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Manistique Michigan Snowmobile Trail Report

Manistique Area Trail Conditions report
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TRAIL REPORT

Schoolcraft Snowmobile Association

3/9/2025

Kind of a tumultuous week here at SCMTA. Some decisions that were tough to make, were; and so it continues...

AS OF MAR 9th:

41NORTH: out of Jackpine TH has some water accumulation on the trail before Steuben crossing and it's getting thinner up to that point but going north to Shingleton the trail in in fine shape. Late season conditions will develop this week as there will be several days of 40degree+ and sunlight. Hope there's an opportunity to clean up on TUESDAY when it cools down for 24-36 hours.

41 SOUTH of JP thins and goes snirty with water holes about the 9MM by Hiawatha Station. Some coverage further south may last for a few days in the upcoming week but the water is rising in the areas between the 5MM and the 2MM and could/WILL flood the trail surfaces in stretches of trail(JUST A HEADS UP)

ACCESS from 413: the trail was ended by the rain and warmup last week. The "Blizzard" covered a smaller area than hoped for. The decision to NOT groom any further was after a recon by Groomer Jim our 413 Guru.

Trail 7: was also decimated by the warmup and rain. The northern section (past the lakes/camping area) up to the Trail head and Camel Riders spur varies in condition and coverage all the way out to the 411 junction.

7 SOUTH ACCESS to that area of trail from BIG SPRING is done. Yes there is coverage on the South; thin/rocky/snirty. Too fragile for a groomer to pass without disrupting the existing base AND going south on 7 toward the 2 west junction there are sizeable logging ops. in the plantation on the Silver creek grade north of CR442. You'll see it, believe me...

2west: out of Manistique is dirt/gravel/water and some snow. We won't groom that again unless large quantities of measurable snow falls.(probably December '25) . The trail on the power/pipeline south of CR442 to the State park corner is filling up and RECOMMENDED NOT TO BE USED.

2east: Depending on where you sit on the trail it's either awesome or shot. The base was thin to begin with and this last go around did it no favors...the trail through Bear Creek Swamp has deteriorated to an UNSAFE LEVEL. AND IS FILLING UP. The next run out the 2 Trail East will be brushing in the spring/summer and permanent sign placement/replacement.

I've seen chatter about "pulling snow from the sides"... all well and good until a groomer goes in the ditch. Then that section of the trail is destroyed, equipment could suffer damage and costs for retrieval won't be cheap. The operators that groom that section are very aware of the availability and what hazards in acquiring said snow are there. And I'll say that they are the BEST TRAINED DRIVERS on that trail. Please, suffer their discretion. They do the best with what they have.

So if you get another week to10 days out of the trail, be thankful and...

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober,

Ride smart,

-Prez

3/2/2025

Ooof! A sound heard in the groomer as the drivers made their way through what's left of our coverage... The end of the season is looming near. On Tuesday/Wednesday of this coming week could either put the nail in the coffin or give us another bite of time.

ALL trail segments have bare spots water holes and standing water in/on them. The cold is/has tightened them up.

With the water/ponds and melting , drainage areas are filling up and soon the trails with them MAY be submerging for a time.

UNDERSTAND that the trail segments to the north(41north of JP trailhead and 7 north) may still be rideable (in a literal sense) but their quality has fallen dramatically and the next round of warm may end them too.

When it's too warm, we hold groomers until a sufficient refreeze has occured(which is paramount for proper trail maintenance) so, don't look for us too soon....

If you ARE out there PLEASE be careful,

Ride right,

Ride safe,

Ride sober.

-Prez

2/24/2025

BE ADVISED: HOLDING GROOMER OPS. ON ALL TRAILS TILL THE "Heat Wave" IS OVER...

Let's hope we survive it

2/19/2025

Remember:: THE GROOMER HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY..... TELL YOUR FRIENDS... AND PAY ATTENTION!!

STILL grooming the same schedule. With New snow in the mix, the coverage is improving the bases:

AS OF 19FEB:

41north of Jack Pine trailhead: groomed nightly and remains in good to very good shape. Some areas area bit rough (read: bridge approaches) but with positive throttle control, they are easily repaired.

The 41 north of Manistique, with this new snow, is in good shape and improves with travel northward.

410 into BootLake is very good.

413 is improved in the heavy forest areas and corners are snirty but improving. It's well covered and with positive throttle control in corners it will continue Smooth.

7 from the 2west junction to the 411 junction is in good to real good shape. The coverage in the heavy forest but very rideable in the Northern sections.

