Welcome to the first in our series of “Trail In Focus” articles. Every so often we will be posting a “Trail In Focus” piece that tells you everything you would want to know about that trail. We hope you find these articles to be informative and helpful in making your decision on where to plan your next snowmobile outing. For the short term our “Trail In Focus” segments will be confined to the Minnesota Arrowhead- primarily because this is the Northeast Minnesota Snowmobile Blog. In the future, however, we plan on expanding our coverage to other parts of the state and even to trails in other states. As Snowmobiletrail.com grows so shall the amount of information available to our readers.

Appropriately our first Trail In Focus segment tackles one of the most iconic trails in all of Minnesota: The CJ Ramstad North Shore State Trail. The reason I decided to write about the NSST is twofold- first because it is the trail that the staff of snowmobiletrail.com rides on the most, primarily because it literally runs past the back door of our home office, and secondly because without the NSST most of the other snowmobile trails in Northeast Minnesota would not exist.

HISTORY

To fully appreciate the importance of the NSST, one must go back to the 1960′s. The invention of the modern snowmobile suddenly gave the average Minnesota family a fun new wintertime activity to partake in. Snowmobile sales in Minnesota were growing in leaps and bounds- the first golden age of snowmobiling was beginning. By 1967 the Minnesota state legislature decided that snowmobiles needed to be regulated and licensed like cars and boats. The DNR was charged with regulating this new winter activity. As the number of snowmobiles increased so did their reach into what had been inaccessible areas. Suddenly power lines, roadside ditches, golf courses, hiking trails, and your neighbor’s back yard were now popular snowmobile routes. Chaos reigned. The Minnesota State legislature again stepped to the plate proposing a number of state funded multi use trails that were primarily designed to be used as snowmobile trails. The state would create roughly one thousand miles of trails and they would also approve a Grant In Aid program that would allow the DNR to work with local snowmobile clubs to work with land owners to build other trails. The thought was that the one thousand miles of state trail would result in other access type trails being built that would hook up with the new state trails creating a vast state wide network. In 1975 the authorization to begin the North Shore State Trail was granted. At that time parts of the trail had already been in use since 1971. Sections of the trail were built over the same routes that explorers had used when they first arrived in Minnesota along with old logging roads and old railroad grades.  At the time the trail was being built the average top speed of a snowmobile was between 40 and 50 MPH.  This accounts for parts of the trail having some very sharp turns- just fine in the seventies but a little more challenging for the sleds of today.  The original planners of the trail could never have anticipated the enormous boom that would take place in the snowmobile market during the 1990′s.  Nor could they have anticipated that their 1,000 miles of trail would lead to 21,000 miles of GIA trails giving Minnesota more miles of snowmobile trails than any other state.  When proposing the trail the legislators anticipated the trail to accommodate ten or twenty thousand snowmobiles a year but with the advancements in technology and the extended riding season up north the trail routinely sees over one hundred thousand sleds each winter.  In 2009 The North Shore State Trail was renamed The CJ Ramstad North Shore State Trail in honor of magazine publisher CJ Ramstad who was killed in a tragic car accident in 2007 along with his son.  CJ’s efforts promoting the sport of snowmobiling worldwide were instrumental in helping the sport reach the high level of popularity it enjoys today.

THE TRAIL

 Martin Rd To The Gravel Pit: The trail begins in a parking lot off of Martin Rd in Duluth, It is also the spot where it connects with the very first of the feeder trails- The East Duluth Trail system. The East Duluth Trails serve as a conduit for the residents of the Eastern half of Duluth to escape up the shore. This first section of trail is the one most cluttered by road crossings and twists and turns. It is narrow in many areas and has the general terrain changes of a typical “in town” type of trail and there is nothing really spectacular about it. This section of trail was created to give the residents o Duluth access to escape to the North and that is exactly what it does. It is an extremely busy section of trail as it serves not only the Duluth Populace but many riders from southern Minnesota who trailer their sleds to the Arrowhead.

