Watersmeet – Western U.P. Trail Report – 02/16
WATERSMEET / WESTERN U.P. UPDATE via U.P. Thunder Riders Snowmobile Club – 2/16
Both groomers went out last night. We are using our spare John Deere Tractor and forgot to put the Groomer Tracker in it. (that will happen today) Drivers reported trails are fair with good areas. Icy in corners and spots throughout the trails so use caution. Couple bare spots that we’ll get filled in. We will be grooming nightly as long as we can. Ride Right Ride Safe
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Reports via:
U.P. Thunder Riders Snowmobile Club on Facebook >>>>
U.P. Thunder Riders Trail Report on MSA >>>>
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Postings From Regional Pages On Facebook
LAKE GOGEBIC AREA UPDATE via Lake Gogebic News >> Conditions changing by the hour!
🛷 Thursday, March 19th: Clouds, then bright blue sky… 🌥️☀️
🛷 Have patience as the season winds down. Some places are awesome; others are wind-swept.
🛷 These photos are from 11 am. At 3 pm, it’s now blue sky.
🛷 Tomorrow/Friday calls for 46 degrees and rain. 🌧️
❄️ Sunday? Possibly 3” of fresh snow. It is what it is… winter and spring are co-mingling! #lakegogebic #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via Hamilton's North Coast Adventures >> Victoria Dam Falls is a must see! We had a great ride there this morning! 🌊💧🏞️😊 #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> Out riding with Mama Sledhead. Hit Trail #12 from White Pine to Greenland. I would rate it "very good" with the exception being the the 2 miles running the farm fields along HWY 38. The wind drifted snow across and it's bumpy.
Having lunch at Boondock Inn in Twin Lakes.
Thank you to our Groomers, Wyatt Jay and Josh and The U.P. Superior Snowmobile Club !! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotosOut riding with Mama Sledhead. Hit Trail #12 from White Pine to Greenland. I would rate it "very good" with the exception being the the 2 miles running the farm fields along HWY 38. The wind drifted snow across and it's bumpy.
Having lunch at Boondock Inn in Twin Lakes.
Thank you to our Groomers, Wyatt Jay and Josh and The U.P. Superior Snowmobile Club !!
WEATHER UPDATE via US National Weather Service Marquette Michigan >> Key Messages:
Today, highs near 40, partly to mostly cloudy.
Tonight, rain with some snow (mostly north and east, as shown in the map) and freezing rain mixing in. Lows near 30.
Friday, mostly cloudy, highs in the mid 30s (north, east) to near 50 (MI/WI state line).
Weekend, tracking the potential for accumulating snow or freezing rain. Chances of 3+ inches of wet snow around 30% mainly Saturday night. #miweather #keweenaw #westernup #marquette #munising #seney #newberry #soo #straitsareaKey Messages:
Today, highs near 40, partly to mostly cloudy.
Tonight, rain with some snow (mostly north and east, as shown in the map) and freezing rain mixing in. Lows near 30.
Friday, mostly cloudy, highs in the mid 30s (north, east) to near 50 (MI/WI state line).
Weekend, tracking the potential for accumulating snow or freezing rain. Chances of 3+ inches of wet snow around 30% mainly Saturday night.
WATERSMEET - WESTERN U.P. UPDATE via U.P. Thunder Riders Snowmobile Club >> 3/18/26- Trails have been fantastic the last few days! Great job by our Groomers! Today is the last day of grooming before the warm up! It was a fantastic season! #watersmeet #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> March 18 Trail Report:
A big THANK YOU to Groomer Josh and Tractor Mac for some late season magic.
We are out riding them and they are awesome!!
Rode the ribbon on 101!
Runoff water is moving, the little bit of cold we've had did not slow it down. Our snow bridges are failing. We are rebuilding them but Ma Nature is slowly winning the battle.
Trail #12 along LP Walsh road has 4 snow bridges, all are narrowing. Trail #1 between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has 2 that are the same. Please use extreme caution.
A warm-up is forecast. Temps at night barely below freezing for a couple hours the next 3 nights with highs in the 40's. Fingers crossed they are wrong.
Come up and ride the 906 quick!! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotosMarch 18 Trail Report:
A big THANK YOU to Groomer Josh and Tractor Mac for some late season magic.
We are out riding them and they are awesome!!
Rode the ribbon on 101!
Runoff water is moving, the little bit of cold we've had did not slow it down. Our snow bridges are failing. We are rebuilding them but Ma Nature is slowly winning the battle.
Trail #12 along LP Walsh road has 4 snow bridges, all are narrowing. Trail #1 between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has 2 that are the same. Please use extreme caution.
