Trail conditions are a little better than last week.  A tiny bit of snow made a difference but still the GIA system around Duluth isn’t in very good shape even though some trails have been groomed.  The ALS Blizzard tour kicked off today which will beat up a few trais as well (200 snowmobiles tend to do that). Keep your eyes open and ride right.

Today on the trail we met- us.  We were the first ones in the parking lot and were greeted by falling snow and a trail that hadn’t seen any snowmobiles since it was groomed on Thursday.  Even with the new snow, the trail out of Duluth was pretty thin and there were some areas with grass, dirt and leaves poking up through the snow, but for the most part the trail was pretty enjoyable.  There were also some thin areas where logging operations were taking place and in some high areas where the wind had blown off the snow.  We also encountered some big divots in the trail at the bottom of some hills and several stretches of icy trail.   The snow conditions were all over the map today- some places had tons of snow where others only had a few inches but overall I would rate the trails as being in “good” condition.  We had one stretch where it was snowing so hard that combined with the snow dust kicked up by the lead sled visibility was virtually zero.  Riding while it is snowing just puts the fun factor off the chart and today was no exception.

Our biggest surprise of the day is that we rode for almost 60 miles before we saw another sled and even then all of the traffic was confined to the trails around Two Harbors. Granted it was only 5 above zero but still we expected to see more people out.  The other bit of unusualness is that when we did finally encounter other sleds it was around the Two Harbors area- and when we say we encountered sleds we mean there were a lot of them.  I’m not sure if all of those snowmobilers were just slews of Two Harbors residents out enjoying the day or if it was a bunch of people spending the weekend there and riding from their hotel.  Either way, it shows that the community of Two Harbors has embraced the sport of snowmobiling and they are generating a lot of revenue to be sure.

We hope the snow keeps coming so they can finally open up the Duluth area GIA trails, otherwise everyone will have to keep filtering north.

A little bit of snow and some seriously cold weather makes for some good trail conditions.  Let’s start with the CJ Ramstad North Shore Trail- The whole trail was groomed this week from Duluth to Grand Marais and is set up beautifully.  As for the GIA trails around Duluth- There still isn’t a lot of snow to work with so trail conditions are poor to say the least.  Just 20 Miles or so north of Duluth the depth of snow doubles and the trail along with the GIA trails are open groomed and in nice shape.  Once again the farther north you get the better it is.  We may see a little snow Friday night too which will make things even better.  It will be cold this weekend so dress warm and we will see you out on the trail!

Well, this one is simple.  Look at the map and go where the snow is.  That would not be anywhere around Duluth.  In the immediate Duluth area the trails are virtually bare and the warm weather coming on Friday won’t help.  Head north or head south but be aware if heading North that the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon will be on the North Shore State Trail from the 28th  to the 31st and snowmobiling, although still allowed, is not recommended on that particular trail.

Today on the trail we were lucky enough to meet up the Nephew family from Lindstrom, MN. We’re not related to them, that is their actual last name!  It’s great to see the next generation of snowmobilers out on the trail.

A quick trail update: The trail out of Duluth and al of the GIA trails around Duluth are in flat out horrible shape and after the warm weather today are practically down to dirt.  We suggest driving the extra half hour up to Two Harbors.  The trail from Laine Rd. North was flat out awesome!!!

Short and sweet baby- The trails have all been groomed from Duluth North- and about 75% of all the GIA trails have been groomed as well.  As has been the case all winter, the farther North you get the more snow there is and the better the trail conditions are. The weatherman once again claims that we may have real snow heading our way on Sunday- but so far when they say its going to snow it amounts to a whole lot of nothing. Keep your fingers crossed.  One thing to keep in mind if you are coming from  out of state- Sunday night the trails wont have much traffic as everyone in Minnesota will be watching the Vikings game so there is some real opportunity for you to have a nice ride with the trails all to yourselves.  So if you are a Packers, Lions or Bears fan come up and ride this weekend- we welcome all of you to the trails!!!