The Gravel Pit to Two Harbors: The gravel pit is where the Reservoir Lakes Trail from Island Lake dumps its share of snowmobilers onto the NSST. This is where the rest of the traffic from Duluth and the surrounding area converge. Occasionally there are fires and hot dog feeds at this intersection which is one of the busiest trail intersections in the state. You can also access the trail from the nearby parking lot off of Normana Rd. The section from here to Fox Farm Road is characterized by very hilly terrain and is an extremely popular section of trail for riders in the know. Although the terrain and nature of the trail here tempts you to ride on the very edge of the 50 MPH speed limit, please exercise caution on these hills as you never know what can be over the crest. Every year there are some crashes and rollovers in this section of trail caused by people pushing themselves a little past their abilities and finding surprises over the hilltops, including one rider who crested a hill and came face to face with a groomer- the groomer won. Have fun but use your head. After Fox Farm Road the terrain begins to flatten out as you get closer to the Two Harbors West and East Corridor Trails

East Corridor/ Yukon Trail Intersection to Finland: When you hit Two Harbors it is intersections galore- the Yukon Trail, and the Two Harbors Corridor trail all dump a ton of traffic onto the trail at this point along with the Alger parking lot off of County Highway 2. This is a popular starting point for a lot of people coming up from the cities who don’t want to shack up in Duluth. There are also accommodations in Two Harbors for people to spend the night- some of them right off of the Corridor trails. All of this makes this a busy spot. The trail mellows out a bit here following some logging roads and old rail road grade. The real story is all of the feeder trails in this section- The Yukon, the Gooseberry, all of these trails are either spectacular in themselves or bring you to a fantastic destination. As you get closer to Finland the elevation begins to change and then your options get crazy- Moose Walk Trail, Timberwolf Trail and all of the trails leading into Silver Bay. Any of these trails are great places to explore and the trails in and out of Silver Bay bring you to some of the most incredible views of Lake Superior in all of Minnesota- If you ride up here you’d better have a camera with you or you will be kicking yourself. The County Road 7 lot is another popular jumping off point for people trailering from the south and west. Finland is the halfway point for those running the entire length of the trail from Duluth to Grand Marais and it’s a perfect fueling location. If your fuel range is 75 miles or more you can gas up here and get to Duluth or Grand Marais. If you have an Arctic Cat 800- well it’s just another place to get gas!

Finland to Lutsen: This section of trail is characterized by its nice wide sections that run through a variety of terrain and forests.  You get it all here- some fantastic rolling hills, long straight shots, hardwwod forests, pine forests, open fields everything you could want all thrown together and traversed by wide trails with gradual turns.  Some members of the snowmobiletrail.com staff rate this as their favorite section of trail to ride and we visit it repeatedly throughout the season.  This section boasts numerous spur trails that drop you down to the Lake Superior shorline.  This is one of the ironies of the North Shore State Trail- it doesn’t really run along the North Shore at all- it spends nearly all of its time in the snowy higher elevations far inland. There are two major feeder trails on this stretch. About 16 miles past Finland you find the iconic Tomahawk Trail considered by many to be the best trail in all of Minnesota. After that it seems there are trails tapping in from the west or dropping down to the lake every few miles until you get to the Lutsen Trail- If you need anything this is the trail to take because you are about to enter an area of high elevation and a lot of snow and very little in the way of civilization.

Lutsen to Grand Marais: Once you’ve passed Lutsen Trail it’s almost like being in a movie. There is one more offshoot that brings you back down to Lutsen as if to say “This is it! Last chance! You are now passing the point of no return!” Once you pass that trail you are in the wilderness. There is nothing between here and Grand Marais but spectacular views and gorgeous trails cut through miles of endless pine forest. Every offshoot of this trail is just another trail through the wilderness including the Gunflint Trail which brings you to some of the most remote places in Minnesota. There aren’t many road crossings or gas stations or anything else up here- just other snowmobilers. If you want to get away from everything this is the place to do it. Finally the trail ends in Grand Marais. If you are in Grand Marais in the wintertime you will feel as if the city was built for snowmobilers- everything is geared toward the snowmobiler and the trail literally runs down the side of the street brining you to hotels, restaurants and gas stations. It’s very common to see more sleds than cars. One of the most interesting things about leaving Grand Marais is that the trail from downtown to the top of the hill is almost a straight shot and you climb about 1,000 feet in elevation. You can definitely notice the change in snow quantity as you climb ever higher.  There aren’t many places in Minnesota where you can witness such a dramatic climactic change in such a short amount of time- it is a seldom noticed but wonderful aspect of this trail.