2west of Manistique is smoothing out in most areas. Very rideable.

2East trail out of Manistique is in good shape, flat, with good coverage, Monday an yesterday, saw the groomer in Bear Creek Swamp. The whole 2 east trail is in very good condition

421 into Gulliver is smoothed out. BUT, ..The logging/forestry project north of Gulliver is CRAZY. We will endeavor to keep the trail open/marked. be CAREFUL in transition through it. It is ROUGH and the Equipment is DANGER CLOSE to the trail. Common sense dictates YIELD TO THOSE HUGE MACHINES. (The groomer does) GIVE THEM ROOM... AND as always EASE YUR SQUEEZE!

REMEMBER, MEET A GROOMER, GET OFF OF THE TRAIL.

AGAIN, PAY ATTENTION OUT THERE!!!

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Prez

2/16/2025

Remember:: THE GROOMER HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY..... TELL YOUR FRIENDS... PAY ATTENTION,

STILL grooming the same schedule. With some New snow in the mix, the coverage is improving the bases:

AS OF 16FEB:

The 41 north of Manistique up to Jackpine is still a bit thin but the trail has improved with this new snow.

410 into BootLake is very good.

413 is still thin in the heavy forest areas and corners are snirty but is improving. It's well covered and with positive throttle control in corners it will continue Smooth.

7 from the 2west junction to the 411 junction is in good to real good shape. Some thin coverage in the heavy forest but very rideable in the Northern sections.

2west of Manistique is still thin but smoothing out in most areas. Very rideable.

2East trail out of Manistique is in good shape, flat, with good coverage.

421 into Gulliver is still a bit rough but with this new snow we'regettingit smoothed out. The logging/forestry project north of Gulliver is CRAZY. We will endeavor to keep the trail open/marked. be CAREFUL in transition through it Because it is ROUGH.

EASE YUR SQUEEZE!

REMEMBER, MEET A GROOMER, GET OFF OF THE TRAIL.

AGAIN, PAY ATTENTION OUT THERE!!!

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Prez

2/11/2025

Remember:: THE GROOMER HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY..... TELL YOUR FRIENDS... PAY ATTENTION,

STILL grooming the same schedule. A Little bit of New snow, so the coverage is improving with the bases: AS OF 10FEB:

41north of Jack Pine trailhead: groomed nightly and remains in good to very good shape. Some areas area bit rough but with positive throttle control, they are easily repaired.

The 41 north of Manistique is a bit thin but rideable and improves as you travel northward

410 into BootLake is good.

413 is thin in the heavy forest areas and corners are snirty. It's well covered but the weekend event beat it up. Smooth and fair.

7 from the 2west junction to the 411 junction is in good to real good shape. Some thin coverage in the heavy forest but very rideable in the Northern sections.

2west of Manistique is thin and rough, the base is still fragile, It's rough, but rideable.

2East trail out of Manistique is in good shape, flat, with good coverage.

421 into Gulliver is thin in spots and a bit rough as well. The logging/forestry project north of Gulliver is expanding.. we will endeavor to keep the trail open/marked be careful in transition through it.

EASE YUR SQUEEZE!

MEET A GROOMER, GET OFF OF THE TRAIL.

AGAIN, PAY ATTENTION OUT THERE!!!

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Prez

2/4/2025

With the 400 trail casualty, I've been tardy in my trail reports, here goes:

41north of Jack Pine trailhead is groomed nightly and remains in good to very good shape. Bridges will be a bit rough but with positive throttle control, and are easily repaired.

410 into BootLake is pristine.

413 is thin in the heavy forest areas and corners are snirty. It's well covered, flat and very rideable.

7 from the 2west junction to the 411 junction is in good to real good shape. Some thin coverage in the heavy forest but very rideable to the North sections.

2west of Manistique is thin and rough, the base is so fragile, traffic destroys it even after set-up. It's rough but rideable.the 2 trail out of Manistique east-bound is in good shape . The base is developing and the trail is flat.

421 into Gulliver is thin in spots and a bit rough as well. The logging/forestry project north of Gulliver is expanding.. we will endeavor to keep the trail open/marked

The 41 north of Manistique is a bit thin but rideable and improves as you travel northward. The weather is promising to give us a bit of snow prior to the w/e so...

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Prez

2/1/2025

In case you DIDN'T KNOW:

THE GROOMER HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY!

Why? You ask? We're BIGGER and we're WORKING ON THE TRAILS!

Find the safest spot off the trail and stop.

30 seconds waiting til we pass won't hurt you, anything otherwise may...

