| Trail Report January 2, 2008 8 am The trails are in poor to good condition. Trail #8 going west is in good condition. Trail #49 south to Kinross is closed because needing a boat in quite a few spots. The city trail is in fair condition with a couple of wet areas you can get around. The weatherman is calling for 40's and rain on Sunday and warm on Monday & Tuesday also. The last 2 nights we have had temps below zero but there is still lots of water going south. Mother Nature blessed us with 8-10 inches of fresh snow in the last 5 days, which has allowed us to get grooming again. The groomers went yesterday on all trails and we found lots of water. Areas that were froze 2 weeks ago are now open. It is just like the first week of December when the first snow arrives. The trail to Kinross is the worst when you first leave the Sault on the power line. The RR grade and forest service roads are pretty good. The downtown trail will not be open until we get more snow. The trail going to Portage Avenue has a gate on it to keep cars out of the City Garage compost area, but you can get around it with your sled, it just keeps the cars out. The parking lot behind the CLOSED Raco Store is plowed and the porta john is there. Remember this is still early riding at best, with some areas of unfrozen water and dirt under the snow. There are tree stumps, branches, and rough ground under our thin layer of snow, and little traction in some of the corners, so ride careful. Martin Cottle, Grooming Chairman Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association Soo Locks Camera for Live Weather About Us The Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association grooms approximately 62 miles of trails in, and around, the city of Sault Ste. Marie & Chippewa County. There is a groomed trail within the city limits, that runs right past most of the lodging`establishments and restaurants along the I-75 Business spur. This city trail provides easy access to trails to the west via a newly opened 12-foot X 12-foot tunnel underneath the I-75 expressway! You no longer have to run 3 Mile Rd overpass to get to the trail. A visitor can travel right from the hotel to gas or food, by sled, and right out of the city on a groomed trail. A parking lot in the downtown area can be used as a staging area. It is located right across from the fire station. Our trails connect with Brimley, Raco, Strongs to the west, and Kinross, Pickford, Cedarville, and St. Ignace to the south. Every part of the Eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan is reachable from the Sault on a ! groomed trail. We operate 3 different trail groomers and our trails are groomed 7 days a week during the riding season. We have a large group of groomer operators that volunteer their time and take pride in doing a good job so that you may have smooth trails to enjoy your winter pastime. The city of Sault Ste. Marie and surrounding area has all the amenities a snowmobiler could ask for. There are plenty of restaurants and lodging establishments in the area. Local snowmobile dealers sell all four brands of snowmobiles and accessories, and there are several repair shops that can provide service for those in need. There are many places along the trail system to buy gas, as well as many good restaurants along the way. Most gas stations in the surrounding area carry such items as spark plugs and dealer brand oil. Sault Sainte Marie A normal winter in Sault Ste. Marie will provide enough snow for snowmobiling from December through March and even into April, if Mother Nature co-operates fully. Fresh snowfalls up to 12" fall on a regular basis, and make for some of the best snowmobiling, through some of the most beautiful forests in the country. After a fresh snowfall of 8-10", some of our trails look almost like tunnels with the heavily laden tree branches almost covering the trail overhead. If that isn't enough to convince you to come to Sault Ste. Marie, how about our Annual Fun Runs and Rally in January, or the I-500 Snowmobile race the following weekend in February. We have some of the best snowmobiling conditions and activities, in some of the most beautiful winter land in the United States, and it's here waiting for you! Come sled with us in Sault Ste. Marie. | 
