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Wakefield Michigan snowmobile route concerns

Doug

By Doug
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  • 2 weeks later...
Doug

Doug

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Good read, Steve Hamilton hit the nail on the head.
Remember trails are a privilege not a right.
May be an image of 9 people and people studying
 
 
 
I attended the snowmobile trail 2 reroute meeting tonight between the MDNR, GRTA, City of Wakefield, Wakefield Township, and their residents. City Manager Rob Brown said it best right off the bat, NIMBY, not in my backyard. It was incredible to hear, even if lip service, that everyone who spoke was pro snowmobile economy. They believed in the importance of the financial impact high-quality trails like GRTA's bring rural communities. However, the intense traffic combined with a brand new road route trail caused issues for my neighbors. Whatever the first attempt in learning breakdown was, the club and its partners can improve it. The major complaints were excessive speeding near homes, louder than stock exhausts, and trespassing. A solution seems further away tonight than before the meeting, regrettably. The MDNR confirmed that if this short 2 mile road route section is closed, Ironwood to Wakefield portion of trail 2 will SHUT DOWN. Jerry deserves a medal of honor for having to stand up and be the meeting's marshall. It was an incredibly tense room of passionate community family valued people. I NEVER had to do something like that and he did it very well to say the least!! Thank you to all the GRTA members for showing up! #teampolaris #savesledclubs #GRTA
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Bontz

Bontz

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We haven't used that route (Ironwood/Hurley to Wakefield) in several years, but we were giving it some thought for our U.P. saddlebag trip this coming season ... assuming the trail debacle would be settled by then.  I thought they were on their way to getting this ready again, but after reading that update above, maybe not??  Our first leg of the trip goes from Cable to White Pine, so we may have to consider an alternate route & heading up through Marinesco instead of the #2 corridor trail.  We've got time to figure it out, but I hope they (GRTA, MDNR, etc) get everything sorted out and can make it work for the upcoming season along that section of trail.

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  • 4 weeks later...
jonlafon1

jonlafon1

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I ride this area a lot.. If and when you come up or pass through I have a pretty easy route that will take you completely around this mess if it turns bad.. Get in touch and I can give you directions and or lead you around if im UP. It will reroute you back onto trail 2  via 11S.. It will put you on 2 about 10 miles WEST of Marinisco.. You will do some road running and forrest grade roads. Do it all the time and have for several years

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favoritos

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Last season's temporary route was pretty easy with all the snow.  The stretch on the road shoulder was better than I expected.  Granted, the good snow was a big factor, but it was better than the route around the ski hills.

@jonlafon1, I have not been across the 11S trail for quite a few years.  That thing seemed like it was partially closed quite often.  Even tried early last season, and ran out of trail.  Are you using roads vs. the trail?

The trail 2 thing sure is a pain.  We used to base right out of Wakefield and it just became more and more hassle.  Thank God we didn't buy a place there.

I often wonder if the local population has a clue how much that trail matters?  The area is becoming the end of the world in terms of riding.  It's hard to get through there compared to the old days and people just base further away.

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jonlafon1

jonlafon1

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21 hours ago, favoritos said:

Last season's temporary route was pretty easy with all the snow.  The stretch on the road shoulder was better than I expected.  Granted, the good snow was a big factor, but it was better than the route around the ski hills.

@jonlafon1, I have not been across the 11S trail for quite a few years.  That thing seemed like it was partially closed quite often.  Even tried early last season, and ran out of trail.  Are you using roads vs. the trail?

The trail 2 thing sure is a pain.  We used to base right out of Wakefield and it just became more and more hassle.  Thank God we didn't buy a place there.

I often wonder if the local population has a clue how much that trail matters?  The area is becoming the end of the world in terms of riding.  It's hard to get through there compared to the old days and people just base further away.

Yes 11S has been closed and opened a few times.. Couple bad wet spots cause this one to be a little "late" to the season, but its been open for about 5 years now, before that it was closed a few years.. 11S is where I get on .. I have a end around that takes you off of 2 via 17 south and then on some roads for a few miles (legal in MI). Then across a grade(logging road) going east and onto 519 (road) for just 1/4 mile then onto logging road then onto 11S.  Its just a way to avoid trail2 and the whole area where the issues are right now.  Also I use this going west (in reverse). I do not want to post exact details all over online and create issues with this "route" I have been using for several years. The locals and the club FOR SURE realize that 2 is essential to this area. I don't think that's the issue at all.  When the new owners of the ski hill shut it down it really threw a wrench into things. The trail was rerouted and that's where the issue is right now.. Its basically about having the trail on the road(old hwy 2)  THATS CAUSING THE ISSUE. One of the reasons I started using my "route" was because about  8-9 years ago trail 2 was a complete disaster going over the ski hills.. Think 3-4 foot moguls, ROCKS, and steep ups and downs AND very little grooming to help.. I believe they had a shake up in the club(GRTA)  "gerta" that handles the area we are speaking of.. After the shake up this club really started doing a good job with trails and bumps up over the ski hills(around 2016).. Well now that trail is gone(trail2 up over ski hills) and now the issue is to much road for the locals(Wakefield/Ramsay).  My cabin is on Chaney lake which is about 10 miles south of Wakefield.. Right on the border..  

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Doug

Doug

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Art Dumke was the previous owner of the Ski hill and a local insurance agent and developer in my home town.  Art was very successful dealing with insurance so if there was any potential issue with a snowmobile trail through the ski hill he would have been the first to know and decline having the trail.  The new owner of the ski hill said it was an insurance issue and kept stringing the club along that they were working with them but kept on putting obstacles in the way to keep it from happening.  Again the previous owner made a successful living dealing with insurance.  The new owner of the ski hill just didn't want a trail through there.