A warm-up is forecast. Temps at night barely below freezing for a couple hours the next 3 nights with highs in the 40's. Fingers crossed they are wrong.
Come up and ride the 906 quick!!
WEATHER UPDATE via Michigan Storm Chasers >> Final snowfall totals have been released from our blizzard of March 15th-17th, 2026 here in Michigan. Do note, some locations are approximated due to data gaps in the Upper Peninsula..... #miweather #keweenaw #westernup #marquette #munising #seney #newberry #soo #gaylord #cadillac #benzie #traversecity #petoskeyFinal snowfall totals have been released from our blizzard of March 15th-17th, 2026 here in Michigan. Do note, some locations are approximated due to data gaps in the Upper Peninsula.
No doubt the forecast lived up to its insanity, with many locations getting over 40" of snow across the central Upper Peninsula, and 8-10 foot snow drifts to make things even more extreme. In terms of forecast verification, our forecast did hit the 80%+ accuracy threshold we strive for after each event. Our final verification was 83%, and most of the the misses were where the system shifted slightly south to give parts of the northern Lower Peninsula greater than 24", and parts of the western Upper Peninsula much less. Anything over 18" of snow is just "a lot" at this point anyways, so we aren't stressing too badly about the miss in the Lower Peninsula near the Mackinac Bridge. Lake effect zones in SW Michigan did verify, as text was featured under the forecast that a couple spots would see locally higher amounts.
Overall, this will be a storm we won't soon forget, which adds to the list of wild weather we've experienced in Michigan over the last two weeks. If you have any additional snowfall reports to add to the list that are not affected by drifting, drop them in the comments below here on X or Facebook. A new two-day record was also broken at the NWS office in Marquette of 36"+ with this blizzard, which is just one record smashed by this blizzard.
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> Mother Nature gave us another week!
Thank you Groomer Jay and Tractor Mac.
We groomed our entire system except Trail #12 from Trail #137 to Greenland, which was groomed the night before.
All trails are fair to very good, it's Spring riding conditions with some standing water and reduced/failing snow bridges.
The snow bridges along LP Walsh Rd. are narrow. The snow bridge between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has running water and is failing but passable, please use caution when riding.
Ride the 906!! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotos
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LAKE GOGEBIC AREA UPDATE via Lake Gogebic News >> Conditions changing by the hour!
🛷 Thursday, March 19th: Clouds, then bright blue sky… 🌥️☀️
🛷 Have patience as the season winds down. Some places are awesome; others are wind-swept.
🛷 These photos are from 11 am. At 3 pm, it’s now blue sky.
🛷 Tomorrow/Friday calls for 46 degrees and rain. 🌧️
❄️ Sunday? Possibly 3” of fresh snow. It is what it is… winter and spring are co-mingling! #lakegogebic #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via Hamilton's North Coast Adventures >> Victoria Dam Falls is a must see! We had a great ride there this morning! 🌊💧🏞️😊 #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> Out riding with Mama Sledhead. Hit Trail #12 from White Pine to Greenland. I would rate it "very good" with the exception being the the 2 miles running the farm fields along HWY 38. The wind drifted snow across and it's bumpy.
Having lunch at Boondock Inn in Twin Lakes.
Thank you to our Groomers, Wyatt Jay and Josh and The U.P. Superior Snowmobile Club !! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotosOut riding with Mama Sledhead. Hit Trail #12 from White Pine to Greenland. I would rate it "very good" with the exception being the the 2 miles running the farm fields along HWY 38. The wind drifted snow across and it's bumpy.
Having lunch at Boondock Inn in Twin Lakes.
Thank you to our Groomers, Wyatt Jay and Josh and The U.P. Superior Snowmobile Club !!
WEATHER UPDATE via US National Weather Service Marquette Michigan >> Key Messages:
Today, highs near 40, partly to mostly cloudy.
Tonight, rain with some snow (mostly north and east, as shown in the map) and freezing rain mixing in. Lows near 30.
Friday, mostly cloudy, highs in the mid 30s (north, east) to near 50 (MI/WI state line).
Weekend, tracking the potential for accumulating snow or freezing rain. Chances of 3+ inches of wet snow around 30% mainly Saturday night. #miweather #keweenaw #westernup #marquette #munising #seney #newberry #soo #straitsareaKey Messages:
Today, highs near 40, partly to mostly cloudy.
Tonight, rain with some snow (mostly north and east, as shown in the map) and freezing rain mixing in. Lows near 30.
Friday, mostly cloudy, highs in the mid 30s (north, east) to near 50 (MI/WI state line).
