Nothern minnesota snowmobile trip

[blvette]

We are looking at different options for this years trip, we have gone to hayward, cable, hurly, houghton, copper harbor. What are the snow conditions like, where to go for great views and snow. We are coming out of crystal, minn. Just looking for a different place, We are planning on going the last weekend in january. Thanks

[tomk]

the north shore is amazing, real backwoods riding. I have been to iron river wi, da up, hurley, i falls, and my first choice is always north shore.

two harbors has a lot of lodging but to many people, silver bay is good tons of trails very central to going north south or west. toftey is good because it is easy to get to and you can still get back in the mtns.

the sawtooth mountains are sweet, forest roads, lake chains and portages. the hard part is some times it gets far between gas stops and wanting to stop. the north shore trail is good but it gets pretty bad in the later part of the day. we usually start on the north shore trail in the morning but come home on local trails.

Some years we have been in 4 ft of pow. you can ride to waterfalls all along the shore of superior.

I cant say enough, it is just too much to talk about. just gotta go up and see it

[ezra]

I stayed a few MI s of gooseberry falls last year very nice place big lodge kinda place with a few small cabins rented the small cabin with the wife.prob would not have spent that kinda money with the boys.but the trails were perfect the day after Xmas.not hardly any one around was great.and if you want to make some real tracks the main trail is like a scenic highway.you can be at the border in no time.or pick a pow filled logging road.a bud hit a moose a few yrs back on the way up to go riding buy lake of the woods.if you think a deer wrecks your truck.

[elf]

I second the Silver Bay area. We've got a cabin in Finland and have rode everywhere up there. Great trails but also great forest roads, railroad grades, powerlines, lake and rive running.
If your the type that likes to run from bar to bar, it may not be for you as there isn't many of them and there is a lot of miles between them. If you get up the gunflint you'll run into more lodges that are open during the winter.

Go look on guest shots for posts entitled North Shore. I've put lots of pics on there. Also, there's not nearly the amount of sleds on the trails on the north shore, some days we'll hardly see another sled (but we also boondock a lot)
Where else in the midwest can you ride and see wolves, moose, and deer on the trails in the same day?
Drop me a e mail if you have any questions.

[blvette]

do they have good snowfall at the end of jaunary usually. Also what are some good places to stay at around there. We have been riding about 100miles and stopping and moving on to another place in a big circle. Thanks for the info

[arcticgeorge]

try the Ash River area. They advertize here, would have thought they would have answered here already, but a great area and can go most every direction you want to. Been there, done that, and enjoyed every minute. Ride up to I. Falls and stop at the 19th hole, great food and great people.

[elf]

Blvette,
Yes, by the end of January the snow on the North Shore is usaully excellent. However, anything can happen.

As far as good places to stay there are many. Depends on what you are looking for. There are full service luxury resorts, nice chain hotels, mom and pop hotels and resorts, and some real inexpensive less than desirable places. In the Silver bay area alone there is the American inn, the mariner, Cove point in Beaver Bay, Maple leaf in Finland, Whsipering Pines, Wildhurst, and a couple of B&B's. As you head further up the shore there are more of the same, go to the Lutsen area and there are more lodging choices than you care to look at.
As far as trips, you can head up the gunflint one day, head up to ely another day, loop up into the forest roads for a day, lot's of big rides you can do for a day.

[ubee]

great riding in Ontario just north of gunflint lake.lakes, altitude,swamps, moose, deer,fish ,low traffic,deep powder.logging roads,bush trails just no gas!

[blvette]

where would we get a map of the area, are the forest roads on any maps. Thanks for all the suggestions. It will be good to visit a different place. Oh by the way is there any dealers up there for parts. Thanks

[tomk]

yes call the national forest service the maps are 12 bucks but they are way worth it. my has save me from being lost many times. they have all roads and trails, elevations points of interest rivers... everything

[aczr600]

Is there a place to rent sleds anywhere in the north shore area thanks for any info

[elf]

As Tomk says, there are Forest Service maps available for the Superior National Forest and they are great. I've always got one with me.

As far as parts or rentals, Beaver Bay sports in Beaver Bay sells Polaris and Ski Doos and rents sleds, there's also another Poo dealer in Two Harbors

[cyguy]

The Tresle Inn is an awesome place to stay! You're right in the heart of the forest and it's authentic to say the least. We've riden up there for years and have yet to be disappointed. Once we had to borrow a shovel from the owners to clean off over 2 feet of snow from the trailer so we could load to head home. Great riding...don't tell anyone though!