Old news but reality of what happened and some of the background.

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favoritos

favoritos

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Thanks @jonlafon1 for clearing up the 11S route.  I'm somewhat familiar with the area, but that trail seemed to be so inconsistent that we quit trying.  It was easier to give a quick try when Bingos was still around.  (That was our home base about five weeks per season.)  I can't even guess how many times I've rode through that intersection. 

We gave 11S another shot early last season right after the doozy Christmas snow, but it hadn't been touched yet.  We also had a brand new rider and one new sled.  Those aren't the best terms for breaking trail.  We just aimed for Marenisco before the mini mart gas closed.  I have to admit that the renaming of trails was also a little confusing with the "new 2 grade section and the old 2 being 11" in the area south of Wakefield.  I'm not even sure when that was changed, but one of the boys pulled up trail app and noted that name was different. 

@Doug I've followed the discussions about the ski hill owners.  I often wonder where there money comes from with the way they do business.  I can imagine that the double talk flows through their operations.

BTW, the current GRTA is a world apart from the old group.  They have done quite the improvement.  I'm sure it will take years before people get past the old perceptions of junk trails.  I'm sure it hasn't been easy to change the culture, but they really upped their game.  We joke about their trails being the dirty little secret on that end now.  It's refreshing to ride through there.  In the big picture, trail 2 corridor section is just plain tough.  That's a tight stretch without many reroute options.

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Ziemann

Ziemann

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Last year's reroute was heaven compared to the old route around the ski areas. The trail would be groomed every night and junk by noon. So, good riddance! 

Last year's reroute was great from a rider perspective. I understand the issues that the land owners are having and how that would sour a ton of people. Given the amount of private property between Ramsay and Wakefield, that trail is going to be a perpetual challenge. 

@favoritos we used Bingo's for years as well. I suspect that we've had a beer or two then..... It is sad to drive by there now and remember what it once was.

Years ago, we loved running the road up to Thomaston, then up County Road 519 in fresh lake effect snow at 90 mph up to Presque Isle Falls. We did a lot of spur of the moment trips to Bingos whenever there was decent lake effect in the forecast. We'd also run up the Camp 4 Grade and eventually end up on South Boundary Road whenever there was fresh lake effect. Obviously, things aren't open like they used to be because tons of people (like us) just rode wherever they wanted, but Bingo's was usually our base camp. 

In general, we didn't run Trail 11 much. It seemed like there was either a ton of logging or wet spots that made riding that route to the south a crap shoot. 

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favoritos

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Last year's reroute was a huge improvement.  It was fun to ride the stretch of old grade we used to use for trail.  Sadly, I also saw two ding dongs off trail and stuck right in a section marked "stay on trail".  One guy looked like he was in someone's yard.  I was pissed.   It was tempting to hang around and chew them out.  I sure as hell wasn't going to crawl through the drifts or help them out, so I let it go.  Hopefully they got some form of Karma for that bonehead move.

@Ziemann Yeah,  Bingo's was perfect for sledding.  He had the whole setup.  We even used the shop once and awhile.  It was nice to be out of town, but close enough if you needed.

We also used to ride the back trail up to S Boundry.  Trail 11N ran right along 519 for a distance.  That was a fun trail.  I've towed sleds on the road, but never really rode it for much distance.  The bugger was a carbide burner most of the time when we tried.  i don't think I've ever rode the Camp 4 Grade.  Looking at the map, trail 102 must end up close to the same spot.  It was amazing on some days how much the snow changed riding up that direction.  We had a few times when new snow was barely enough to cover grass at Bingos and measured in feet up on the hill.  Last season would have been a good time to see that happen.  We ran into big LES storms on a few trips.

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Not greg b

Not greg b

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On 10/22/2023 at 9:41 AM, Doug said:

Art Dumke was the previous owner of the Ski hill and a local insurance agent and developer in my home town.  Art was very successful dealing with insurance so if there was any potential issue with a snowmobile trail through the ski hill he would have been the first to know and decline having the trail.  The new owner of the ski hill said it was an insurance issue and kept stringing the club along that they were working with them but kept on putting obstacles in the way to keep it from happening.  Again the previous owner made a successful living dealing with insurance.  The new owner of the ski hill just didn't want a trail through there.

Old news but reality of what happened and some of the background.

The new owner of the ski hill closed the trail because they hate motorized recreation. This isn’t the first time they have done this. It has nothing to do with insurance, liability, money ect. They will give whatever excuse sounds good at the moment and will string the clubs along so they waste time and money the clubs don’t have. There is a law suite in Minnesota going on against them for doing a similar thing. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
Ziemann

Ziemann

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There is good news indeed. I was already making alternate plans for some of my saddlebag trips that I had planned. I will be riding through there several times this winter. Even though Old US-2 is not ideal, it beats the hell out of the alternative. Old US 2 still needs to ultimately be replaced with a better route, but it is a short segment, and works just fine. 

Now, if people can behave maybe this will get done sooner than later. 

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jonlafon1

jonlafon1

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On 11/22/2023 at 2:54 PM, Ziemann said:

Now, if people can behave maybe this will get done sooner than later. 

BINGO!  this is very important this year IMO.. Watch your speed and don't act like a D bag hot dogger while on this stretch.. Guessing all eyes will be on this stretch somewhat

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