In conclusion if you haven’t ridden the CJ Ramstad North Shore State Trail then you are missing out on one of the jewels of the state. I would recommend it to everyone that has ever ridden a snowmobile.  If you are looking for rugged beauty and lots of snow this is where you will find it.

Friday, January 31st

Trail conditions are once again awesome.

Saturday January 25th I rode in the Yeti Tour 2014. It was a balmy five below zero when the event kicked off at ten o-clock AM with the wind bringing the wind chill into the thirty-five below zero range. The temperature did not deter the forty riders who had registered for the event. Everyone donned their best cold weather gear and went out to brave the elements. Before we could even get underway one of the guys I was riding with developed a chain case issue backing his sled off of the trailer. Luckily I had a backup sled for him- my old 2000 Indy 600 Touring. Swapping out sleds put us fifteen minutes behind the group so we high tailed it out of there to try to catch up to the others. Thirteen miles away was check point #1: The Eagle’s nest resort on Fish Lake. The Eagles Nest is a great destination all winter long as the trail literally dumps you out into their parking lot, they serve breakfast lunch and dinner there. It is here that we caught up with our first group of riders, including the Yeti (Yes they did have a snowmobiling Yeti- a reason in itself to ride in this event). It was also here that we met up with Yeti Tour director Nate Alvar who informed us that the rest of the group had continued on while the riders currently at the Eagles Nest had stopped to make adjustments to their gear and grab a warm cup of coffee. The two other riders I was with were not the sitting around sort so we again embarked on a furious pace to try to catch the rest of the group. We eventually came across another bunch of Yeti tour riders who said that everyone had sorted themselves out into subgroups of riders. This is one of the things I love about the Yeti Tour- its a rider friendly event with a very casual set up that allows riders to team up with those that have the same general pace as they do, the Yeti Tour has no stringent groupings, everyone gets a feel for the pace of the people that they are with and splinter off into groups of riders that share their same pace and level of riding skill. This group we had just found classified themselves as “The Slow Group” which explained why were able to catch up to them.

Our next encounter took place at the gravel pit where the CJ Ramstad and Reservoir Riders trails intersect. This was “The Middle Group” who had decided to wait for the slow group to catch up. They informed us that “The Fast Group” had gone on ahead- as did we. The three of us felt pretty good about ourselves after leaving fifteen minutes behind the pack and managing to run nearly all of them down. Now came the monumental task of catching “The Fast Group” Needless to say we were unable to catch up to them until we reached Checkpoint # 2- The Pequaywan Inn, there we found them munching on a burger, but the fast group had made one crucial mistake – they did not sit by the fireplace! Yes the Pequaywan has the one thing that most trail side stops lack and that is a real life old fashioned wood burning Fireplace. Noticing this the three of us plopped our freezing butts down right next to the fire. Now let me tell you, there is nothing like a real wood fire to heat your bones- especially when you mix in a burger and fries- but not just any old fries- beer Fries.

“What are beer Fries?” my buddy asked the waitress.

“They are fries dipped in beer batter and then fried,” She replied.

