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private land and to ensure that we don't loose any trails due to excessive noise, please be sure to think about the type of modifications that you are making to your sled and where you are gong to be riding it. Although we do not have decibel restrictions here in our trails, if your sled is too loud for the land owners, we loose the trail, which means you can't enjoy the changes that you made. |
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As of 3/20/10 - 1:15pm Trails are closed for the season |
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As of 3/8/10 - 9:15pm Warmer temps put a damper on the grooming efforts although it hasn't been warm enough yet that it's done enough damage to close trails but the next couple of days could change that. The roads are completely bare and trails are hard packed to ice in spots. The next couple of days of warmer temps and rain may be the end of the season for us unless we get a major snow fall soon. I would just like to thank all the guys and/or girls that helped with grooming this season and hope that you all enjoyed the trails as well. Our plans are to have the UTV and another Skandic for next season which will mean even better trails. We hope that for all our you that enjoyed the trails this season are already members or decide to join the club as the funds from even your membership help to go a long way with our annual cost for grooming and next year will be an even greater cost. |
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As of 3/2/10 - 8:35pm Grooming efforts today were limited due to an equipment breakdown. Due to the excessive use of the one piece of equipment this season we've managed to find a weak point in it already. We will begin grooming once again as soon as we can get the equipment repaired and back in the trails. |
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As of 3/1/10 - 7:45pm Groom, groom, groom. Time to groom. Grooming resumed early today on trail #4 from the Greene Township Building to Beechwood Inn to Etter Rd. Being that it was pretty rough to start with grooming today didn't take it down completely flat but was enough to knock down some of the big bumps to small bumps. We'll do more on that tomorrow night. Tonight grooming is going on in trail #44, I'll let you know tomorrow how far they go and what the end results are. As you can see on the schedule we've got grooming planned for day and night each day this week and should be able to get everything flat again by the weekend (providing the weather holds out).
Trail #4 between Mark and Barton is still closed. |
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As of 2/28/10 - 8:00pm Snow, snow, snow. We received somewhere between 12" - 24"+ since Friday night, Only problem with that much falling in a short period of time, is that we have to wait for it to be packed down before we can groom it. Today was a chance for the trails to get packed and will resume grooming tomorrow night. Trails are a bit rough right now, but hope to have them smoothed out within the next couple of days. The warming today did take a toll on some of the roads but should have enough on most secondary roads to be able to get down them without wiping out a set of skags or skis. |
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As of 2/25/10 - 11:30pm Just got back from the membership meeting and the trail are ice with drifting across in many places. Grooming has been limited due to conditions of the the roadways. We've received a good 4 inches (minimum) today and more to come tonight. I'm hoping to get get out tomorrow to groom the East part of the South trail (#4). Other spots of the trail that I saw tonight are roughly 6-8 inch moguls (not much for most of today's sleds), but just enough to say that they're not flat. The East part of trail #4 is far from flat for now but hopefully I'll take care of that tomorrow. If you're ready to ride we have the snow and the trails are all open. |
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As of 2/24/10 - 5:55pm Latest update on the trails is that there is ice out there. Grooming for tonight is not going to work with the ice and has been suspended until tomorrow night, pending additional snow. |
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As of 2/24/10 - 5:15am Only a dusting of snow fell but we lost nothing. Didn't get any to groom yesterday although John will be going out tonight. More snow is on the way and we'll try to get things smoothed out for the by the weekend. |
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As of 2/22/10 - 10:10pm Sun was out on Saturday and Sunday, but didn't seem to be warm enough to do any real damage to the trails, the roads on the other hand look like that of a mid July day. Today the temps were still up in the mid to upper 30's and rain, that did start to eat away at the trails, however though the base should hold the damage to a minimum. Weather is starting to drop back down to the 20's again over the next few days with possible snow each day. As for the trails, our trail #4 is still closed and we have not been able to get a groomer around it yet, but will be trying to get it out on the East side of Barton Rd this week, which I've heard is in a real need of some grooming. Unfortunately I've not heard anything else from the North trail #44 the last two days, but will assume that it's about due for a little more trimming as well. |
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As of 2/18/10 - 8:10pm North Trail #44 is the primary focus for grooming today. John R. was out earlier today and smoothed out the trail from Greene Township Building (GTB) to Rt. 89 and right now Rodney and Tom are on their way out trail #44 to Fox Rd (NY / PA state line). John reported earlier today that when you was out that conditions were very good for grooming and that the drag was doing a great job. We can expect that Rodney and Tom will have the same success tonight as well. Reports were that Zach did what he could of the South trail from GTB to Yaples' field and to Beechwood Inn. We'll be trying to find a way to get around the closed section of the South trail to get out off Turner Rd over the weekend to clean that up as well. |
