Grant Hoar
New member
The good news; put on 100 miles Sat. and 45 miles this morning in Clayton and Allamakee Counties. Rode from Garnavillo to Harpers Ferry, Rossville, Monona, etc.
Very interesting mix of trails here. Wide open ditches with drifts to play in (although they were pretty compacted), open fields that ranged from rough chisel plowed to smoothly groomed, trails along (and through) creeks and up and down some of the steepest ridges I have ever ridden. Many of these are ungroomed because of the wooden fence crossings that are only crossable by sled, and groomers can't get by. Some really nicely groomed field and woods trails also. First time I have ridden a snowmobile on a trail that passed in the same field and within 50 feet of a herd of cattle also.
Not a high mileage area because of the trail difficulty through the woods and ravines, but great fun and a pretty area. Wildlife included plenty of deer, turkeys, and bald eagles. Buddy almost had a squirrel run over him on top of a barbed wire fence at a fence crossing - that is not something you see in many areas.
Now the bad news: 38 degrees today, and too much melting. I personally wouldn't ride them again until they get some cold temperatures and another 8 inches of snow. Very few gas and bar/trail stops so plan accordingly.
If you have never tried this area, give it a shot - only two hours west of the Madison metro area.
Very interesting mix of trails here. Wide open ditches with drifts to play in (although they were pretty compacted), open fields that ranged from rough chisel plowed to smoothly groomed, trails along (and through) creeks and up and down some of the steepest ridges I have ever ridden. Many of these are ungroomed because of the wooden fence crossings that are only crossable by sled, and groomers can't get by. Some really nicely groomed field and woods trails also. First time I have ridden a snowmobile on a trail that passed in the same field and within 50 feet of a herd of cattle also.
Not a high mileage area because of the trail difficulty through the woods and ravines, but great fun and a pretty area. Wildlife included plenty of deer, turkeys, and bald eagles. Buddy almost had a squirrel run over him on top of a barbed wire fence at a fence crossing - that is not something you see in many areas.
Now the bad news: 38 degrees today, and too much melting. I personally wouldn't ride them again until they get some cold temperatures and another 8 inches of snow. Very few gas and bar/trail stops so plan accordingly.
If you have never tried this area, give it a shot - only two hours west of the Madison metro area.