A picture I took on a trip to Bergland from the 12-16th of January 2011. – Courtesy of Bryan Christy

Hi All, I went for a 45 mile ride 1-13-11 south to Baldwin and it was OK, except a mile section of trail 3 between 32rd street and 40th street which was bumpy and snirty. On the way back I took a couple county roads to get around that one mile crappy section and then met the groomer on trail 340 on the way back to Wolf Lake, needless to say the trails were sweet all the way back. We have had several riders here eariler this week and we got some mixed reviews on the trails. Some guys are saying OK and some are saying crappy, it all depends on where you go, but we did receive at least 5′ of snow since then. We did receive a couple inches of heavy system snow on 1-11-11, an inch or so LES on 1-12-11 and on 1-13-11 a couple more and 1-14-11 it’s still snowing and are under a Winter Weather Advisory. They are forecasting a Clipper System late on 1-14-11 on through 1-15-11 morning with accumulations of 5′ to 7′ of heavy system snow possible. Please note this is just a forecast, believe it or not. Seasonal roads and two tracks are snow covered and quite enjoyable, so if you get a rough spot on a trail, look at the map and go around it on a seasonal road. I just talked to the Baldwin Trail riders grooming coordinator and he said this on 11-13-11.
‘We groomed from the Sports Park in Newaygo to Brohman on Monday and the operator was surprised at how well he could pack it in. So in theory, we have groomed all of our system. I know the North trails (Baldwin to Wolf Lake) are getting done as I type.
 
We will work with what we have, but you might want to have people get adventurous and explore a bit of the forest roads and two tracks. With the holiday weekend, (MLK) traffic is going to be heavy. I’ll be out on the RR Grade Saturday morning.’
 
Now this is from me. If you want perfect conditions stay home, if you want to get out and do some exploring with just fair conditions at best, come on up. This is Martin Luther King Jr. birthday weekend, so it will be very busy, with busy trails, the conditions will fade fast. Seasonal roads and two tracks are snow covered and quite enjoyable.

Remember there are tons of seasonal county roads here, so if you do get on a trail that is pushed out, just look at the map and go around that section of the trail on a seasonal county road, but do not just go cross country or down a private two track, you may be trespassing and cause us to loss our trail privileges, and we don’t want that, do we.
We are members of Baldwin Trailriders, IATA (Irons), Wellston and Benzie/Manistee Snowmobile Clubs, plus the Michigan Snowmobile Association (MSA)that maintain your great trails. Remember trails can change with temperature fluctuations and traffic, when I ride I tell you what I seen, so don’t shoot the messenger if the trails get blown out after my ride.

Our On site Snowmobile rentals are ready to go for the season on December 1st, weather permitting. Plus we do have gift certificates available for that hard to buy for person. Get them an ATV, Snowmobile Rental or Lake Front room Gift Certificate. They will love it.

We are members of the Cycle Conservation Club of Michigan (Motorcycle and ORV Club), Baldwin Trailriders Snowmobile Club, Irons Area Tourist Association (ATV and Snowmobile Club), Wellston Area Recreation and Tourist Bureau (Snowmobile Club), Benzie-Manistee Snowbirds (Snowmobile Club), Lake County ORV Club and the Michigan Snowmobile Association. These are the local grooming clubs, in which we help support all of your favorite sports. When I go to an area, I always buy the new map for the season from the local snowmobile or ORV club. Trails may change and so do the maps. But I always spend my hard earned money, only with the businesses that support my sport. All those advertisers on the Snowmobile or ORV Club maps are the people, that help make those trails possible for all of us to ride. Just my two cents.

We have rooms available for this week and weekend. Gas is only $3.09 a gallon, so what are you waiting for? We are snowmobilers too, and know if there isn’t enough snow to ride, I don’t want to ride in the dirt either, so if you reserve a room and there isn’t enough snow to ride, just give us a call and cancel your room with no penalties. But if there is enough snow we expect you to keep your reservation. If you need a room in this area, just give us a call at 231-745-4101, office hours are 8am until 10pm and if we don’t have a room, we will try our best to find you a room, so call soon to get your room reserved or they will be all gone. We do have some discounts at the casino and a few local restaurants to save you even more money.

Check out the WOLFCAM for the snow totals.

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I CAN NOT SAY THIS ENOUGH, WEEKDAY RIDING IS THE BEST. SMOOTH TRAILS AND LESS TO NO TRAFFIC.

We are a pet friendly Resort, but you can’t leave your pet unattended in the room unless it’s in a cage or kennel while you are out riding. We love pets, but we love our carpet too.

Make sure you STOP when they see the groomers so they can move by. It’s really dangerous to have riders keep moving when the groomers pass. Make sure you wave and show your support. Also, please stay off the ribbon so it will set up, and the trails will stay smoother longer.

Here is a list of the snowmobile trails in this area, are you ready? The Baldwin trails, (146 miles) go west to Reed City and south from here to Newaygo, Irons trails wrap around Wolf Lake and then heads north, east and west for 122 miles and connects to Cadillac and Wellston trails, Cadillac trails connect into the Irons and Wellston trails all the way to Cadillac, then south to Leroy, they groom 124 miles, Wellston trails goes west to connect to Cadillac trails and south to the Irons Trails and west to Freesoil for 68 miles and north to the, Benzie/Manistee trail system. The Pere Marquette trail connects to The Baldwin trail and all the way to Evart and up to Leroy 144 miles, the south Pere Marquette trail goes to Grand Rapids, I think about 140 miles, then north the Benzie/Manistee trail goes all the way to the Maple City another 147 miles I think. Let’s total this up, 146 + 122 + 124 + 68 + 144 + 140 + 147 = 891 in groomed connecting trails just in this area alone and we are right in the middle of them. I know most of the groomer operators and their schedules, so if it’s bumpy one way, we know which way to go, to have smooth trails. I don’t know about you but that’s a ton of riding. Now there is more trails to get to, but that would be just over kill and this is not even counting the hundreds of miles of the two tracks and seasonal roads that you can ride. Why spent an extra $200 to $300 in fuel to get to Gaylord or the UP when we have fantastic riding right here.

There are over 890 miles of connecting groomed trails that run through this area and surrounding areas, so why would you want to go anywhere else? Plus miles and miles of two tracks and seasonal roads. We have two bedroom lake front rooms with full kitchens, living rooms with a sofa sleeper, (sleeps 6 – $99 a night), double lake front rooms with a queen and full beds and a kitchenette and dining table and chairs (sleeps 4 – $79 a night). Double motel rooms with two double beds and a mini fridge, (sleeps 4 – $53 a night) and single motel rooms with one full bed, (sleeps 2 – $39 a night) and our large Bunk House which has two bed rooms with queen bunk beds and a queen sofa sleeper, full kitchen, full living room, a breakfast bar and a fireplace (sleeps 10 – $ 149 a night). We have something for everyone.

Visit us at www.wolflakemotel.com or call toll free 877-745-4101 or from a cell call 231 745 4101, office hours are 8am until 10pm 7 days of the week. See you soon on the trails.