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As of 2/17/10 - 10:05pm Wow, That was a long break. Sorry for the lack of updates for trails but my PC had a serious problem after installed a new version of anti-virus software. Lots of good trail stuff that I could update and now I've got to report some not so good news. Section of trail between Dutch Rd and Barton Rd has been closed by the owner due to the theft of a power generator on 2/13. If you have any knowledge of where the generator is or who may have it, please contact Craig Smith (Dutch Rd.) or you can send an email to me info@walessnodrifters.com and I'll take your name or email address out of the message. Craig gets his generator back and we can have the trail open again. As for the rest of the conditions; last night Tom H. and I hit the trail from Etter Rd to Beechwood Inn to the Greene Township Building were FLAT. Monday night Rodney & Tom M went from the Greene Township Building to Heibel Rd, reported as small rollers. (that's the North trail # 44). Tonight we have Zach and Tim out now and I'll update you tomorrow on where they went and the conditions of the trails. Depends on where Zach and Tim went tonight as to how much of the trail 44 still needs done, but if you check the grooming schedule, you'll be able to see that we have plans for the next two days of grooming to make it flat again (or close as we can with one goomer). |
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As of 1/18/10 - 9:55pm Alright, big delay in the updates here, either my PC was acting up or the server hosting the web site had a problem. Either way there were no updates. Conditions have changed drastically too. Temps warmed up enough that grooming makes a big difference and we did have a couple of guys get out on Wednesday and Thursday to groom when it first started to warm up, although I'm not sure that anyone has been out since. All main roads are bare and even the secondary roads are don't good to try to ride down. I'm not sure how bad the dirt roads are, but unless you plan on using all trails you'd better have good skags. Trails themselves are going to be very icy for the most part and you may even find a couple of wet spots during the day when it warms up. Nights are freezing again so your best time to get out would be first thing in the morning or late at night. Looks like the next few days will be the same and we'll try to get someone out to groom to take care of any bumps. |
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As of 1/13/10 - 9:15pm Unknown to me Randy S. and Frank W. were our Monday night (1/11) and groomed the North trail (#44) from Tate Rd. to Wildman Rd. From what I heard it was very much in need of it too. I went out last night and hit my little stretch from Tate to Beechwood Inn and over to Etter Rd. which for as much as what we've done that already, it still needed it and I'm sure will need it again today (rumor has it that Randy and Frank might get tonight too). John R. and Steve H. are scheduled to groom tomorrow morning, John R. being a new guy to grooming is going to get a good day to learn and with the temps planed to be up a little tomorrow, the results of their efforts should be very noticeable. Please remember when riding over a freshly groom trail that if you ride at a steady pace you can be helping pack the trail, if you ride aggressively (on gas-break-gas) you loosen the snow and mound it up, basically undo everything we just did with the groomer. Once the trail is groomed and you notice that it's nice and flat (or lose to it) try to maintain a steady pace, you don't have to go super slow, just steady. |
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As of 1/11/10 - 9:45pm Still cold and still snowing. We only received about 2 - 3 inches since Saturday night but it's stayed cold and the trails are white. I wish I could say that they are all flat but temps being so cold it's hard to move the snow and have it pack at the same time. We're due for a couple of days that get up into the mid to upper 20's which will be just about perfect for grooming. We're still running with only one grooming sled for now so our trails aren't as nice as we'd like them to be (temps play a part in it too) but we're working on trying to set up an aggressive grooming schedule that will keep the Skandic on the move. From what I've heard the North trail (44) is getting a bit rough while the areas that we have been able to groom so far aren't too bad but are in need of grooming again. |
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As of 1/9/10 -12:30am Another b-e-a-u-tiful winter day in Erie. Once again we received more snow, about 8 inches at my house. We got to get out and groom again last night, after some much needed changes were made to the sled. The changes helped some but the temps helped more. Trails were flattened from Afton's Landscaping on Rt 8 to Beechwood Inn and then from the Beechwood Inn pipeline to Etter Rd. Yea, much the same as I did the other night, and yes it was mainly to see if the changes made to the sled helped much. Would have been really nice to have both drags going but we're still looking for the 2nd Skandic yet. Plenty of fresh snow in the trails and much more on the way for this weekend, so get out and enjoy it. |
