Dan Anderson said in his 35 years of snowmobiling in Cook County, “I have never seen anything like this.”
What Anderson—who six years ago became a member of the board of the Cook County Ridge Riders Snowmobile Club—was referring to was the incredible amount of trees spider webbed across the 450 plus miles of snowmobile trails that traverse Cook County’s backcountry.
Out in the West End, The Snowmobile Doctor, Jerry Gervais, said the Timberwolves Sportsmen’s Club spent 2½ weeks clearing trees. “We had about six volunteers and one person paid to run a chainsaw with the groomer to do the work. I’ve been in business since 1960 and I have never seen this many trees downed. Right now I would say the trails above Schroeder are a little skippy, but the Leveaux Trail and Tofte Trail are good. People riding the North Shore State Trail tell me it’s in good shape.”
Trees, large and small, fell in massive numbers following the December’s late wet, heavy snow that jacketed trees, bending them and in some cases, toppling them.
“I’m calling this Operation Snowfall,” said Anderson. “There have been times in the past where we have had a lot of trees go down, but not to this extent.”
Cost to clear the trails will run from $21,000 to $24,000, Anderson said. Only the Ridge Riders’ three groomers—Harley Toftey, Zach Smith and Tyler Smith—are paid, otherwise trail clearing is a volunteer effort.
“We only had these kinds of funds available because Dick Parker (former snowmobile club treasurer) positioned us for an event like this,” said Anderson.
Although the club had enough money to cover clearing and grooming to date, money isn’t inexhaustible, and the club’s finances are dwindling—or at least they were dwindling before the Cook County Chamber of Commerce came to their rescue.
“Jim Boyd [Chamber director] contacted the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) for us and set us up to talk to Chris Ismil. He helped us get a $5,000 grant to help cover the cost of clearing,” said Anderson. “I can’t overstate how much of an asset and added value the Chamber is to the community. They really came through for us.”
With 80 to 100 trees down per mile, it takes “at least a dozen volunteers to clear two to thee miles of trail per day,” he said.
Not all of the trees are big. There are a lot of 2- to 3-inch poplar and birch that were permanently bent across snowmobile routes that have to be removed.
Not all trail clearing was done by snowmobilers. Anderson said dog mushers and ice fishermen did their share of trail clearing as well.
Once the trails were cleared, the Ridge Rider groomers went to work.
“So far they [the groomers] have been out for about 150 hours. Remember, a full day is about 4-5 hours for them. That’s a long time to groom. Volunteers have put in about 200 hours cutting and clearing, and we need more people to help out. One of the problems is that anyone who operates a chain saw must be certified by the U.S. Forest Service. We can’t let just anybody cut for us because of liability issues.”
In lieu of money, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) sent up two cutters from Two Harbors this week, and two for last week, to help for a couple of days, said Anderson
“We approached the DNR for funding to help with the clearing. They told us that they didn’t have any money. And worse, they said our club would probably get either no money or a reduced benchmark for the third and fourth bench marks this year,” Anderson said.
Benchmarks are described as funds paid out per mile to clubs who maintain trails.
Trail conditions
Crews have cleared the trails from Grand Portage to Arrowhead, but they weren’t groomed as of press time. Anderson said Lullaby Trail is cleared and Swamper Trail nearly cleared. Trails on the upper Gunflint Trail beyond County Road 92 are passable, but haven’t been groomed because there are several spots where water is open and the groomer can’t get through.
The Blueberry Trail to Grand Portage will also be cleared soon, said Anderson, adding that the Expressway and Gunflint Trails were completed and groomed when possible to Mid-Trail or a little beyond. He cautioned that although there was now thick enough ice on the lakes, there was also slush that snowmobilers would likely encounter.
“We have the FUN RUN coming Saturday, February 6. It’s a big fundraiser for us so I hope people come out to support the club,” said Anderson.
Lutsen trails
All of the trails in the Lutsen Trail Breakers system have been cleared and are open to riders, but the club’s website offers caution because of some remaining overhanging brush and water present on the trails.
CJ Ramstad North Shore State Trail
The trail from Duluth to Grand Marais is packed and groomed. “Please be aware of snow-covered brush and branches hanging over the trail,” the DNR website cautions.
For the most up-to-the date trail conditions, go to Visit Cook County website at www.visitCookCounty.com and click on snowmobile or cross country ski trails.
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