Beer battered deep fried French fries- now how could any American male pass that up- all I can say is WOW! A fire, a burger, and deep fried battered fries- I was pretty content to just stay right there for the rest of the day. After a while the entire rest of the forty man Yeti Tour Contingent showed up including the Yeti who also came to sit by the fire- his fur was wet and smelled horrible- but we weren’t sure if that was two stroke exhaust or just the natural wet Yeti fur smell. It was here that half of the riders decided to call it quits and had back. We were roughly fifty miles into the ride and the temperature had been dropping all day, probably about ten below at this point, that combined with the 35 mile an hour wind created roughly a 35 to 40 below zero wind chill making riding a bit taxing on the fingers. For some the idea of logging another 90 miles wasn’t that appealing. All told about twenty of the forty riders decided they had reached the end of the road and turned back. The Fast Group, however, had finished their lunch and blazed out the door. This was decision time- do we tough it out or go back? We decided along with 17 others, to go on and we decided to all stay close. Fourteen miles down the trail from the Pequaywan was Checkpoint #3- Hugos. For some the fourteen miles was the straw that broke the camels back and they succumbed to the cold. Our ranks dropped from 17 down to 12- but we pressed on. Our next goal was to reach Checkpoint #4- the John Allen Brandt Memorial Shelter off of the Yukon Trail. I have an entire article dedicated to this shelter coming up so I wont go into details on how amazing it is. Unfortunately one of the remaining twelve sleds broke down so we never made it to the checkpoint. This is where the other awesome thing about the Yeti tour comes into play- Jake Alvar and the support staff. The support staff consists of a truck and trailer that shadows the riders to each check point. If someone breaks down you tow their sled to the nearest road and the support staff comes and picks you and your sled up and brings you back to the Sunset. They also carry with them some emergency gear and gas and oil just in case. This little piece of mind is priceless, especially on a bitterly cold day like that. A couple of riders stayed with the disabled sled and the rest of us departed but this small group didn’t last long either- Darkness was coming soon and the biting wind put everyone into a hurried rush to get home. We broke into fractured groups that took shortcuts, ditches and back roads to a waiting spouse with a trailer or one of your buddies houses off the trail or, with some boon docking, a quicker trip back to the Sunset. In the end only 3 riders from “The Fast Group” finished the entire Yeti Tour.

The night ended with all of the riders eating pizza in the warm confines of the Sunset and waiting to see some lucky raffle ticket holder out there win a brand new 2012 Yamaha RS Vector LTX snowmobile- the Grand Prize in the Yeti Tour Fundraising Raffle. As usual no one in the room won the sled but we all shared a memorable and cold experience- definitely something that falls into the “Stories you can tell your grandchildren about” type category. On behalf of myself and the other riders in the Yeti Tour I would like to thank the Alvars for putting together a great event. My friends and I will certainly be back next year and I encourage other snowmobilers out there to get involved in this worthwhile fundraiser to me its the perfect way to spend a Saturday- you get to ride and raise money for babies in the process- what could be better than that!

John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon

With the annual John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon coming up this weekend we thought it would be fitting to pay homage to the forerunner of the snowmobile- the dog sled. Canines and humans have shared a bond since prehistoric times, a mutual relationship that has existed since the first humans befriended wild wolves, tamed them and incorporated them into their everyday lives. Some of these early humans developed a love for the colder climates of the world and moved north, brining their dogs with them. These snow loving prehistoric peoples faced the same dilemma we face today- how to efficiently move through the snow. They soon invented the sled and shortly there after one of these enterprising humans tied one of their dogs to a sled and viola, the dogsled was born. For the next several thousand years dog teams moved people, supplies, food, mail and medicine over great distances in the winter through areas that were inaccessible by any other means.

With the advent of the internal combustion engine, many of our modes of transportation like the horse and buggy soon met their demise, being replaced by motorized vehicles. The snow, however, still presented a problem, as there were no reliable vehicles that could easily traverse the great frozen wilderness and reach the remote areas. Aircraft took over some of the duties, but for most things, the dog sled was still the best way to go. Necessity is the mother of invention and several Snow Belt natives began tinkering with ways to conquer the snow. One of these mechanical wizards was a Canadian named Joseph Armand Bombardier. Bombardier’s passion for finding a way to conquer the snow was fueled by personal tragedy. In 1934 Bombardier’s son developed acute appendicitis, he was 20 miles away from the nearest hospital and all of the roads were impassable due to heavy snow. Unable to reach help, Bombardier’s son passed away and a lifelong quest to find a mode of reliable over the snow transportation began. He was successful in creating a large vehicle that could carry several passengers or supplies to those in need but the dogsled was still one of the most reliable modes of transport. By the 1950′s all of that was about to change.