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As of 1/4/10 -9:15pm More snow than what we can deal with, for the Skandic (new grooming sled) anyway. I attempted to groom from Tate Rd to Beechwood Inn and then from Beechwood Inn over the new trail to Etter Rd (4 hours or work and no real difference). The trail from the Beechwood pipeline to Etter is very good, although the pipleine itself is not as good. So much powder and to little weight on the front of the Skandic. That thing will go through just about anything as long as you don't have a drag on back and plenty of room to turn it. Anyway back to the trails, for the most part there are a bunch of 8 - 10 inch moguls and lots of powder. Once things get packed down a little more or the temps rise a little we'll be able to do a much better job grooming. Side roads are still in pretty good shape, main roads they have plowed down and salted so don't try to ride too far on main roads, side roads are still okay. Fields are drifting and deep, you'd better plan on a full throttle and/or a deep lug track to get through, but don't stop in the middle of it or you'll be spending some valuable time digging out your sled. To sum it up, it's good riding as long as you stay on the packed trail. |
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As of 1/2/10 - 6:15pm Trails are snow covered and open. I just got back from a short ride with the family and I will admit that the trails need groomed and there is finally enough snow to do it. We ran into a couple of reasonably small wet spots in the trail off of the Beechwood Inn pipeline in the woods. The new trail between Wales and Presque Isle to Etter Road is a nice addition to the trail system. Not sure who or when we'll be out grooming, but if anyone is interested in helping this year, please let me know and we'll try to set up a schedule. And for all of those that don't already know it, it's snowing like crazy now and is expected to continue this way until tomorrow night. Game Lands are still closed until 1/17! |
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As of 12/30/09 - 9:15pm Trails are open (I guess) I've not heard anything official but I noticed that the gates appear to be open and people I've tried to contact are out riding. Needless to say I don't know what the condition of the trails are at this point but I can guess that the snow that we did get is probably packed down to the frozen ground. We did get about 10-12 inches of snow a couple of days ago with nothing today but another inch or two expected for tomorrow with temps in the low to mid 30's so my best guess is that the snow will pack down quick. We don't have enough snow yet to run the groomer but as soon as we do get enough we'll try to get someone out to run it ASAP. Until I can get a full report from someone, please use caution on the trails and watch for downed trees and/or branches (as well as other sleds). Please remember that the State Game Lands are not open yet and need to be avoided until Jan 17, 2010.
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As of 12/20/09 - 9:45pm Trails don't have enough snow yet but are getting a much needed cold to help freeze the ground. If it stays cold, once we get some good snow, it should allow us to ride without the fear of riding through mud holes. Please keep in mind the first trip out to be cautions of trail changes and possible obstructions in the trail. |
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As of 12/7/09 - 11:05pm Closed. for now, but we are getting some snow and temps have been cold for the last few days, so it shouldn't be long if it keeps up. |
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As of 3/8/09 - 5:00pm Closed. Nothing left now but memories of one of the best seasons in many years. Unfortunately we suffered with some grooming problems but are already working on having that problem fixed and look forward to having the UTV Pioneer for next season if all goes well with the grant from the state. |
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As of 2/26/09 - 11:30pm The news I have is not good. Someone attempted to go out the other day to groom with the only machine that we currently have (had) working and it broke. Not only were we not able to get the trails back in shape, the way that we wanted to, after the poker run, we are now without any grooming equipment until the other one is fixed and returned. Then with all of this equipment malfunctioning we had to have two straight days of sun and warm weather that pretty much destroyed any snow that was out there. Good news on the day was that we did manage to have someone (don't know who they are yet) that managed to get out to clear up any of the remaining debris from the heavy winds back a couple of weeks ago. Many thanks go out to whomever did that. Other, somewhat good, news is that the last of the backordered parts for the first machine have come in and they (Off-Road Express) is working on getting it back together for us. They say that we might even get it back this weekend, which would be good if we get snow. Not sure if we'll see the other grooming machine back in action this year, but we will keep hope that the new Pioneer grooming machine from UTV will be in our club by this fall. |
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As of 2/21/09 - 4:35pm I'm not sure what the trails are like today, as I've not been out since the latest snow fall, although I can tell you that we've received about 8 inches of snow during the last few days and temps have stayed clod enough that it hasn't had much chance to melt, other than on the roads. As you can read from the previous update, there was plenty of downed trees and branches due to the strong winds the previous week. Lance and Randy did get some of it picked up, but I'm not sure if the rest of the trail was gone over yet, so please proceed through the trails with caution. If you find something in the trails or can send me an update, good or bad, please do so and I'll post it for all. |
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As of 2/17/09 - 7:35pm Here's a bit of information from a fellow club member that was out in the trails on Saturday.