[snowlover]

I have ridden pretty much the entire state of Minnesota and there are many places in northern MN that are nice. I would have a hard time ranking them due to their unique atributes.

North Shore: Absolutely beautiful! From Two Harbors up to Grand Marais you can see some beautiful scenery. Usually by Saturday afternoon the North Shore Trail will get rough but all the other spur trails stay smooth. When you see gas get it up there. Far and few between. Have been up there many times when we have had smooth trails and sometime so rough you just can't even hang on. I have driven from the cities to just out of Two Harbors at 5 am and rode all day and drove back to the cities, well worth the time.

Voyageurs(Ely, Orr, Babbitt, International Falls): Nice area, great trails, little traffic. Lots of nice resorts. Always like going to this area. Have back packed up there and also taken day trips heading different directions each day. My neighbor and I drove up at 5 a.m., rode 220 miles on awesome trails on a Sunday and drove back to the cities. Well worth it in my mind!

Baudette(Lake of the Woods area): Smoothest trails I have ever ridden and lots of different loops to do each day. No traffic. We were up there 3 years ago for 3 days and saw 8 sleds the whole time. The locals like snowmobilers. We back packed from Deer River up there.

Grand Rapids/Hill City area: You can go north one day, south the next. Nice trails. I ride in the Hill City area 5-6 times a year since our hunting shack is up there. The trails are still smooth on Sunday's. This is where our annual neighborhood trip used to be before the kids got older and in sports. Stayed at the Blue Moon Resort, nice cozy cabins.

Detroit Lakes: The area has nice trails to the north up to Twin Inlets, Itastca State Park, Twin Lakes, etc. We have free lodging at the inlaws there. Ride 2 times a winter up there.

These are just a few areas in northern MN I like to ride and have had good luck riding. I can't believe you are from MN and have not experienced what it really has to offer...I put on 2500 miles a year and all but 500 is put on here in MN. The rest is in the UP for our annual guys trip.

[grub]

Shame on you snowlover. We are trying to keep Baudette all to ourselves. Don't go and tell everybody about it. Just kidding. Many miles pristine riding. If you trailer up bring your ice fishing stuff, too. You can rent houses located over current hot spots and catch walleyes like you have never seen. Winter fishing has gotten to be as strong as summer fishing on LOW. We have also been able to ride sleds on the big lake well into April.

[grub]

Almost forgot. If you ride a Pol Roseau is only 60 miles from Baudette. You can go and see where your sled was born. I think they are building 4-wheelers in the winter but you can still go and tour the factory. Thief River Falls is about 100 miles from Baudette and if you ride an AC you can do the same tour there. A person could easily spend a week in this area and never ride the same trail twice. We also ride up to Kenora, Ontario at least once a year from the Baudette area.

[snowlover]

oops, sorry grub, my bad. I just have to say it is some of the best riding around with no traffic and some of the nicest trails MN has to offer and less of a drive to the UP.

[snowlover]

Hey grub, I know the Iasacson's(sp) from Hallock. Good friends of the family. Do you know of them? They have a farm and raise herefords....

[samc]

Our cabin is in Longville, MN and ride most of the time around that area. Great trails and lots of logging roads. Great area! We also do two trips to the UP.

[blvette]

I just got a superior national forest map for norther minnesota. Which ones are snowmobile trails, are all the dotted lines them or should I look for somthing else, basically where can we snowmobile legally thanks

[tomk]

look closely, the snowmobile trails should be labeled with little snowmobile guys, or the words snowmobile trail. I high-lighted all of the trails to make it easier. i think they are the dashed lines if i remember correctly

[dale_58]

I would NOT recomend the Mariner in Silver Bay

[snirt125]

One of my favorite places to ride is the Isabella/ Babbit area. Tons of trails to ride, trails always seem to be well maintained, and this area is in the higher elevations off the great lake so it generally picks up a little extra snow than the surrounding areas.

[elf]

Dale,
Whats wrong with the mariner?•••• star all the way!
Should note though that the Whispering Pines between Silver Bay and Finland burned last week. They may have a couple of cabins available but the main building is gone.

[blvette]

There is alot of dashed lines on the map and very few snowmobile logos on it. How many miles of trail are up there if you would guess