Possible to ride to Wyoming from Wisconsin?

[rocky367]

So, I was planning a family trip out to Wyoming and Colorado and had requested a travel book from those states. While paging through I saw that the Laramie area had a bunch of trails which got me to thinking.. how far west could I ride my snowmobiles on "trails"? (I know some areas out west allow ditch banging so hence the quotes.)

Looking at the Polaris trail maps the furthest west I can get from where I live (on the Wisconsin border by Minnesota and Iowa) is the Aberdeen SD area. Further north I can get to Minot ND by sled from here. So is it possible to make it further then those locations?

And no, just a mid summer idea kicking around.. don't think my sleds would make it but it sure would be fun to try!

 

[ezra]

don't think it can happen it is amazing how much grass there is from MN to Wyoming in jan/feb/mar hours and hours and hours and hours and hours with no snow.
u could poss do N Dakota to Montana but man I would rather shoot my self in the toe than try that **** ride across nothing

 

[rocky367]

Yeah, I bet the ride across North Dakota would be a long and boring ride.

 

[G]

Yeah, I bet the ride across North Dakota would be a long and boring ride.

Not so. I have ridden extensively in northern ND. It is not the U.P. but it is more interesting than you might first think. A fair amount of groomed ditches but also some groomed trails through the woods. There are a lot of open areas in the central parts of the state but the northern part is more scenic. It is groomed so I'm sure you could easily get all the way across the state in two days or less.

 

[rocky367]

@Grub, Interesting.. now the gears are going again.. so Montana would in theory be possible.. how cool would that be to say you rode from Michigan to Montana or just from Wisconsin to Montana.. I see this as a major if I win the lottery item.

 

[G]

Rocky367 you are thinking the wrong direction. If you really wanted to go for a cool ride you for sure could ride from your back door north to Ontario and cruise east through half of Quebec and then drop back down in about New York and ride on to Maine and stick your boot in the Atlantic and then turn around and come back. For best chances of snow plan for about the first week in Feb. Do it unsupported with saddlebags on a Yami Vector. If the snow did melt on you buy an old rusty pickup for $350 and load the Vector and drive to the snow again. Abandon the pickup and resume the trip. Absolute trip of a lifetime.

 

[ezra]

if heading east U have to drop down in to buffalo and do some inner city LES boondocking.

 

[bearrassler]

Yeah, I bet the ride across North Dakota would be a long and boring ride.

Like Grub said, northern ND is not that bad for riding, but we are not thought of as a great snowmobile destination, many of our club members won't even ride in ND. There are no trails west of Minot like you said though, the snow is marginal most years in western ND and eastern MT, the best bet would be as close to the northern border as possible and it would be all ditch riding from a little west of Bottineau to the MT border, I would also recommend the ride east to the Atlantic, there would be trails and the snow conditions should be much better. A trip like that is on my bucket list.

 

[rocky367]

I never thought about going east, I've seen the discussions about the loop over and around Superior but not to out the ocean and dipping the ski. That sounds like another epic trip.

Funny, I never thought that snow would get marginal the further west I go, but I guess the mountain ranges and the air flow pattern of storms that area is just on the edge.

 

[G]

OK, we can start a sign up thread. We could go right after The John Dees Ride In 2015 from the Mosquito Inn. Rocky, Bearassler and me so far. We will all need passports and enough cash to buy a whole bunch of state and provincial trail passes. Got to be at least 2500 miles one way so plan on at least 2 weeks. A real plus would be to bring somebody that speaks French. None of us is getting any younger so now is the time. Michigan to Maine and back. We would be legendary and everyone would treat us like rockstars. Somebody should be able to figure a route out for us. I am not good enough on the 'putor to access all the maps necessary. I am going to start working out tomorrow. Or the next day. Maybe Monday.

 

[bearrassler]

I could ride from GF up to Hallock, Grub could join me, we could go through northern MN and maybe a few could join us, then through northern WS and add a few more, then to the UP and add some more, the group could get pretty large by the time we got to the Soo and crossed into Canada.

 

[G]

Ride the Red River up to Hallock. On to Baudette where I have a cabin. Day 2. South to Washkish to Bemidji to Cass Lake to Moose Lake to Superior to Tri County Corridor to Ashland for the night. I have done this route before - nothing to it. Next day to Mosquito Inn. From there on I am open to discussion.

 

[rocky367]

I got the passport, so set there! Man, to ride in from North Dakota and over now that would be a heck of a story to talk about. Would be a great trip to do with others from here as long as don't get distracted by the trails and scenery and end up riding in all those areas we just see in magazines.

I wonder what the fees would come to?

 

[G]

Years ago I rode a Pol Ultra out my backdoor here in Hallock all the way to Lake Namakegan in wisc in one day. Trails were perfect. temps were perfect and the sled ran perfectly. Mileage just shy of 500 miles. Only trouble I had was trying to freelance around the cluster#$%^ that is Duluth. I somehow ended up in Solon Springs and then I knew where I was again. Body made it OK except for my right thumb that was raw and bleeding from pulling up the triple roundslides all day. I guess what I am saying is that if conditions are perfect and you know where you are going it is not hard to run up big miles. We also have better equipment now.

 

[G]

Right around 1000 miles from Sault St Marie to Smith Falls Ontario. Don't have to go into Quebec. Have a snowmobile club in NY working on the rest of the route. Ontario snopass about $250 from what I can tell. Will need 4 others - NY, VT,NH and Maine.

 

[rocky367]

I've done a couple hundred mile trips locally so if a person knew where they were heading and like you say the conditions were ideal I bet you could make good time. I would need to upgrade sleds and make sure they are in top mechanical shape before going, I sure won't ride the 85 Yamaha XLV on this type of trip!