Sault Ste. Marie Trail Report – 02/19
SAULT STE. MARIE UPDATE via Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association – 02/19 2/19 pm update- I finally got to get out and ride! Left this morning from the Soo on a fresh groom (thanks Buck!) on trail 8 toward Raco. As we’ve been saying, there is slag rock on 8 popping up, the worst of which is just past 6 mile, so just take it easy there and you’ll be just fine. In Raco, I met up with Raco Dave and several of our club members. We hit the 889 loop, and then some off trail, forest service roads and two tracks, as this is where the most snow is. I then ran down 480 to 472 and met up with some more of our volunteers, and went down 472 to Rudyard where we had a great lunch at Huck’s Pub & Grill (thanks Jen!) Yes, the road riding in Rudyard where Snowchasers club is unable to groom the ditches is no fun at all, but it was worth it to stop and support Huck’s, as they have supported us! From here, we rode 472 toward Sullivan Creek Rd. It’s pretty thin until Sullivan Creek road, but I heard it’s great from there west. From here, we took forest service roads back to 480 and those were AWESOME! We saw our newest volunteer, Marc, coming back in the Pisten Bully from his run on 8 between Brimley and Raco. Finished off the ride with another loop up 889 to the overlook, and back to the Soo on trail 8. The northeast side of 889 is getting bumpy from traffic, but I’m sure the Raco crew will straighten it out. 8 is also showing some bumps, but nothing crazy. Trails are definitely thin on 8 more so than anywhere. Again, lots of good snow on the forest service roads as those don’t see the same traffic, or have a rock base. I saw maybe 20 other sleds out all day. All seemed to be enjoying themselves! I’ll be updating as we move through the week. Thanks all! ❄️❄️❄️ <> <> Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association Facebook Page <> Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association Trail Report on MSA <> SAULT STE. MARIE AREA UPDATE via Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association >> 3/17/26 SAULT STE. MARIE AREA UPDATE via Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association >> 3/17/26 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. WEATHER UPDATE via US National Weather Service Marquette Michigan >> Today, lake effect snow and winds slowly decrease, with snow totals exceeding 2 inches confined to Alger County. Highs will be around 20. Tonight and Wednesday, a weak system brings a widespread 1 to 2 inches of snow, with lows in the single digits in the interior to 10s around the lakeshores. Highs Wednesday will be in the 30s. For the rest of the week into the weekend, mostly weaker systems with highs above freezing and lows mainly in the 20s. #miweather #keweenaw #westernup #marquette #munising #seney #newberry #sooToday, lake effect snow and winds slowly decrease, with snow totals exceeding 2 inches confined to Alger County. Highs will be around 20. Tonight and Wednesday, a weak system brings a widespread 1 to 2 inches of snow, with lows in the single digits in the interior to 10s around the lakeshores. Highs Wednesday will be in the 30s. For the rest of the week into the weekend, mostly weaker systems with highs above freezing and lows mainly in the 20s. SAULT STE. MARIE AREA UPDATE via Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association >> 3/16/26 10:30 PM <> Latest Trail Reports – Quick Links <>Postings From Regional Pages On Facebook
Last one for the day!
Bryan hit the city trails this evening and they turned out great! The wet areas he saw a week ago are nonexistent now.
He saw quite a bit of sled traffic for a Tuesday.
Great to see people out enjoying the fresh snow and beautiful day!
Thank you, Bryan!!❄️❄️❄️ #soo #soo0317h #snowphotos
Sorry for all of the posts today! As you can see, we’ve been busy!
Pics from Kenny on his run with Raco Dave this morning on the 889 loop, 480 north of M28, and 8 along the powerline.
They report that it turned out great!
Thanks guys!❄️❄️❄️ #soo #soo0317f #snowphotos
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. 
Good evening!
Here in the Soo, the blizzard is winding down. For us, it wasn’t so much the snow as it was the wind. I still only show about a foot total new snow out of this storm from 10 AM yesterday until now, but the drifts are nuts.
A few of us took a ride to Bay Mills Resort & Casino for dinner and to check out trail 8. Thank you to Zoey for the great service!!
We opted to take the shoulder of 6 mile from Deland to the resort as we know that the farm field drifts on 8 west of Brimley are likely very deep and visibility was poor when we got out there. The bay was nearly impossible to see as well.
Trail 8 from the Soo to Brimley is tunneled in spots due to people riding the middle to avoid the drifts. I personally lover smashing the drifts so I was in heaven on the outer edges😅
Surprisingly, we saw no downed trees or branches, which is pretty incredible!
I’m hearing that groomers will likely roll out tomorrow morning on the first runs since the storm started.
Hopefully, most businesses will be able reopen tomorrow, and we’ll get back to normal in short order.
We will keep you posted! Hope you all got through this unscathed! ❄️❄️❄️ #soo #soo0316e #snowphotos