Wow, what a weekend. A great day of riding on Saturday, more snow and more riding on Sunday and a miracle Vikings win to top everything off. We started out early Saturday morning being greeted by a toasty 17 below zero temperature. Only two of us decided to brave the cold while the other members of the staff stayed behind to work on some sponsorship obligations for the upcoming Yeti Tour on February 17th.  I was riding with my friend Allen and we were prepared for the cold after spending part of last season perfecting our ultimate cold weather gear set up.  We started out of Duluth even though the State Trail had not been groomed yet and were somewhat surprised at how good of shape the trail was despite not being touched yet (This should all change be Wednesday).  There were no other sleds on the trail and the farther north we went the more snow there was and the better the trail conditions got.  We soon came to the Pequaywan trail intersection and were pleased to find that the trail had been groomed the night before!  Despite the allure of hitting the first groomed trail of the season we decided to keep pushing forward on the North Shore Trail because we were closing in on one of our favorite sections- and were we glad we did!  Hardly anyone had been o that section of trail since Thursday’s snowfall and we found ourselves contending with sections of fresh powder and a few random drift that needed busting- all in all a great ride similar to how things were back when we used to actually have winters with snow.  After a while we turned back because the siren song of that groomed Pequaywan trail was too much to resist.  There had only been one sled on it since it was groomed so we ran it all the way to the Pequaywan Inn and it was absolutely Heavenly. We stopped and filled up with gas and then headed back to Duluth- seeing our first sleds of the entire day on our return trip. After Lunch I went out on some local GIA trails hoping that I could find something groomed but to no avail, I did see a lot of riders out though and I was encouraged.  We rode a little bit more Sunday afternoon to take advantage of the falling snow and although the trails weren’t the best we still had fun.  We got back in time for some Beer Brats and the Vikings game and ended the weekend pretty much the best way you can end a weekend!

Here we are again, another frustrating winter.  Day after day of no snow.  Then the weatherman comes on and says you may get 4-6 inches of fresh snowfall and instead you get 1/2 an inch.  WTF.  So, once again we go into New Years weekend virtually snowless.  Yes you can run the North Shore trail out of Duluth but the trail sucks and none of the GIA trails are open.  The good news is you can drive a little farther north to Two Harbors and unload there onto a nice groomed trail, head north and watch as trail and snow conditions get better and better until you are into 15 inches in the far north.  That is the state of things in Minnesota,  but you can also trailer to Northeast Wisconsin where it has been snowing non stop for weeks, albeit only a few inches at a time, but those inches have added up to 12- 16 inches of snow on the ground.  Or you can hit the UP where they have over two feet, or you could go to PA or upstate NY where in some places they are over 50 inches!  Send some of that snow our way, eh! #snowmobiletrailconditions

We just cant catch a break.  We thought w might get enough snow this week to get things rolling but, as has been the case or the past two years, we once again came up short.  So, can you ride out of Duluth? Yes.  Are the trails packed or groomed? No.  Are there any GIA trails open around Duluth or any that are even rideable?  No.  Once again from Finland (surprise surprise) to Grand Marais the trails have been packed which includes some local clubs beginning to pack the GIA trails.  Nothing is groomed  yet.

We’ve been getting a little snow here and a little snow there but all told we are only up to about 6 inches of light fluffy snow- not enough to ride on or pack.  That’s where we are in Duluth.  Farther north from Finland to Grand Marais we know the snow ranges from ten to fifteen inches and that the DNR started packing today but the local clubs are still waiting for more snow.  So what are your prospects for the weekend?  You could head up to Finland and take your chances but we aren’t guaranteeing anything good or consistent.  There is also snow in the forecast for tonight- about one to two inches with some possible lake enhancement on the North Shore so that could make riding a little better.  After that they claim several Alberta Clippers will hit us in the upcoming week and may leave another 6 inches on top of what we have which may be enough to start doing something out there.  We are crossing our fingers that everything is ready to go by next weekend.  Elsewhere we do know they are packing trails in Northeast Wisconsin and the UP so that is also a possibility.  Start doing your snow dances, we need all the help we can get.

Unfortunately not much has changed since last week.  We got rain on Monday and they promised snow on top of it but the snow never came.  The only exception to that was near the Canadian Border where we have reports of up to 8 inches on the ground.  High winds, however,  caused some blow down which had to be cleaned up.  No trails are currently reported as open or truly rideable yet.  The good news is that it has been cold- really cold.  The lakes are making good ice and the swamps are frozen solid, even the streams are starting to freeze up which will make ice bridge building a breeze when we do get snow.  Speaking of snow they (you know the evil weather people) claim that we will have a number of minor snow events this week in the 1-3 inch range each time, this could add up to at least getting the groomers out packing farther north and get some desperate riders out on the trails. We haven’t heard about any real good riding in Wisconsin or the UP either so it looks like we are waiting another week.  Rest assured if a trail can be ridden we will be the first to let you know about it so keep checking in.