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Wheeling on snowmobile trails

12K views 77 replies 21 participants last post by  Christmas Cookie 
#1 ·
So I've done some looking around and haven't been able to find an answer to my question: Is it illegal to drive a 4x4 down snowmobile trails? I've done it before but am just wondering if anyone could give me a ticket for it?
 
#7 ·
No there wasn't, the majority of snowmobile trails are on private property and they are leased from the property owner. Snowmobile trails are closed to all traffic except snowmobile from dec 1 to April 1st. The only exception is about 330miles of shared trails that are part of an ORV route
 
#4 ·
To 4x4 on snow machine trails - N O

1) MI law still applies: lower peninsula trails are open ONLY if explicitly posted as such (i.e. ORV route / ORV scramble area) and upper peninsula is open unless posted closed. Federal land has it's own confusion, so consult motor vehicle use documents at applicable NFS region office

2) Many snow machine trails are on private land and access is only granted during the winter on the specified path.

I'm a pretty savvy and aware Jeeper/ATVer and have seen or heard of nothing from the DNR allowing ORV use on snow machine trails. The changes last year raised ORV permit costs (PA 75), and clarified road shoulder use and processes (PA 117, 118),and cleaned up a few loose ends - including elimination of the "permit for over x people/vehicles" rule (PA 119).

Unless you're on a now machine with a current permit, snow machine trails are off-limits.

Like many around here, I'm pretty passionate about correcting misinformation of this type. Every violation - intentional or inadvertant - hurts the sport and limits our access.
 
#19 ·
I love you Joe, but no. If its a trail im legal to be on then I dont really care if its groomed. I pay for the use of the trail too. Frankly, its attitude like this that makes me almost want to run up and down them
 
#20 ·
I lost my respect for the groomed trails and sledders a few years ago when it was reported to the DNR by a groomer driver that I was "tearing up" a groomed trail while leading a night run for Snofari. We literally crossed a groomed trail without spinning a tire. We were a few 100 feet into the woods airing down and a groomer stopped and watched us. Then a complaint went to SoFo about us from the DNR.

I replied that I wanted to meet with the DNR and the groomer driver and I was going to bring along a police officer that I happened to have on my run. Ironically we could never get the meeting to happen, it just faded away.

I agree with OZ, if I'm legal on the trail, I'm going to enjoy my day in the woods.
 
#23 ·
About 330 miles of the trail system is shared and hardly any of that is just groomed on the shoulders. the trail is groomed just as any other trail out there. Many of those trails are connectors making michigan one of largest interconnected trail systems around. Michigan has over 6000 miles of groomed snowmobile trails, I say to the snowmobile avoid the shared trails you have plenty of others to use
 
#24 ·
i didnt think there was alot of shared trail. of the few pieces i have run, we run the shoulder, and it is groomed there. mabey the local groomer wont bother with the rest of it because of ruts? we ususlly run connector trails that are not groomed, and forest service roads. we dont like the sled traffic. dont wanna get hit head on by someone that thinks they are tucker hibbert. i had heard 7600 miles of groomed trail in michigan, from the vp of msa last year in pine stump junction. he was a nice guy, and would be open to a meet with glfwda to see where the two groups could work together. its not don reed anymore, i forget his name, im pretty sure i have his business card.
 
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#29 ·
Jim and I ran into this yesterday in st Helen. We pre ran for sno fari and on the road out, a county road, some douche in a grey side by side with tracks came up to us and said we were on a snowmobile trail, but don't worry about it this time because our tires were big enough and they weren't digging in and they were going to re groom that night anyway. :sonicjay: We were in the motor sport area that is open to all vehicles at all times everywhere. Jim didn't feel like arguing the point that we were twenty feet from a street sign as it was getting late and we were just unlocking hubs and shit. The more I think about it the more I want to go back and fuck with that guy.
 
#37 ·
I went as far as going to their Facebook page and almost leaving a message but I didn't. The best I would have been able to do was reply to his post about grooming for the day since only their board can start threads, plus it would have gotten deleted. Every time I thought about it yesterday the more pissed I got. That arrogant fuck.
 
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