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03-17-2008, 01:08 PM
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Riding with SnowtrailsTV
Ontario Style
by Keith (idooski) Durkee
When we left Grand Rapids, Michigan, I was frantic with anticipation. This was my first trip with videomike and Snowtrails TV and only my second trip to Ontario, Canada to go snowmobiling. It was a beautiful day and I was very excited about the adventure ahead of us. We are actually going on three separate tours while we are in Ontario this trip. We’ll call them The Gold Rush Tour, The R.A.N. Tour, and the run to Abitibi Canyon with SnowmobileWorld.com. You could do any one of these or all of them at one time depending on the time you have available to ride.
Our first tour, called The Gold Rush Tour in the James Bay Frontier, consisted of four days of riding with each day ending at a different location. This type of riding is commonly referred to as saddle bagging and it requires that you carry everything that you’ll need each day on your sled. We started the first leg of our tour in New Liskeard. We arrived the evening before and stayed at the Waterfront Inn. It was nice to take a break after the long drive and gather our thoughts and get our gear packed for the tour. We will leave our truck and trailer at the Waterfront Inn and finish up the tour here in four days.
On day one we start the Gold Rush Tour under clear blue skies and very cold temps.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image004.jpg
It’s just a beautiful day to ride. The first leg of this four day trip is from the Waterfront Inn in New Liskeard to Three Bears Camp Outfitters in Shining Tree. We meet up with our guide and head out on the A Trail for the Work N Play Yamaha dealership in Elk Lake where we will refuel. It can be over 100 miles between fuel stops, so never pass up a filling station. From here we took trail A 107C to Gowganda where we’ll eat lunch at the Auld Reekie Lodge. After lunch we finish a 150 mile day by making our way to Shining Tree and Three Bears Camp where we eat a great dinner and spend the night.
We’ve ridden over 150 miles so far and the trails conditions have exceeded my expectations. They are wide and very nicely groomed. These have to be the best maintained trails that I have ever seen. We can ride the same mileage at home on our local trails, but never without seeing dozens of sleds and riding lots of moguls created by the large number of sleds using the trails.
The second leg of our tour takes us from Shining Tree to Timmins, the home of Shania Twain. We hit the trail early, and within minutes I’m just grinning from ear to ear. The C Trail out of Shining Tree is by far the best trail that I have ever been on. It was hilly, twisty and smooth as glass we made our way to Minakwa Lodge for lunch. There are many sights to see on the way.
We stopped at a scenic lookout with a fire tower on it to enjoy the spectacular view before finishing our 123 mile day at the Howard Johnson in Timmins.
On day three we ride 160 miles, the longest leg of the tour, but by no means too many miles. With the trails as well maintained as they are, we could easily ride many more. We start out on the A111C trail and take that to the A101 to Val Gagne and from there we take the A Trail to Matheson for lunch at Northern Delight and then on to trail A108 and the Howard Johnson in Kirkland Lake.
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We met Gary of Bosscat tours at the Howard Johnson while eating dinner and he agreed to ride with us on our final leg of this four day saddle bagging trip. Gary is a winter resident of Kirkland Lake and is very familiar with the area. While it isn’t necessary to have a guide on these tours, it’s nice to have one so that you can just enjoy the trails and scenery without having to worry about making a wrong turn. The trip down to New Liskeard where we left our truck is an easy 65 miles on absolutely beautiful trails, so we skip lunch and ride straight through to our vehicle so we can load up and drive two hours south to North Bay on Lake Nippissing to start the R.A.N. Tour.
We started the Run Around Lake Nipissing, better known as the R.A.N Tour at The Best Western right across from the shores of Lake Nipissing. We left our truck and trailer there planning on returning after three days of riding to load up and head for Cochrane for the last tour of our adventure in the snowmobiling paradise of Ontario. They call this area Ontario’s Near North.
We headed out on our sleds the first morning for Port Loring for lunch at Jake’s Place and then on to the French River Inn where we ate dinner and spent the night. We saw many deer on this leg of the trip. Some of them were even out on a lake that we crossed. Be careful and courteous of the wildlife in the area. They were here way before we were. Also, when crossing any frozen body of water, know the conditions before you venture out. The trails that we traveled that were on the lakes were very well marked and the ice thickness is checked regularly for safety by the local clubs.
The French River Bridge was our last stop before checking in at the French River Inn for the evening. This bridge is Canada’s largest cable supported snowmobile bridge. It has a span of over 300 feet and is more 50 feet above the water. The construction of this bridge just goes to show the dedication to snowmobiling that Ontario and its people have. The bridge was opened in February, 2005.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image008.jpg
The second leg of this tour took us from the French River to St. Charles for lunch. We’re going to take some of the less traveled local trails that our guides know today. Not because there has been too much traffic, but to shorten our time on the trail since it takes more time when we are shooting film for Snowtrails TV. These trails, like every other trail we rode so far in Ontario were just superb. After lunch we were we jumped back on our sleds and made our way to Camp Horizon located between Field and Verner. We have been treated as royalty at every place we have been and here at Camp Horizon was no exception. They made us a home made meal that was to die for.