The problem of reaching remote hunting and trapping locations was the driving force behind the tinkerings of the Heteen’s at the Hetteen Hoist and Derrick Shop in Northern Minnesota. In 1954 they created a “powered sled” and by 1956 they were producing these rear engined powered sleds. Meanwhile, Bombardier was experimenting with a small one-person vehicle that could travel over the snow for use by missionaries in the remote reaches of the Canadian wilderness. This vehicle had a forward mounted engine and utilized their new continuous rubber track design. In 1959 Bombardier released the Ski-Dog- it was billed in their sales literature as “The motorized dog team” when it went to production the name on the vehicle was changed to Ski-Doo and the modern snowmobile was born. Now there was a vehicle capable of doing everything the dog team could do. Within a decade, the sled dog team had gone the way of the horse and buggy and the snowmobile introduced the masses to the same type of adventure that had been monopolized by the adventurous mushers of the past. Now anyone could visit the remote isolated winter wilderness that previously had only been seen by a handful of human beings. It is this sense of adventure and freedom that catapulted the snowmobile to the top of the winter transportation hierarchy.

Today the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon keeps the tradition of the dog sled alive. Ironically, a large portion of the race is run on the state snowmobile trail, which generally follows the same route that the old sled dog trail used to follow- so one could say that the evolution has come full circle. For a few days we surrender our trail to the panting of the sled dog, echoing not only their history but the history of the snowmobile as well, for without the dog sled paving the way into the wilderness there may never have been the creative spark planted in the minds of the snowmobile inventors of the past to create “The Motorized Dog team” There may have never been a Ski-Dog or a Polaris and we may not have the winter sport that we love so much today.

THURSDAY JANUARY 16th

First a quick trail update:  Snow, Cold, Snow, Cold, Snow, Cold- seems like a pattern.  If you were wondering how the little bit of ice affected the trails in the Arrowhead this past week the answer is it didn’t.  All we can say is that the trails seem to get better every week- we keep getting little dustings of snow that help the washouts and bare spots get covered up and this week is no exception especially north of Duluth.  If you are planning on riding up here this weekend you are going to find some fantastic trails.

My first experience with a snowmobile came when I was just two years old.   My parents had moved from Long Island, New York to (as crazy as it seems) Duluth, Minnesota.  It was 1970 and there was a new winter activity taking the northern United States by storm- snowmobiling.  My parents bought a house at the end of dead end road and my dad decided that he needed a snowmobile.  He went out and purchased a brand new Ski-Doo Olympique 335.  What followed were years of trips on the snowmobile to exotic destinations like Shakey’s Pizza.  Just as I was getting old enough to appreciate having a snowmobile my little sister came along and the snowmobiles quickly disappeared in favor of diapers and formula, but I was hooked. After years of saving my allowance and baby sitting money I purchased my first sled at age fourteen, ironically a 1972 Ski-Doo Olympique 335.

