Lots of sled traffic out there this weekend. Combination of pent-up energy, great trails and the I-500. We were forecasted to get between 3 and 6″ of snow on Saturday, and I can say yep… we got somewhere around that. There was just a ton of high winds with that snow which caught me off guard, and it was kinda a blizzard out there. Trails has drifts on them, and the Saturday runs had a bit of trouble getting the mougles out underneath the new snow, so some trails – mostly the Grade were a bit bumpy on Sunday. The guys worked hard last night and are getting things fixed back up, even double grooming the grade in places to get it back to what you expect from the snow-highway region.

Enjoy riding today and tomorrow because the bottom is going to fall out of the temps starting on Wednesday through the weekend. Single digit temps with below zero wind chill is going to make riding cold, and pond hockey even colder. Wednesdays should being 1-3″.

Groomers are running all week, with some new training here and there. The loggers are still plowing part of the Caffey trail for about 4 miles. We are grooming the road too so there is snow and it is passable, but a little bumpy from the truck traffic.

Treeline to Mackinac Island is up and being used.

This weekend is the 9th annual LaBatte Blue UP Pond Hockey Championships. Town is very busy, so rooms are scarce if you don’t already have a reservation. Call the chamber/visitors bureau if you want to head up, I heard there are just a few rooms left, and they will know where they are. There will be hockey all day on the bay on Friday and Saturday, and Sunday till afternoon. They have ice bowling, a heated beer tent and run a free Pub shuttle to the hotels all over town for the whole weekend. Check it out, it is an experience for sure.

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Same thing up here. COLD temps, and now new snow. We are working with what we have, and I am ready to say that the trails are about excellent condition. For a groomer’s perspective, the trail, especially the Grade is thin, but a sledder would hardly notice unless off-trail.

You are going to find a few rocks here and there that have worked their way to the surface – there just isn’t enough snow to cover all of those, but there is a good ice base with 3-5′ of hard packed snow on top of that to ride on. There are absolutely no issues to report anywhere on our trails, and I am happy with the way things are going for this season.

The forecast is saying maybe a couple of inches late tonight, and again on Saturday. Some pick-me-up would be good to thicken things up a little.

Soo I-500
Groomers are running everyday, and all of the trails are widened out and ready for this weekend heavy I-50 traffic. If you are going to day-trip to the Soo of the I-500, of course you can stay at one of the area motels and ride from there. If you are trailering in for the day, you are welcome to park at our downtown trailhead and ride out of Iggy from there. Take the first exit off I-75 and take a right, go downtown and turn left on Marquette street at the blue NAPA building. The trailhead is there on your left, with overflow parking on the North end of the ice rink.

Mackinac Island:
There has been a couple brave soles that have crossed to Mackinac Island, but no treeline yet, and I do not know the ice thickness out in the middle, (nor will I report it, or advise that it is safe to cross) When and if a treeline goes up, I will let you know – it is your responsibility to determine if it is safe to cross yourself.

Make your plans for the LaBatte Blue UP Pond Hockey Championships held in St. Ignace on February 14th. 32 ice rinks carved out of the wild Lake Huron Ice, overlooking beautiful Mackinac Island. A full semi-load of LaBatte beer. Ice bowling. Live Music. A fun weekend for sure. Come check out the second largest tournament in the country!

Thursday Picture Day:
Trail candy for you this morning taken just outside of Iggy on some of the trail that breaks down the quickest. As you can see, it may be thin, but there is no snirt at all, bright white and ready to rock.

The third pic is an example of the rocks that I am taking about. As you can see a perfect groomed white trail with no snirt, and a random rock sitting on top. With under a 12′ base, you will find that from time to time on our RR Grade. Perfectly ridable, and you will hear an occasional click on the skis.

Enjoy the weekend, and keep the track side down.

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