In the morning we fueled up at the camp and mounted our sleds for the ride back to North Bay. The weather was a little iffy this morning and we did run into some drizzle, but the quality of the trails and the trail system was so awesome that we never even noticed the weather. We made it to The Rock Pine Motel & Restaurant for lunch and to let our clothes dry a bit during the break. We finished up this tour by having dinner at Average Joe’s, which was by no means average, and we spent the night at Terrace Suites, just south of North Bay.
We’ve been gone from home now for eight days and on the snow for seven of those days. Our mileage so far is more than 850 miles. Riding at home, we might be wondering why we did it, but here in Ontario after that many miles, we’re still ready for more.
Since we are here and Cochrane is only a few hours north, we headed on up to Lillabelle Lake Resort to spend a couple of days riding with the SnowmobileWorld.com folks who are putting on a charity ride. All of the money raised will be given to Cochrane Family Services to help families locally.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image010.jpg
The ride was held over several days. We joined up with the crew with only two days left. Lucky for us they saved the ride to Abitibi Canyon until we got there. The ride to the canyon is one that I had heard much about and I was really looking forward to it. It is over 100 miles to the canyon from Cochrane and there are no regular filling stations. Lucky for us, Extreme Tours has a base camp set up in Fraserdale to take care of the snowmobilers needs. They have hot dogs and pop along with the fuel that you will need to continue into the canyon. We took in their hospitality, filled up our sleds, and headed out.
The Abitibi Canyon is famous for its big hills and deep ravines. It holds the best powder riding in the area according to the locals. It was late spring and the temperatures were in the 50’s making trying to find powder a lost cause, but the riding and scenery were just mind blowing. After several hours of playing in the hills, we headed back to Extreme Tours to fuel up and make our way back to Lillabelle Lake Resort.
In all, we spent nine days riding in Ontario. Those nine days were spent on the most beautiful and meticulously maintained trail system that I have ever seen. If you would like to see some of the scenery we shot while in The Snowmobiling Paradise of Ontario, visit SnowtrailsTV.com or SnowmobileWorld.com where you can view some clips of our 9 days of riding. I highly recommend any or all of these tours if you have the time. If you’re interested in attending one of the SnowmobileWorld.com Canadian or Stateside Rides for Charity, visit the SW Events section in the forums at SnowmobileWorld.com.
Riding with SnowtrailsTV
Ontario Style
by Keith (idooski) Durkee
When we left Grand Rapids, Michigan, I was frantic with anticipation. This was my first trip with videomike and Snowtrails TV and only my second trip to Ontario, Canada to go snowmobiling. It was a beautiful day and I was very excited about the adventure ahead of us. We are actually going on three separate tours while we are in Ontario this trip. We’ll call them The Gold Rush Tour, The R.A.N. Tour, and the run to Abitibi Canyon with SnowmobileWorld.com. You could do any one of these or all of them at one time depending on the time you have available to ride.
Our first tour, called The Gold Rush Tour in the James Bay Frontier, consisted of four days of riding with each day ending at a different location. This type of riding is commonly referred to as saddle bagging and it requires that you carry everything that you’ll need each day on your sled. We started the first leg of our tour in New Liskeard. We arrived the evening before and stayed at the Waterfront Inn. It was nice to take a break after the long drive and gather our thoughts and get our gear packed for the tour. We will leave our truck and trailer at the Waterfront Inn and finish up the tour here in four days.
On day one we start the Gold Rush Tour under clear blue skies and very cold temps.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image004.jpg
It’s just a beautiful day to ride. The first leg of this four day trip is from the Waterfront Inn in New Liskeard to Three Bears Camp Outfitters in Shining Tree. We meet up with our guide and head out on the A Trail for the Work N Play Yamaha dealership in Elk Lake where we will refuel. It can be over 100 miles between fuel stops, so never pass up a filling station. From here we took trail A 107C to Gowganda where we’ll eat lunch at the Auld Reekie Lodge. After lunch we finish a 150 mile day by making our way to Shining Tree and Three Bears Camp where we eat a great dinner and spend the night.
We’ve ridden over 150 miles so far and the trails conditions have exceeded my expectations. They are wide and very nicely groomed. These have to be the best maintained trails that I have ever seen. We can ride the same mileage at home on our local trails, but never without seeing dozens of sleds and riding lots of moguls created by the large number of sleds using the trails.
The second leg of our tour takes us from Shining Tree to Timmins, the home of Shania Twain. We hit the trail early, and within minutes I’m just grinning from ear to ear. The C Trail out of Shining Tree is by far the best trail that I have ever been on. It was hilly, twisty and smooth as glass we made our way to Minakwa Lodge for lunch. There are many sights to see on the way.
We stopped at a scenic lookout with a fire tower on it to enjoy the spectacular view before finishing our 123 mile day at the Howard Johnson in Timmins.
