Temper your excitement....it's BAD...lots and lots of tree damage, many trails not open, and wet areas in the usual spots. Spread the word if you can...a lot of people don't realize the extent of the damage in the western U.P., and northern Wisconsin...and some folks see SNOW, and just hook up the trailers and head north...it's not going to be that simple this year, which will upset some folks who "just want to ride"....The clubs are doing what they can and are asking for Volunteers to help clear trails. (check with the club where you ride to see if you can help, and when, as some of them have set up work days...don't just go out and start cutting trees with out permission from the clubs)...keep in mind there is still hunting going on it some zones in northern Wisconsin.
The bad areas are in a line from around Lac du flambeau, east to Eagle River and everything north of there.
The problem was that this was a heavy, wet snow, 30 to 40 inches in some places (more to the north, less to the south..for example Lac du flambeau had 13 inches, Minocqua had 5)...it was not your typical fluffy lake effect. AND ...The swampy areas in northern Wisconsin never really froze, and now have all that snow on top of it, so it's insulating it from freezing up...they will freeze up once they get packed, but it's going to take time. It's actually a good thing for my area that the snow didn't really hit here (3-5 inches)....Minocqua, Rhinelander, Tomahawk ETC... It's starting to freeze up nicely in the swampy areas, and Lakes here....so that is one good thing.
I just had a couple buddies up in the yoop (Bruce Crossing area) and they spent hours clearing trees, just to ride....it's going to take weeks before some areas will be open, and safe to ride...It took one club 4 hours to clear 4 miles of trails
Again...not trying to be the turd in the punch bowl...but many areas, even with all the snow are just not safe to ride......one club up there told me it would be a miracle if they had everything cleared, groomed, and ready to go by Xmas
The bad areas are in a line from around Lac du flambeau, east to Eagle River and everything north of there.
The problem was that this was a heavy, wet snow, 30 to 40 inches in some places (more to the north, less to the south..for example Lac du flambeau had 13 inches, Minocqua had 5)...it was not your typical fluffy lake effect. AND ...The swampy areas in northern Wisconsin never really froze, and now have all that snow on top of it, so it's insulating it from freezing up...they will freeze up once they get packed, but it's going to take time. It's actually a good thing for my area that the snow didn't really hit here (3-5 inches)....Minocqua, Rhinelander, Tomahawk ETC... It's starting to freeze up nicely in the swampy areas, and Lakes here....so that is one good thing.
I just had a couple buddies up in the yoop (Bruce Crossing area) and they spent hours clearing trees, just to ride....it's going to take weeks before some areas will be open, and safe to ride...It took one club 4 hours to clear 4 miles of trails
Again...not trying to be the turd in the punch bowl...but many areas, even with all the snow are just not safe to ride......one club up there told me it would be a miracle if they had everything cleared, groomed, and ready to go by Xmas