Hey
guys, Randy
and I were out on Saturday and there were quite a few trees down in the
woods. It looked like a war zone in some areas! We moved quite
a few of the big ones and the dangerous ones that had the potential for
impalement but there are still some that will require a chainsaw. We
took a hatchet out yesterday and cleared some more. (We rode over 100
miles yesterday!) Most of this work was done between Moon Meadows and the
Beechwood. I was surprised that there actually was some
trail base left in the woods sections with relatively few water holes.
Amazingly my sled is actually still pretty clean. The woods sections
are terrible as the ice bumps are still there from the poker run.
The trail that cuts off the Beechwood pipeline is especially bad.
Randy thinks we could run the groomer over these sections. We would just
have to be careful not to cut too deep in any thin areas. In the
fields we would have to just run the pan. Is the green sled back
from Offroad Express yet? If
you guys get a chance get out and ride. We saw two sleds all day
yesterday and only one on Saturday. I think everyone assumes
there’s no snow. We rode all the way past Corry to We
also have a new member who help us clear the trails on Saturday. My cousin
bought my old sled and I handed him an application with it.
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As of 2/13/09 - 10:15pm We did get snow, but not nearly enough yet to ride on. Ground is covered but that's about it. I'll be out of touch with the area over the weekend but I don't suspect that we'll get enough, with the little extra snow we might get, to ride yet, unless you want to get wet & muddy. |
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As of 2/11/09 - 9:15pm It's been a few days since the last update, but anyone that lives around this area should have a pretty good idea what the conditions are, CRAPPY! Temps have been on the rise since last Thursday with today's weather hitting the 60's with rain. Needless to say the 150+ inches of snow that we have seen so far this year is just about all history. Nothing left but a few small piles here and there that use to be mountains a couple of weeks ago. We'll keep hope that we don't loose everything and that more snow is yet to come, but this might be the end of it. I'll let you know when (if ) we get more. |
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As of 2/4/09 - 11:45pm Just getting back from grooming Heibel Rd. to Beechwood Inn and I'd say that it's good from Heibel to Tate Rd. Not real bad from Tate Rd to Mark Rd, and still rough from Mark Rd to Beechwood Inn. Many passes were made in all areas from Tate Rd to the Beechwood Inn, but with only one groomer still, it's going to take many more passes to smooth it out to where I'd say it was good. According to the log sheet Fred and Bob spent 5 hours in the trails between Mark Rd. and Phillipsville Rd. on Monday, although I'm not sure what the condition of the trail is now, 5 hours for that stretch of trail should have done something to help it out. About 3 inches of powdered snow fell today, but did very little to help with the trails however it did help some of the side roads. |
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As of 2/3/09 - 10:10pm Not sure if trails were groomed yet or not, as I lost spark on my way home from the Tri-County (Corry) bonfire on Saturday night and have not been out yet since. The good news is that I was only about 1/2 block away from my house when it finally died. Enough with my problems, as stated in the 2/1/09 update we had a warm up which took any snow off the roads, which is still the case, roads are bare. The temps have dropped back down into the teens and we are getting a light snow fall, but I don't think that we're expected to get much more than an inch or two overnight. Being that it's a real light powder it'll blow right off the trail with the first sled trying to run over it. Again the roads are bare but the trails are covered. I'll try to get more info on the grooming and let you know as soon as I get it, but for now just make sure you're shocks are good and you relieve yourself of any liquids before you hit the trails. |
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As of 2/1/09 - 10:20pm Rough!, Rough!, Rough! Such a good turnout for the Poker Run yesterday the trails are really showing it, not to mention that with the sun and slight warming today the roads are completely bare. There's plenty of snow in the trails yet and we'll be scheduling to get them flattened back out as best we can over the next few days. |
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As of 1/31/09 - 1:20am I must give credit to all that have tried to groom the last couple of days as we've had enough snow that it's almost impossible to groom because there's so much powder that it's hard to keep the drag going where you want it to go and it usually ends up getting you stuck, and I know all about that from last night, first hand. Do to transmission problems with our green sled we're down to the one sled (plus Frank and his drag) and with all this snow the last couple of days, we're unable to get the trails as smooth as what we'd like them to be. Anyway here's the scoop on the trails; they're all covered with snow! How's that for a report? Fields are drifting, trails in woods should all be pretty good, the original land bridge just off Rt 89 heading towards NY is gone, although Randy has placed a couple of wooded skids directly at the bottom of the hill, please use caution as these are not a regular bridge but will work in an emergency. lots of light fluffy powder out there, in fact, we received about an extra 10+ inches of snow today, with more expected tomorrow. |