Most of us have a story like this when it comes to snowmobiling.  Statistics show that 95% of all snowmobilers consider it to be a family activity.  75% of all snowmobilers have children living at home with them and nearly all of them put their kid on a sled.  Snowmobiling is truly a family sport and is definitely something that is passed down from generation to generation.  That is what has perpetuated the health of our sport and has created over 20,000 miles of snowmobile trails in the state of Minnesota.  As a father and a snowmobiler I can tell you that riding with your kids can be one of the most rewarding things you can do.  It helps you break through the electronic jungle that teenagers immerse themselves in these days and get them out into the woods where there isn’t interference from cell phones or i-pods.  There’s nothing like taking a trip to your favorite place on the trail to get a good burger or stopping at a shelter overlooking a landscape that is worthy of multiple digital photos.   Another big advantage that you have is that when you get to a destination you are generally surrounded by other snowmobilers.  Kids love feeling like they are part of a special group of people that all have the same interests.  It doesn’t matter if you are 14 or 64, when you pull up on a sled everybody talks to you, everybody asks where you are riding from and everybody asks how the trails are.  If you break down on the side of the trail people always stop to ask if you need help and they help you get unstuck if you’ve buried your sled.  These random people that stop to help you and talk to you have never met you before but they all share your passion and they are all part of an extended family of snowmobilers and to a kid that’s cool.  Take a kid snowmobiling now and one day they will be telling a story about how thier first snowmobile ride was on their dad’s old Indy 500…

     First off a trail update.  We’ve had a little bit of snow and, like everywhere else, extremely cold temperatures.  The clubs have been out grooming to gear up for the weekend and the trails are in about as good of shape as we have ever seen them. We expect a lot of sleds to be out this weekend.

     Snowmobilers are created in many ways.  Many of us got our first taste of snowmobiling as kids, either riding with the family or putzing around the woods on an old Ski-Doo Olympique.  We fell in love with the sense of freedom and adventure and have been hooked ever since.  Others of us were more hesitant.  One of my co-workers used to wonder why anyone would voluntarily go out in the freezing cold and ride around on a snowmobile- she thought it was insane.  Then one day she was invited to go on a snowmobile ride with some friends and she begrudgingly went, not wanting to be a party pooper- the following Monday she came into work and siad, “I went snowmobiling this weeend and it was a lot of fun!”  And I’m sure you know what happened next- a trip to the dealer for some better snowmobile clothes and a used sled parked in her garage.  All of the pieces fell into place to make her first experience a positive one.  To convert someone that hasn’t been on a sled before you need 3 things: Good Weather, Good trails and a halfway decent sled.

    This past weekend I had the opportunity to take one of my friends out on a snowmobile for the first time.  He had an extensive background in motorsports being an avid four wheeler enthusiast and spending a few years on the superbike racing circuit, so hopping on a snowmobile seemed the next logical thing. The opportunity arose for him to borrow a sled from a close friend for a weekend and I was shocked to see him pull into my driveway with a newer Ski-Doo MXZ 600 E- Tech.  One of my three criteria had already been met- not just a good sled but an awesome sled.  I hooked him up with all the necessary gear and we departed.  It was a early Saturday morning and the weather was a perfect ten degrees- Lets face it no one enjoys 20 below zero temps on a sled- especially your first tme out-criteria #2 fullfilled.  And then once we got on the trail I crossed my fingers for the most important part of the puzzle- a trail in good condition.  I know plenty of people who gave up on snowmobiling after one ride because they rearanged half of their internal organs on a washboard trail.  When we pulled onto the trail we found that it had just been groomed the night before- Bingo.  Needless to say after a ride like that he was hooked. He went out and bought himself some new riding gear and is trying to work out a deal with his friend to buy the MXZ.

     It is crucial as snowobilers that we add more to our ranks to keep the sport healthy.  More snowmobilers means more registrations, more registrations means more money to maintain and expand the trail system and more snowmobilers in clubs means more people maintaining and building trails and more representation to protect our sport and trail system politically.  It’s always fun to get someone out the first time and it can add another chapter to your long list of great snowmobile memories.  See you on the trails!

Hello All! Hope you had a great Christmas and New Years.

First, a northern Minnesota trail update.  What can we say. For the most part the trails are great. However, the heavy traffic, especially Christmas week, took a toll on some of the more heavily traveled trails. Most of this is due to the fact that everyone that has been dying to have good snow for the last two years was out on the trails over the past two weeks. This was a great sign to the rebounding health of the sport in Minnesota, but the trails suffered a bit from all of the use. Hopefully the fantastic grooming efforts of the local snowmobile clubs will continue to keep up. Believe it or not some trails could benefit from a little more snow to help fill in some bare spots. Now that the Vikings season has put us out of our misery we can focus our entire weekends on riding!

