Bayfield/Valhalla
- Thread starter woodside
- Start date
We rode Friday and Saturday(10-11th) and saw a post on FB that trail 1 from Port Wing to Herbster was groomed....I think it was by a 1979 F-250 with a Western snow plow. I'd have a hard time calling the trail in "good" condition as stated on the Bayfield Alliance page but that is subjective so who am I to say.
Overall we ran 130 on Friday and 150 on Saturday in what I would call good to very good conditions. Yes, by Saturday afternoon it was getting rougher as we expected. 17 down to Barnes was very good and holding up well with all the sun it took on Friday. Even 4 down to Delta from 2 was okay. I thought 2 and 31 were holding up well given all the traffic and temps in the mid thirties. They need some snow and not 50 degree days, rain will kill some of the trails that utilize roadside or plowed fire roads IMO.
Overall we ran 130 on Friday and 150 on Saturday in what I would call good to very good conditions. Yes, by Saturday afternoon it was getting rougher as we expected. 17 down to Barnes was very good and holding up well with all the sun it took on Friday. Even 4 down to Delta from 2 was okay. I thought 2 and 31 were holding up well given all the traffic and temps in the mid thirties. They need some snow and not 50 degree days, rain will kill some of the trails that utilize roadside or plowed fire roads IMO.
MorganKoda
New member
We put about 150 miles on Saturday from Delta, up to the P&G, over to Corni, down to Brule, and back to Delta. Given the amount of snow and traffic i would say the groomers have been doing a great job (and for what its worth I am pretty picky). Only bad trail we had was Trial 1 into Corni. We were told by a rider that it had looked like the groomer had recently been through there. I am not sure who that guy was, but he obviously didn't know what groomed trails look like.
Overall we seen great trails this past weekend, but IMO there is not enough snow to maintain that rating with the temps that are in the forecast.
Overall we seen great trails this past weekend, but IMO there is not enough snow to maintain that rating with the temps that are in the forecast.
sweeperguy
Active member
I rode Sunday, was overall happy with conditions. Only bummer was the forest roads are much more tracked up than I've experienced in the past. F.R. are the main attraction for me up there. But overall trail conditions were very good.
LoveMyDobe
Active member
cmscat50 said :Lastly thanks to all the volunteer groomers. I get the issue with finding volunteers. So thanks for all you do.[/QUOTE]
The groomers in Bayfield county are paid to groom, not volunteers
The groomers in Bayfield county are paid to groom, not volunteers
Are you saying the snow won't last, or just suspect rough conditions ?
If the groomer operators in Bayfield County are professional I'll be very honest because we have professional operators here. Someone needs to train them. I'm sure some of them do an excellent job and yes I've been on more awesome trails up there than bad trails, but with the unfilled dips I saw in the trail this weekend I'm led to believe that's simply an untrained operator. It's pretty easy to dump the entire drag full of snow in a dip. That wasn't happening. Some of it wasn't very safe.
Again I get how difficult it must be to obtain good operators. We struggle with that here. When I see safety issues that scares me. I've had friends die on sleds and friends injured real bad on sleds. It's my job to create a safe trail system here. So I might be a bit more sensitive than some.
Again I get how difficult it must be to obtain good operators. We struggle with that here. When I see safety issues that scares me. I've had friends die on sleds and friends injured real bad on sleds. It's my job to create a safe trail system here. So I might be a bit more sensitive than some.
MorganKoda
New member
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MorganKoda
New member
Both. Trails north of HWY 2 maybe ride-able depending on your definition. But anything south will be really sketchy. I am not a mechanic so I am very picky about what I will ride my sled in, and I just don't think there is enough snow up there to withstand the temps in the forecast. I hope I am wrong for those that go up there, and I hope that we see a crazy change in teh forecast, but for now I will be looking more towards storage and less towards the next ride.
Sorry you had a bad experience up here cmscat50. 