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As of 1/29/09 - 12:05am Snow, Snow, Snow & more Snow!! We received somewhere around 12 inches of snow in the last 24 hours, bad news is that when the 2nd shift grooming crew went out last night, both sleds had problems early on in the process. One of them we were able to get going again while the other is now sitting at Off Road Express with transmission problems. With al the additional snow from last night and today we opted to not try to run the one groomer until a few riders have had a chance to pack down the fresh snow. Hopefully Joe, Brian and the rest of the crew at Off Road will be able to get our machine running again soon so that we an keep up on the trails and ensure that their good for the Poker Run this weekend. As it goes for now we will be running the one groomer tomorrow all day and night and then again on Friday so please be cautions and remember that if you're out riding and you come upon the groomer, the groomer has the right of way. |
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As of 1/27/09 - 12:20pm I heard from Frank that was out last night on the North trail (44) from Horseshoe Dr. to the pipeline that leads to Moon Meadows (MM) and that it was pretty beat up but he was able to improve upon the trail however though it could still use some additional work. Trails East of that heading towards the NY state line are in definite need of grooming as well. Good news is that as I type we have a crew out on trail 44 heading straight to the NY line and working their way back so that should help take care of that trail as well as the pipeline going to MM. 6:20pm Update One crew finished up trail 44 to Raymond Rd. and the pipeline to MM. There is a second shift crew about to go out now on trail 4 to see what that needs. And I'll be going out tomorrow to try to run the entire loop, depending on how much snow we get tonight and how much of it get packed down before we hit the trails with the groomers. |
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As of 1/25/09 - 8:20pm I was wrong Lance and Randy did go out Friday night on the North trail (44) from the storage shed to Wales Rd. Rumors have it that is was still in pretty good condition today. On Saturday late afternoon and into the evening I had the opportunity to show a couple more interested members how to run the groomers on the South trail (4). Since conditions on Saturday were hard packed snow, some areas didn't benefit much from the attempt, while some areas it worked well. We groomed from Tate Rd. to Dyer Rd making multiple passes in most of it to try to knock down what we could. I think that you'll find it better, but not as good as I'd like to see it. I just found out that we had some extra grooming on trail 4 today as well to further improve the trail we went over last night. Good news is though that with the additional help, we're able to get out more often as you can see on the grooming schedule we're trying to get out at least every other day if possible. If you're interested in helping, just let us know. |
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As of 1/23/09 - 11:50pm Temps were up enough the last to days that the roads are now bare and the snow everywhere has settled down some. Good news though, the temps are already down below freezing and we're expected to have a high of only 16 (F) tomorrow and getting some additional snow as well. We had a couple of guys ready to groom tonight, but temps were a little to high to get out earlier. We'll hit it tomorrow and see what we can knock down, as I hear that the North trail (44) is a little rough out near Moon Meadows. |
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As of 1/22/09 - 12:25am On Tuesday night (1/20) I had the opportunity to show three interested individuals (Lance, Randy and Rich) how to run the groomers. In the process these guys managed to do a pretty good job at cleaning up trail 4 from Tate Rd to Phillipsville Rd. and what a mess it was out near Phillipsville. It was not only the first time we groomed much of this area, it was the first time that Lance, Randy and Rich ran the groomers and anyone that's been riding over this area, you will really enjoy the hard work these guys put in on their first time on the groomers. With the help of members that are willing to give up a night of riding your race sled for the likes of a utility sled, we can achieve flat trails for everyone, all it take is a little time. |
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As of 1/19/09 - 11:00pm Well the last entry I posted is off by one day, today is actually the 19th not yesterday as I had posted and the 18th was, well, the 18th, just really early of the 18th as that was done after I went out grooming. Anyway the 1 - 2 inches they were calling for turned into 4 - 6 inches at my house two block South of I-90 off Rt.97. We'll be out grooming tomorrow night from the township building on Tate Rd. out through towards Wattsburg so please use caution when going through that trail (4) tomorrow night (Tuesday the 20th). |
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As of Well the time we put in last night helped, but with many sleds out today the trails are in need of more grooming. I also had the opportunity to help fence off an area in Wattsburg near Faulkner's BP station where someone had veered off of the trail and ran over a landowners tree. Although it may be inviting to stray from the beaten path to break through virgin snow, we must remember, that many of our trails are on private property and if we don't stick to the trails we are subject to loose the access to that piece of trail. During my adventures earlier today I noticed that Trail 4 from Dutch Rd out into Wattsburg, and probably all the way to the New York line, was in need of a good grooming. Being that the Game Lands are needed to access these trails (are is part of that section as well), we were not able to get to them, but now that the Game Lands are open we can now start to hit it. If you or someone you know would like to help groom, please email trails@walessnodrifters.com with dates and times that you would like to help.
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