January and February are also the time that we see the many charity rides that take place around the state. A charity ride is a great way to spend time on your sled and help others in the process. Every year Minnesota snowmobilers raise over one million dollars for wide variety of charities including those that support cancer research, MS, ALS, Special Olympics and a variety of others. One of the charity rides that the staff of snowmobiletrail.com is heavily involved with is the annual Yeti Tour which benefits the March of Dimes. Like most charity rides, the Yeti Tour was created by a group of snowmobilers who wanted to make a difference. It was the brainchild of Nate and Kelly Alvar, who became involved with the March of Dimes after being faced with personal heartbreak, losing their first child, Isaiah to severe birth defects. Tragically, their second son, Mason, was three born months premature and passed away after complications from emergency surgery just one week after being born. Today Nate and Kelly have two healthy boys, Jonas (5) and Elias (1), and they credit organizations like the March of Dimes for making advancements that helped give Jonas and Eli a healthy start in life. “I come from a snowmobiling family,” said Nate, “I have a couple of close friends that I always ride with and one day Kelly said ‘You guys should do something that involves snowmobiling and the March of Dimes’ and things just grew from there.” The Yeti Tour is a one day 140 mile ride that originates and ends at the Sunset Bar and Grill in Duluth, Minnesota. The event takes place on Saturday, January 25th and there are still openings available for riders. “This is a fun, rider friendly event,” said Alvar. Now in its fourth year the Yeti Tour has raised over $50,000 for the March of Dimes. Unfortunately the ride portion of the Yeti Tour has been cancelled the last two years due to lack of snow, but with this years early December storm the ride will go on as scheduled. If you would like to take part in the Yeti Tour they are always looking for riders and donations. You can visit their website at www.yetitour.com for information on how to register or donate.

Before we get started you are probably all wondering what the trail conditions are up in Northeast Minnesota – let’s just say AWESOME! The base is great and the trails are groomed and are absolutely gorgeous. The snow hanging on all of the pines make it a picture that you will want to freeze in your memory forever. Expect a lot of traffic though as it seems everyone in the state that has been praying for snow for two years is out on the trails and they are getting worked over pretty well. Luckily we are getting some more bursts of snow to help prevent wash outs in the corners. If you venture off trail be advised that the snow is very deep and there is no solid base underneath which can result in your track spinning all the way to the ground and getting easily stuck quite often. Hopefully you or one of your buddies is riding a crossover or mountain sled to help break trail. Also there has been some slush reported on many lakes and there is some pretty thin ice out there so be careful.

This weekend some of the snowmobiletrail.com staff members went out on their first real extended ride, meaning this is the first time this season that any of us had put on some significant miles. Every year in the off season I promise myself that I’m going to get in shape before winter comes and every year it seems that sometime during or after that first ride I’m saying, “Man, I have to get in shape before the season starts next year.”

Ask any snocross guy and they will tell you staying in shape is a way of life for them- and if you want to truly enjoy your season it should be a way of life for you too.
If you’ve never been on a snowmobile before it looks pretty easy, you jump on a sled press the throttle and away you go, the only thing that could get tired is your thumb. After a while you quickly realize there is a lot of movement, weight shifting and over all jarring of the body. Depending on the condition of the trail, there can be quite a few washboard bumps and some huge moguls that can loosen up your bones as well. If you are an off trail rider then you have a whole other element to deal with- getting stuck. Bury a big four stroke or 800 and you are quickly exposed to the most physical aspect of snowmobiling. Unfortunately every year the Minnesota DNR registers a few heart attacks on their snowmobile accident report.

With this first big snowfall we had it all – lots of buried sleds as we were breaking trail through the fields and ditches got our heart rates going and then we added a good long day on the trails. The next morning every muscle in my body hurt- so much for getting in shape before the season started.