With the amount of sleds that were in the area and with the combination of warm temps.i thought our groomers did an outstanding job. I may be biased being a "local" but, if your area saw that kind of sled pressure like we saw here it would be hard for any club to keep things maintained to acceptable riding conditions. To say our groomers in the Bayfield area need training is unfair, cause I've seen the work they do and it's always top Notch!!!!jmo
With the amount of sleds that were in the area and with the combination of warm temps.i thought our groomers did an outstanding job. I may be biased being a "local" but, if your area saw that kind of sled pressure like we saw here it would be hard for any club to keep things maintained to acceptable riding conditions. To say our groomers in the Bayfield area need training is unfair, cause I've seen the work they do and it's always top Notch!!!!jmoWe rode yesterday west of Bayfield and south of Valhalla area in the warm temps and sun. Trails that we used were groomed, in good to very good condition and have an ice base. After today there will be bare spots on exposed slopes. The FR's will hold up even with the expected rain the first part of the week as they have a solid base and good snow pack. Traffic was light as expected but we saw more sleds then expected. In and out of the PubNGrub was good both from the south and the north. Part of TR19 and TR29 just to the north of the Pub has been plowed for logging.
No question that the area will need fresh snow after this extended warm spell and possible rain. Maybe next Thursday into Friday according to John's extended forecast.
No question that the area will need fresh snow after this extended warm spell and possible rain. Maybe next Thursday into Friday according to John's extended forecast.
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Mather Nature kicked some butt the past few days but there is still some hope especially if the 6-9" shows up Friday. 1-3" tonight and its snowing now. The trails I observed today had a solid base with some bare areas on the exposed slopes and the FR's have up to 6" of snow pack. So there is something to build on with the fresh snow and base. I talked to the groomer and they are ready to go. Trails have been closed which is a good thing but should be ready to go Friday. Will ride Friday and advise. Bring it!!!
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Nice to see the area survived somewhat. If you get more snow up there I may have to trailer up there from Hayward to ride for a day this weekend. Please keep us posted.
24-32 hours away and the NWS still can't figure out the forecast. It appears that the bulk of the snow will go east. So now its 1-2" Friday maybe and 1-3" Friday night maybe for the Bayfield area. 48 hours ago it was up to 14"!!!
This could be the 3rd or 4th major storm this Winter that was scheduled to impact our area and went poof!
Still 2-5" will result in good riding. Maybe we will catch a break and the system will go 30-40 miles further to the west.
This could be the 3rd or 4th major storm this Winter that was scheduled to impact our area and went poof!
Still 2-5" will result in good riding. Maybe we will catch a break and the system will go 30-40 miles further to the west.
Considering we didn't get any snow from the last system, "woodside" and brother, Richard, can still take us where the snow is! As woodside has posted above, we still have a good base out on most of the trails and FRs, and only need about 6" to get things back to very-good. Here are a few pics with our guests from Woodside Cottages - www.woodsidecottages.com - Mike W, Tom, Emma, and Jake, and (of course) woodside and Richard. Another great day out there!
We have a good base west of Bayfield with a few exceptions. Like Candyman said, all we need is a small amount of snow to get decent conditions again. The 2-3" we got Wednesday night made the FR's rideable. The trails are still closed but won't take much to get them back open, at least in the Bayfield/Valhalla area. If not, the FR's will do the job.
Maybe the forecast will be right for tonight into Sunday for 1-3" and then some good snow Tuesday and LES Thursday. Sure would be nice to catch a break from the weatherman.
Its always fun to ride with the guests and new owner Candyman at Woodside Cottages. Great people.
Pics are from yesterday.
Maybe the forecast will be right for tonight into Sunday for 1-3" and then some good snow Tuesday and LES Thursday. Sure would be nice to catch a break from the weatherman.
Its always fun to ride with the guests and new owner Candyman at Woodside Cottages. Great people.
Pics are from yesterday.
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OK! We are 1 out of 3 as we got about 3" overnight and maybe 1-3' more yet today. Now we need the Tuesday snow and the LES Thursday.