E=M(trail speed)+ inertia. E being the force assigned to how hard you hit a substantial object. Bottom line: sleds and bodies LOSE EVERY TIME.

We're just grooming, we DON'T want to play tag.

- So say we all-

Great night grooming!

41 Jackpine TH to Shingleton: very good

JPTH 41 to Manistique: very good

2East to 421 junction: THIN but flat & in good shape.

421 into Gulliver EZ Mart(gas,food) thin but covered. MAJOR Forestery project just north of town that changed the trail slightly(marked where possible)

Bear Creek Swamp is still Officially CLOSED. Recon teams have been end to end flattening and scouting "wet areas" Trail improvement projects will be moving forward before season end.

2west to 7 junction: Rough, thin coverage rideable with care/caution.

7 south up to Big Spring: Thin coverage in the forest areas, rough but rideable.

7north from Big Spring: Thin in the South good to very good north of the "lakes area" to 411 junction.

413: Thin in the forest areas, covered and rideable.

ALL trails are thin in spots and CORNERS will be "snirty" from throttle knockers and improper thumb control. Higher Traffic loads cause moguls on approaches as well as bridge approaches. Doing our best with what snow we have...

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober.

Prez

1/28/2025

So, quick update on our trail system.

41north: FRESH SYSTEM SNOW. The PB400 has some minor mechanical issues to deal with. So it'll be down 24hrs after it's run to night. Trail is in good shape. And with this NEW, FRESH SNOW from Shingleton to Garden out to Blaney, ALL our trails will benefit.

413: FRESH SNOW gives better coverage and improves the base (if the throttle knockers can control themselves)

7north from Carr Lake to the 411 junction is very good. From Carr Lake South, it thins out, but, with this FRESH SNOW coverage improves the base. From Big Springs into Manistique on

2west has FRESH SNOW. Coverage is good. The base varies with the tree coverage, so being smooth varies. Gets pretty rough close to town though...

2East: the trail surface over the entire 37 miles is uneven and hopefully the FRESH SNOW will help smooth it out...

421 into Gulliver is thin and rough with no base. This FRESH SNOW will help with both.

So, while you enjoy the FRESH SNOW;

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober.

Prez

1/23/2025

OK folks, some updates are in order:

41north from Jackpine good to real good.

41south of JP is thin but covered. Ease your squeeze and be kind to the base.

413: still thin but covered.

7north cleaned up pretty good. Coverage is thin out of BigSpring but very rideable

2 east to 421: after the HOLE IN BRACE CREEK SWAMP WAS REPAIRED (I'll never feel bad about keeping gates closed again)

Groomed out very good.

421 into Gulliver: MAJOR FORESTERY OPERATION just outside of town. Be very careful going through it.

RESPECT PRIVATE PROPERTY OR BE PREPARED TO LOSE TRAIL.

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Prez

1/17/2025

7north fm Big Spring to the 411 junction

41 from Manistique to Shingleton were groomed yesterday.

413 is still thin in the dense cover areas so...

All trails had a thin base and blown corners in the southern sections so you can thank your throttle jacker friends for that. Snow helps.

-If repairs to the PB100 go as planned(FTO)

2 West will see a groomer this afternoon.

2 East will be cleared and groomed Monday to 421 then south to Gulliver then return Tuesday.

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober,

Ride Safe

Prez

1/13/2025

41north of Jack Pine is good. The BootLake spur (410) is good.

413: VERY thin in spots so, yeah, rideable but needs more snow to groom.

7north and south of the 413 junction is being g panned in right now. no report yet but it'll probably be the same: rideable, but only groomable to the North up to 411 junction.

this snow helped the trails out of Manistique:

2 west is being checked Tuesday AM. 2 East Wednesday.

The snow helped but didn't solve our coverage issues.

Maybe more snow Tuesday

we'll see.

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober,

Prez

1/9/2025

Quick trail:

41 NORTH from Jackpine Lodge to Shingleton.

-Our only groomable trail section.-

Good base, groomed flat in good shape.

PLEASE EASE YOUR SQUEEZE on the bridge approaches. As always,

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober,

Prez

1/6/2025

Quick update:

FIRST: NO BASE ON ANY TRAIL SOUTH OF JACKPINE TRAIL HEAD. And if there is, it's ice...

Groomed North 41 from Jackpine Lodge, smoothed over and flattened moguls and corners. Cleaned up Bridge approaches. All in all, fair to good but thin, so, NOT going to groom daily.