On day three we ride 160 miles, the longest leg of the tour, but by no means too many miles. With the trails as well maintained as they are, we could easily ride many more. We start out on the A111C trail and take that to the A101 to Val Gagne and from there we take the A Trail to Matheson for lunch at Northern Delight and then on to trail A108 and the Howard Johnson in Kirkland Lake.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image006.jpg
We met Gary of Bosscat tours at the Howard Johnson while eating dinner and he agreed to ride with us on our final leg of this four day saddle bagging trip. Gary is a winter resident of Kirkland Lake and is very familiar with the area. While it isn’t necessary to have a guide on these tours, it’s nice to have one so that you can just enjoy the trails and scenery without having to worry about making a wrong turn. The trip down to New Liskeard where we left our truck is an easy 65 miles on absolutely beautiful trails, so we skip lunch and ride straight through to our vehicle so we can load up and drive two hours south to North Bay on Lake Nippissing to start the R.A.N. Tour.
We started the Run Around Lake Nipissing, better known as the R.A.N Tour at The Best Western right across from the shores of Lake Nipissing. We left our truck and trailer there planning on returning after three days of riding to load up and head for Cochrane for the last tour of our adventure in the snowmobiling paradise of Ontario. They call this area Ontario’s Near North.
We headed out on our sleds the first morning for Port Loring for lunch at Jake’s Place and then on to the French River Inn where we ate dinner and spent the night. We saw many deer on this leg of the trip. Some of them were even out on a lake that we crossed. Be careful and courteous of the wildlife in the area. They were here way before we were. Also, when crossing any frozen body of water, know the conditions before you venture out. The trails that we traveled that were on the lakes were very well marked and the ice thickness is checked regularly for safety by the local clubs.
The French River Bridge was our last stop before checking in at the French River Inn for the evening. This bridge is Canada’s largest cable supported snowmobile bridge. It has a span of over 300 feet and is more 50 feet above the water. The construction of this bridge just goes to show the dedication to snowmobiling that Ontario and its people have. The bridge was opened in February, 2005.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image008.jpg
The second leg of this tour took us from the French River to St. Charles for lunch. We’re going to take some of the less traveled local trails that our guides know today. Not because there has been too much traffic, but to shorten our time on the trail since it takes more time when we are shooting film for Snowtrails TV. These trails, like every other trail we rode so far in Ontario were just superb. After lunch we were we jumped back on our sleds and made our way to Camp Horizon located between Field and Verner. We have been treated as royalty at every place we have been and here at Camp Horizon was no exception. They made us a home made meal that was to die for.
In the morning we fueled up at the camp and mounted our sleds for the ride back to North Bay. The weather was a little iffy this morning and we did run into some drizzle, but the quality of the trails and the trail system was so awesome that we never even noticed the weather. We made it to The Rock Pine Motel & Restaurant for lunch and to let our clothes dry a bit during the break. We finished up this tour by having dinner at Average Joe’s, which was by no means average, and we spent the night at Terrace Suites, just south of North Bay.
We’ve been gone from home now for eight days and on the snow for seven of those days. Our mileage so far is more than 850 miles. Riding at home, we might be wondering why we did it, but here in Ontario after that many miles, we’re still ready for more.
Since we are here and Cochrane is only a few hours north, we headed on up to Lillabelle Lake Resort to spend a couple of days riding with the SnowmobileWorld.com folks who are putting on a charity ride. All of the money raised will be given to Cochrane Family Services to help families locally.
http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/images/articles/clip_image010.jpg
The ride was held over several days. We joined up with the crew with only two days left. Lucky for us they saved the ride to Abitibi Canyon until we got there. The ride to the canyon is one that I had heard much about and I was really looking forward to it. It is over 100 miles to the canyon from Cochrane and there are no regular filling stations. Lucky for us, Extreme Tours has a base camp set up in Fraserdale to take care of the snowmobilers needs. They have hot dogs and pop along with the fuel that you will need to continue into the canyon. We took in their hospitality, filled up our sleds, and headed out.
The Abitibi Canyon is famous for its big hills and deep ravines. It holds the best powder riding in the area according to the locals. It was late spring and the temperatures were in the 50’s making trying to find powder a lost cause, but the riding and scenery were just mind blowing. After several hours of playing in the hills, we headed back to Extreme Tours to fuel up and make our way back to Lillabelle Lake Resort.
In all, we spent nine days riding in Ontario. Those nine days were spent on the most beautiful and meticulously maintained trail system that I have ever seen. If you would like to see some of the scenery we shot while in The Snowmobiling Paradise of Ontario, visit SnowtrailsTV.com or SnowmobileWorld.com where you can view some clips of our 9 days of riding. I highly recommend any or all of these tours if you have the time. If you’re interested in attending one of the SnowmobileWorld.com Canadian or Stateside Rides for Charity, visit the SW Events section in the forums at SnowmobileWorld.com.