Weekend, tracking the potential for accumulating snow or freezing rain. Chances of 3+ inches of wet snow around 30% mainly Saturday night.
WATERSMEET - WESTERN U.P. UPDATE via U.P. Thunder Riders Snowmobile Club >> 3/18/26- Trails have been fantastic the last few days! Great job by our Groomers! Today is the last day of grooming before the warm up! It was a fantastic season! #watersmeet #westernup #snowphotos
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> March 18 Trail Report:
A big THANK YOU to Groomer Josh and Tractor Mac for some late season magic.
We are out riding them and they are awesome!!
Rode the ribbon on 101!
Runoff water is moving, the little bit of cold we've had did not slow it down. Our snow bridges are failing. We are rebuilding them but Ma Nature is slowly winning the battle.
Trail #12 along LP Walsh road has 4 snow bridges, all are narrowing. Trail #1 between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has 2 that are the same. Please use extreme caution.
A warm-up is forecast. Temps at night barely below freezing for a couple hours the next 3 nights with highs in the 40's. Fingers crossed they are wrong.
Come up and ride the 906 quick!! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotosMarch 18 Trail Report:
A big THANK YOU to Groomer Josh and Tractor Mac for some late season magic.
We are out riding them and they are awesome!!
Rode the ribbon on 101!
Runoff water is moving, the little bit of cold we've had did not slow it down. Our snow bridges are failing. We are rebuilding them but Ma Nature is slowly winning the battle.
Trail #12 along LP Walsh road has 4 snow bridges, all are narrowing. Trail #1 between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has 2 that are the same. Please use extreme caution.
A warm-up is forecast. Temps at night barely below freezing for a couple hours the next 3 nights with highs in the 40's. Fingers crossed they are wrong.
Come up and ride the 906 quick!!
WEATHER UPDATE via Michigan Storm Chasers >> Final snowfall totals have been released from our blizzard of March 15th-17th, 2026 here in Michigan. Do note, some locations are approximated due to data gaps in the Upper Peninsula..... #miweather #keweenaw #westernup #marquette #munising #seney #newberry #soo #gaylord #cadillac #benzie #traversecity #petoskeyFinal snowfall totals have been released from our blizzard of March 15th-17th, 2026 here in Michigan. Do note, some locations are approximated due to data gaps in the Upper Peninsula.
No doubt the forecast lived up to its insanity, with many locations getting over 40" of snow across the central Upper Peninsula, and 8-10 foot snow drifts to make things even more extreme. In terms of forecast verification, our forecast did hit the 80%+ accuracy threshold we strive for after each event. Our final verification was 83%, and most of the the misses were where the system shifted slightly south to give parts of the northern Lower Peninsula greater than 24", and parts of the western Upper Peninsula much less. Anything over 18" of snow is just "a lot" at this point anyways, so we aren't stressing too badly about the miss in the Lower Peninsula near the Mackinac Bridge. Lake effect zones in SW Michigan did verify, as text was featured under the forecast that a couple spots would see locally higher amounts.
Overall, this will be a storm we won't soon forget, which adds to the list of wild weather we've experienced in Michigan over the last two weeks. If you have any additional snowfall reports to add to the list that are not affected by drifting, drop them in the comments below here on X or Facebook. A new two-day record was also broken at the NWS office in Marquette of 36"+ with this blizzard, which is just one record smashed by this blizzard.
ONTONAGON AREA UPDATE via North Country Snowmobile Club UP >> Mother Nature gave us another week!
Thank you Groomer Jay and Tractor Mac.
We groomed our entire system except Trail #12 from Trail #137 to Greenland, which was groomed the night before.
All trails are fair to very good, it's Spring riding conditions with some standing water and reduced/failing snow bridges.
The snow bridges along LP Walsh Rd. are narrow. The snow bridge between South Boundary Road and The Porkies Ski Hill has running water and is failing but passable, please use caution when riding.
Ride the 906!! #ontonagon #westernup #snowphotos
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Latest Trail Reports – Quick Links
- Lake Gogebic Area Trail Report – 03/19
- Ontonagon Area Trail Report – 03/19
- Paradise Area Trail Report – 03/19
- Keweenaw Peninsula Trail Report – 03/19
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- Paradise Area Trail Report – 03/18
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- Cadillac Area Trail Report – 03/17
- Gaylord Area Trail Report – 03/17
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- Sidnaw – Western U.P. Trail Report – 03/17
- Newberry Area Trail Report – 03/17
- Keweenaw Peninsula Trail Report – 03/17
- Seney Area Trail Report – 03/17
- Petoskey Area Trail Report – 03/16
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