This next couple of days with the weather being a little warm will prevent projects from grooming. Most everyone was out before the warmup making sure trails were flat. This warmup in my opinion will not hurt too awfully bad; if the rain stays away, we should fare well.
Temperatures will start to drop early Saturday morning and temps throughout the weekend look decent for projects to get out and do what they do best. Next weeks predicted weather also looks good with colder temps at night.
Some of the best riding will be upon us in the next few weeks if the weather works in our favor. Warmer days and cool nights will certainly harden up trails. As I mentioned earlier this little warm up will not hurt the trails that badly.
There have been many posts on Facebook with sledders not staying on the marked trails. The landowners want us in these areas so please stay on the trails or we might lose access to the properties.
Now that we are getting into the middle of March spring conditions will be upon us and we all know what that means. The potential for washouts will become more prominent in areas with poor drainage, this is something to be considered. Signs will start to begin to loosen up from the grips of winter and fall, please if you see signs down help the club and try to stand them back up.
TRAIL INFORMATION:
Soldier Pond is reporting they will be out once it cools down.
Washburn Snowmobile club reporting that their machine is out of commission for the remainder of the year. Aroostook River club and Nordic Lakers have been helping. The club will be getting a Tucker to demo for the remainder of the season. They will be out as soon as they can to smoothen out ITS 83 from the Clubhouse South to where they meet Caribou.
Portage Lakers finished up yesterday and will wait until cooler temps.
Caribou is reporting good conditions. They will be waiting for colder temps.
Fort Kent is reporting they will wait for colder temps.
Eagle Lake is reporting that they will wait till cools down.
Fort Fairfield is reporting good conditions and waiting for colder weather to continue.
St. Francis Sno-Angels have groomed from the lodge ITS92 Railbed to the Fort Kent turnaround, onto Carter Brook then to Chamberlain Store. Last night saw some sledders who commented, the trails were awesome.
Central Aroostook Snowmobile Club is reporting they will be out Thursday night and will be grooming steady. Riders need to be aware of drifts in the open areas. Remember that the wind has been blowing for several days now and tree’s might have fallen since they were out.
Ashland is reporting that they will wait until it cools down. Snowmobilers are going past no snowmobile signs, this is going to become an issue, so please stay on the marked trails
Allagash is reporting that they will be out once it cools down.
Frenchville is reporting that all trails are were groomed on Wednesday and are reporting good conditions.
Red Arrow is reporting that they are waiting for colder temps.
Chapman Ridge Attention Riders: wants to inform everyone of an incident with sleds leaving the marked trail on 105N. This has caused damage to fencing, startled horses and caused a disruption to the landowner which is very upsetting and not something we ever condone.
The generosity of our landowners allows us to groom and maintain trails for all of us to ride on which we are truly thankful for. Trail 105 is a major artery. Please appreciate their generosity and stay on the MARKED TRAILS. Your actions could cause us to lose a trail which would be devastating to our trail system.
We thank you for your attention to this. We certainly do not want all to suffer for the actions of a few. We take pride in our club, our trails, our members, and all who ride and appreciate our trails.
Aroostook River Snowmobile Club reporting that they are waiting on cooler temps. A huge shout out goes to this club as they have been over to help Washburn as they are down with their machine.
Easton is reporting that they have done their trails and have also helped Central Aroostook Snowmobile club while they are down.
Madawaska is reporting good “Bit of bad news: Our groomer has been down since Monday due to some issues with our emissions system on the groomer! We temporarily fixed it today, but it seems like we are now going to have to wait for a Mercedes engine tech to come hook up his laptop and clear our alarm. We are working with the groomer service group to get this done ASAP and will let you know when we get some more news! Until then, sorry about the trails! It’s going to be warm the next couple of days and we are disappointed we can’t be out there once it cools off to repair the mess.”
Grand Isle is reporting that they have been out and will be back out once conditions allow.
Presque Isle Snowmobile club will be back out once temps drop.
Van Buren is reporting they will be out once the temps drop.
Limestone Snow Hawks reporting they will be back at it once temps cool off. A must-see trail is the new Loring Loop trail very well marked and is right next to the Big Arch Hanger.
Caswell (Pleasant Ridge Riders) reporting they will be back at it once temps cool off.
SOUTHERN AROOSTOOK TRAILS:
Spring sledding has arrived. Consensus from the clubs is that they are grooming at night while the temps are low enough and leaving the trails alone during the day. All trails were groomed before the thaw and this weekend should bring a drop in temperature, so they will be back at it when conditions allow.
There is still a ton of sledding to be done just ride carefully and watch out for wildlife in the trails and be mindful of signage warning people of reroutes. There is a major reroute near Shin Pond due to a logging operation as well as one in the Eastern Maine Snow Riders area of trail #1.
Oxbow-Masardis snowmobile Club Trails Update (03/10/2021):
This will be a week of change and spring conditions are on the way. It appears that we have a few days of well above normal temperatures and some rain on the way.
We have been able to groom our sections of ITS 85 and 86 and trail 71-D in the last few nights as temps have been good for grooming. We will now be parking the groomer until the weather turns colder again, hopefully by the weekend.
Our groomer has recorded 550-hours of grooming so far this year. Our grant with the state for 500-hours of grooming has maxed out. However, thanks to those that have donated to our Trails funding campaign so far, we can keep going a little while longer. A special thanks go to the Umcolcus Sporting Camps and the Shin Pond Village Store for their generous donations.
ON THE SOCIAL SIDE:
This Saturday is the MSA March directors meeting which will feature the showcase ride. the route for the MSA Showcase rides this Saturday: we will be leaving the clubhouse at 9am and traveling north on ITS 81 to Van Buren then south on 105 where we will be stopping in Stockholm at Axel Siding around 11:30 for a lunch of chili and hot dogs put on by the Nordic Lakers Snowmobile Club (donations suggested). We will continue south to Washburn, then to Caribou via ITS 83, We will then take route 89 (Connor Cruiser trail) to 100A which we will take around the base (your choice of the new runway loop or 100A). We would also like a group picture in front of the hanger, then you can choose to head to the clubhouse (if you hauled your sled there) or ride back to Caribou on ITS 89 and the Par and Grill around 4 pm for a spaghetti meal and the MSA meeting. If you did not RSVP for the meal and the meeting but would still like to join us for the ride you are more than welcome!
Meduxnekeag Ramblers Snowsled Club will be hosting a trailside hotdog roast this Saturday on ITS 83 at the Wiley Road, in Littleton from 10-2
March 13th Class of 2021 Project Grad Poker Run Fundraiser. Registration starts at 9am at the Caribou Scouts Hall located on Otter Street, Near the Park and Ride.
