We ended up taking yesterday off to get some chores done and take a sleigh ride in Eagle River. It felt great to get back on the sleds this morning and head north. Luckily we had an easier morning than 2 days ago when we had the fire! The major difference this morning over a few days ago was the temperature. It was -14 (with OUT) the wind chill! We rode 6 East to 1 North and stopped at the Gogebic Lodge. They had a breakfast buffet in there that looked pretty good, but we had already eaten. After warming up a bit we headed up the lake. That was one cold ride! When we got to Hoop N Holler my hands were ice so we stopped for a few minutes until I could feel them again 🙂 Then we cut over to Bergland and gassed up. We took trail 8 West out of town to trail 102 North. 102 was by far the best trail we rode this week. If you like to rack up the miles on your sled and avoid the bars, this is the trail for you! Make sure your sled is in good shape and your tank is full, because if you break down on this trail, there isn’t much out there!
This trail is like riding on a 4 lane highway that winds through the woods with tons and tons of snow! We hooked up with trail 11 and took that into Wakefield. It was in good shape on the road, but once we got into the woods, there were some wet spots and rocks. After passing the ski hills we got on trail 2 East back to Wakefield. Along the way, we passed the groomer and shortly after that we found a wallet in the middle of the trail. Money, credit cards and id’s were laying all over the place. We picked up what we could find and stopped at the gas station. By complete chance we talked to the attendant about finding the wallet and she said the guy that lost it was in there and left his number. We got the number and left him a voice mail. He ended up getting his wallet back the next day. After heading out of town we stopped at Bingos to grab a pizza. As always they had great hospitality there and took great care of us. We left there and headed for home. Once again, when we got near the state line, the WI trails were VERY beat up. That’s just a product of the traffic volume this time of year. Hopefully next week they’ll be able to clean up the Wisconsin trails and get them back into shape.
Overall Trail Rating: 8.5 out of 10
Distance: 153
Previous: 135
Season Total: 288
We headed out of Winchester around noon and made our way towards Bergland. It ended up snowing another 2-4 inches yesterday, so that helped to fill in the holes created by the thaw on Saturday. Trail 6 East was in better shape and trail 1 North was in great shape. We got gas in Marenisco and then headed for the Lake Gogebic Lodge. A few days ago the lake was very slushy, so we were reluctant to ride the lake, but it was in fair condition. The main problem was hitting the ice chunks that were slush and then refroze. After arriving in Bergland we hung out for a bit and then jumped back on the lake. This time we rode to Fishtales and got off there. The lake had decent snow close to shore most of the way to Fishtales, once you got South of there, it was pretty bare.
Overall Trail Rating: 9 out of 10
Distance: 101
Previous: 392
Season Total: 493
We made a trip to Bergland today. Trail 6 East was pretty beat up as well as trail 1 North out of Marenisco.
The closer we got to Bergland, the better trail 1 got. Unfortunately the temperature got up to 40 degrees and melted the trails down pretty hard.
We stopped in to Hoop N Holler for some food and a drink. Then we headed back down trail 1 to Marenisco. We decided not to run Lake Gogebic on the way back because it was a soupy mess.
They are calling for more snow tonight, hopefully we will get some!
Overall Trail Rating: 6 out of 10
Distance: 109
Previous: 283
Season Total: 392
We set out for a short ride to break in my brother (he lives in Florida). We took trail 6 East to Presque Isle then trail 1 North towards Marinesco. Both of these trails were in good shape with a few bumps in different areas. Once we got on the Michigan trails they smoothed out a bunch and we were able to cruise along pretty good. We hooked up with trail 2 East and it was perfect! After hitting local trail 13 south we made our way to Rogers bar. If you are out riding and want a pizza or something to drink I’d highly recommend checking out Rogers bar (http://www.rogersbar.net). Sue and Greg are both great hosts and will take good care of you.
After a drink we headed back the same way we came. This time it was misting and it made for some bad visibility in our helmets. We had to stop every couple miles and clean of our shields. I shot a few videos but most didn’t turn out due to the mist. Here is an example of one of them:
It is supposed to get warmer tonight and be above freezing most of tomorrow. 🙁 Then on Sunday it’s supposed to get cold again! 🙂
Overall Trail Rating: 9 out of 10
Distance: 88
Previous: 195
Season Total: 283
Today was our first ride of the 2008-2009 season. The trails were spectacular! I’ve never seen the trails this good, this early in the season. We added a snow gauge to the web site this year and it’s showing 14+ inches: http://www.snowsnakes.com/webcam-northwoods.php
We rode from Winchester, WI to Presque Isle, WI….got gas and bought trail stickers for Michigan ($25/ea this year). Then we headed north up trail 1 through Marenisco towards Lake Gogebic. The trails were flat as could be and we only saw a handful of sleds. We jumped on Lake Gogebic and headed for Bergland. The lake was in good shape with a few fishermen in their ice shacks. There were a few slushy spots that had re froze, other than that it was full of fluffy powder. After arriving in Bergland we gassed up and got lunch at Antonios. We heard a rumor that the trail into Bergland was closed, but this turned out to be false. It was closed earlier this month, but it is business as usual now. After lunch we decided to take the trail back instead of running the lake. This was a great choice!
We got behind the groomer and rode a perfect trail for 20-30 miles! Once we passed the groomer, the trail was still in great shape! We rode through Marenisco and then made our way South to Presque Isle, WI.
If this ride is any indication of how this season will end up, it should be one of the best ever!
Overall Trail Rating: 10 out of 10
Distance: 104
Previous: 0
Season Total: 104
Today was just a quick ride for lunch and then back to the house. The temp today was 40+ and it took a toll on the trails. Any spots with direct sunlight were burned down to the dirt which created a ton of “snirt” (snow/dirt) everywhere. We rode 6 East to trail 1 North to Marinesco and ate lunch at Bam Bam’s. Then we turned around and took the same route back. As the day went on the trails got sloppier and more bare. Hopefully it won’t get as warm tomorrow and we’ll get some snow later in the week!
Overall Trail Rating: 5 out of 10
Distance: 44
Previous: 213
Season Total: 257
