of what Maple Corner Farm offers throughout the year.

“When we’re not working on skiing we’re working on maple sugar and getting ready for sugaring, we have about 14 miles of pipeline and we tap about 4,000 taps,” he said, “We also run a pancake restaurant here from Feb. 15 to April 12.”

Joyce Ripley also said that interested skiers can always call their snow line at 357-6697 or check online at maplecornerfarm.com for a full report on the snow conditions to see if the trails are open.