Miners Castle Snowmobile Trail 422 Closure

[groomerdriver]

You can count me and my past riding buds as "lost tourism dollars". I started going to Munising in 1984....before it was "cool" to go there and often times we had the trails to ourselves. It was a wonderful area to go to.

We went there on average once per year and then noticed the changes in grooming. Less grooming + more traffic = 3 foot moguls on many trails. We then ran forest roads as long as our short track sleds would allow us. Then everybody else found the forest roads we ran and they turned to crap as well.

Also, the attitude of the business owners = "if it's not you, there will be somebody else to take your place". That was pretty much the last straw. We now spend our hard earned money elsewhere.

Now the pissing contest this year over $6000 (is this a true number?) worth of "whatever"...are you kidding me? You've had that rogue'ish enforcement dude, years long grooming issues forcing riders to go elsewhere and now this?

Ya'll keep it up there and let the internet spread it around....correct info or rumors. See where it get's you now and years down the road.

 

[polarisrider1]

Paradise, Michigan got the same attitude. Grand Marais welcomed us with open arms. I wonder what Chocolat township is up to east of Marquette?

 

[jlrotax583]

Chatter on Dootalk of the closure being resolved per a meeting today at the Road Commission.
Rumor is that the area businesses ponied up the $5900.
Can anyone verify?
Please remember this and patronize the local establishments as much as you can.

-Jon

 

[megan600]

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Post just made on MSA facebook that ACRC and Munising Visitors Bureau have agreed to allow snowmobiles on the 2000ft of H-58 connector to Miners castle for 1 more year as long as a reroute is worked on for next year

 

[prunedog75]

Proof that there is strength in numbers!

Because of the volume of calls to Munising Visitors Bureau and Alger County Road Commission, both parties felt the need to sit down again and revisit the closure of Trail 422! In a public meeting at 1:00PM today Dec 17 2015 ACRC agreed to allow snowmobiles on the 2000 ft of H-58 connector to Miners Castle for 1 more year as long as Munising Visitors Bureau agreed to aggressively work on a suitable reroute to be in place for next year! Both parties were happy that a suitable solution could be reached and snowmobilers WIN! Thank you Munising Visitors Bureau and Alger County Road Commission!!

This is as per the MSA Facebook page...... This is what I have been talking about!!!

 

[buddah2]

I already posted this on HCS but this brings up another interesting problem......HTA already had the grooming schedule(s) pretty much set......this now adds roughly 35 miles to be groomed (17 ea way, out & back)......I'm going from memory here......I can look up the actual numbers on my trail map (grooming numbers).......but that's roughly 6 hours at "normal" operating speed......got to wonder where that is going to fit in????

 

[Pizza Man]

I'm sure glad that it was worked out. Our first trip up there is in the first part of January.

 

[prunedog75]

Now we can complain about something worth complaining about...... the lack of snow

 

[snobuilder]

Good to hear that a reasonable fix is in for this year.

 

[frnash]

… ACRC agreed to allow snowmobiles on the 2000 ft of H-58 connector to Miners Castle for 1 more year …

Although curiously not mentioned above, I certainly hope that grooming will be allowed as well, as opposed to simply allowing snowmobiles on an un-groomed trail!

 

[prunedog75]

Although curiously not mentioned above, I certainly hope that grooming will be allowed as well, as opposed to simply allowing snowmobiles on an un-groomed trail!

Buddah2 would probably be a better source for this, but the way that I understand it sleds were allowed on the ungroomed trail to begin with, now with that section of 58 open, the DNR will fund the grooming of the trail.

To further the talk about the 6000 dollars I've seen mentioned in a few places, I heard today that the ACRC just caved and no money changed hands, they just made an agreement that this would be the last year and a reroute would have to be in place for seasons going forward.

 

[buddah2]

Although curiously not mentioned above, I certainly hope that grooming will be allowed as well, as opposed to simply allowing snowmobiles on an un-groomed trail!

O.K., I did read the post after this but chose to respond to this one for the issue.......first off the section we're talking about is 2000 feet in a 14 or so mile trail......and it is NEVER groomed all that well to begin with......not the groomers fault.......the road commission guys come along and scrape the entire road as bare as they can get it.......(some believe, myself included, that it's simply out of spite for the sleds using "their" road).........most of that small portion of the trail you're doing really well to find enough snow to keep the slides cool.......in my mind at least leaving that section technically "ungroomed" would be a significant improvement.......

we'll see what's up when I hear back from the grooming coordinator..........

 

[snocrazy]

They will have to change the plan a bit for the grooming is all. It was set up so that 8 would be hit 3 times daily.
Pretty elaborate plan. I went to one of the groomer meetings when this was all laid out.
It will be groomed. That was the entire point of this meeting.... allowing grooming.
Maybe now the ACRC will be a little nicer about how they treat the shoulder. More snow or a shelf would keep the metal off the pavement.

 

[snobuilder]

Making a huge deal out of having snowmobiles riding the shoulder of a co. rd. where sleds out number tired vehicles 10 to 1 is puzzling at best. Did some local lose his *** grooved bar stool for a few nights to some interloping bubblehead?.....Love Munising....might be gonna missing it. Mostly love the ride up to Grand Marais and the bars like Lake Superior Brewing. Staying on the highway a little longer and skirting around Muni before finding a bed isn't tough to do. Plenty a land in da UP for new super 8's Americinns and best westerns etc. to be built.