7/413/41south into Manistique rocks and dirt showing... Sadly, ungroomable. We're watching, so, Ride Safe,

Ride Right,

Ride Sober,

Prez

12/29/2024

SCMTA has groomers staged, and as of right now, we've groomed more miles in Dec than ALL of last year, a fairly decent month,

BUT-

These last few days and the warmup preceding killed our southern trails (2east and west/7south of 413 junctions, 413 is 75% bare and 41 south of Jackpine trailhead) there may be visual coverage, but it has been judged ungroomable for now. A since this is officially Snowmobile season, "wheeled vehicle" have no place on these trails. The areas to our immediate north (Alger/Seney/Newberry and north of Curtis) are in salvage mode and reporting fair but wet conditions (from what I hear)

SCMTA is on "hold" until the coverage returns and we can repack/re-establish bases

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Happy New Year

-Prez

12/20/2024
We are parked until further notice. There is a flat base in most areas that will help us get going once the weather changes. If you do venture into the woods, use extreme caution as there is frozen truck ruts and water holes. When we are back grooming, we will update our report.

12/18/2024

Well, I wish I had better news,

Mother nature laid waste to about 75% of our trail system. The trails north of Jackpine trail head (Jackpine lodge) exists; but thin and fragile and not fully developed, (base/layers/cover). We're hoping for a decent recovery, system snow and cold. We're holding grooming until the refreeze is completely gone through everything. WE NEED SNOW on 2 West and East, 413 and 7 south of Iron creek and 41 into Manistique from the 3-4 mile marker south.

Snow dances encouraged/welcomed.

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

- Prez

12/13/2024

Wednesday morning(about0400) on the 41north grooming run the 400Trailbully blew a high pressure gasket in the right drive track motor. Lost about 6 gallons of Hydraulic fluid making it to Boot Lake bar. Field repairs got the unit back to the barn, gasket delivered yesterday and repaired this AM.

41 is done. Still early season conditions with a thinning base as you travel South of JackPine trail head.

413 will be done tomorrow (14Dec) EARLY AM)

7North and South is being groomed as I type and has very similar conditions as 41.

2 East and West still remain locked down for muzzle loading and late bow season so please respect private property. When we get clearance, they will be opened and trail development will commence. I know y'all didn't think the trails just -poof- appeared, right?

There is already evidence of those throttle knockers tearing up either baseless or thin fragile based areas. So just ease your squeeze until you're up to speed... and...

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

Ride smart

-Prez

12/12/2024

Quick trail update:

41north to BootLake spur down to Manistique and 7 from 2west junctioninto Big Spring and up to 411 junction with trail head spur and Camel Riders spur, were groomed yesterday (11Dec)...

If you notice some deep ruts in the trail(s) remember: there are hunters in these woods and truck tires do a number on the trail

Hopefully this latest addition will help build up and cover these ruts. Meanwhile,:

Ride safe,

Ride right,

Ride sober,

Ride SMART!

-Prez

12/8/2024
With the rain and Temps it would be counterproductive to deploy trail groomers. We're on hold til Temps drop below freezing and trails firm up...

12/7/2024

Just a quick trail report:

41: packed in and groomed from Manistique to Shingleton and Boot Lake spur(410) with varying snow depth from south to North(bases as well) Bases are SOFT and THIN.... so, THROTTLE DISCIPLINE will help build and maintain base development. TIA

413: Packed and groomed From JackPine Lodge trailhead junction/ 41 to the 7 junction same issues with Bases.

7: packed and groomed North to 411 junction with runs into Trail head and Camel Riders spur(s)

South of 413 junction to Big Spring Tavern.

South of Big Spring our neighbors Bay de Noc club packed and groomed From the south to the 2west junction.

BOTH 2 EAST AND 2WEST out of Manistique are NOT OPENED for Snowmobile traffic during Muzzel loading season and late bow AT THIS TIME.

This warmup may postpone runs, but we'll be out there... So, remember:

THROTTLE DISCIPLINE

RIDE SAFE,

RIDE RIGHT,

RIDE SOBER

RIDE SMART

- Prez

12/4/2024
So, we got another 3-4" at the groomer barn/ clubhouse. The Lake effect event this evening will push us over minimums and clearing/pack in will commence 05 Dec. Early.

12/3/2024

Note the "header":

Wed AM until Friday AM. Snowfall TOTALS.

We are planning accordingly so, if there is "as advertised " snowfall We'll have crews on 41 north, the 413 and 7 trails clearing and packing in.

Ride safe

Ride right

Ride sober

-Prez

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