Since most of you are in the same boat as I am, I suggest a few simple things to help reduce the likelihood of injury. If you are going out breaking trail the more the merrier. You don’t want to bury your sled and be all alone – that always sucks. If you do get stuck, pace yourself- there’s no need to kill yourself digging out (literally). Take breaks and have some water with you- the cold dry air can dehydrate you very quickly and it doesn’t hurt to keep a couple of aspirin handy just in case. Regardless of age, the better shape you are in the more fun you will have. Build up your cardio and strength and endurance- they all play a part in a good day of riding. And lastly watch out for changing terrain- especially after a big snow. You can have a very familiar trail become unexpectedly treacherous with some huge snowdrifts and unexpected wrist breaking drop offs. My rule of thumb is: If you don’t know- go slow! This bit of advice can keep your sled and body in one piece.

Until the next blog ride safe and have fun. See you on the trails!

The entire North Shore received between 8 and 44 inches of snow over last 3 days. Our staff will be hitting the trails this weekend but in the meantime we can tell you that if you like boondocking there is a lot of powder out there!

Halloween. For most people it means horror movies, trick-or-treaters and a good excuse to pig out on candy, but for snowmobilers in Northern Minnesota Halloween means the Anniversary of the Halloween mega storm of 1991 that dumped 36.9 inches of snow on Duluth and ushered in one of the longest snowmobiling seasons on record- a whopping five months of good riding. The storm also kicked off what became a decade of good snow and the peak of snowmobiling popularity in Minnesota (a record 297,623 snowmobiles were registered in the state in 2001). Every October snowmobilers begin wondering if this will be the year when snow finally makes its return and gives us a good season.

Image attributed to http://attic.areavoices.com/

The advantage we have here in Northern Minnesota is that although we don’t get blessed with ridiculous amounts of snow like our counterparts in the UP or in the mountain ranges out west we still benefit from our latitude and the ever changing winds on Lake Superior. You could go to bed on a clear cold night and wake up to fourteen inches of fresh powder courtesy of the big lake. Large early storms frequent this part of the state and they continue to randomly pop up throughout the year. Here are some interesting Northern Minnesota Snow Facts:

• On Oct 15th 1966 Duluth Received 7.9 inches of snow – the Highest snowfall in a single day in October.
• Duluth’s Record Snowfall for the month of October is 14 inches.
• The highest 24 hour snowfall in Minnesota was 36 inches near Finland on January 7th 1994.
• The Halloween Mega Storm was at the time the biggest single snow event in the State’s history but that record was broken January 6-8, 1994 as Finland received 46.5 inches of snow, breaking the old record by almost ten inches!
• The greatest depth of snow cover in Minnesota history was measured at 88 inches at Meadowlands on January 21st, 1969- Now that’s a good trail base.
• The snowiest winter on record in Minnesota was recorded at Grand Portage during the winter of 1949-50. The total snowfall at Grand Portage for that season was 170.5 inches.

As we close out October on Halloween night you just might wake up to some fresh snow in your yard, and maybe this will be the year when the snow never stops falling and the riding will always be amazing. Until we see you on the trails this winter, remember – THINK SNOW!

Welcome to the new snowmobiletrail.com Blog. Each winter the staff at snowmobiletrail.com log thousands of miles on the trails of Northern Minnesota and now we can deliver everything we learn from those rides directly to you- from the latest trail and snow conditions to information about places to go, things to see, and even where you can stop for a good trailside burger. Our goal is to make your next snowmobile trip as enjoyable as possible by providing you with a wealth of information right at your fingertips. We’ll also keep you up to date on the latest snowmobile news and occasionally run features on some vintage shows, handy tech tips and of course share some great trail stories. Snowmobiletrail.com is a website created by snowmobilers for snowmobilers and our new blog is our latest tool in our ongoing effort to help make all of your snowmobile experiences enjoyable ones. Keep checking in throughout the Summer for the latest trail news and then be sure to check us out all winter long. See you on the trails this winter!