Maine Snowmobile

Many, many riders out enjoying the trails this past holiday weekend. All 100 miles of The Forks Trail System are open and being groomed regularly. Drivers report that overall conditions are good with fine riding. Generally speaking, trail sections on unplowed roads are very good and woods trails are fair, with a couple of poor spots. Our trail system is about 85% roads and 15% woods trails. Plenty of snow on the ground to groom out the road sections, but we need more snow to smooth out the woods trails.  It's snowing right now . . . . about 3" on the ground and a little more expected the next couple of days. Every little bit will help. There are still a few hazards out there especially on the woods trails, such as wet spots and rocks poking through, so be careful.
 
• ITS 86 from Berry's Store heading east toward Greenville is scheduled to be groomed Tuesday, Friday, Saturday nights of this week. The 1 mile of Intown trail is roughed up and tough to smooth out until we get some new snow. The 1 mile Power Line section near Moxie Lake is rough, with some wet spots. Brochu Road section is flat and fast!
 
• ITS 87 heading south toward Bingham will be groomed Tuesday, Friday, Saturday nights of this week. There is an active logging operation for 2 miles along the Divide Road section, but there is a solid hard packed base on the road. Go slow and yield to equipment. The 3 mile spur trail up to the Moxie Mountain Overlook is open and groomed . . . . outstanding views of Sugarloaf Mountain and the Bigelow Range!
 
• Kennebec River Trail from Northern Outdoors to Berry's Store will be groomed on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday nights of this week. The last 1 mile section as you approach town is rough and needs more snow. Otherwise, it's decent riding through there with nice views of the Kennebec River.
 
• Bald Mountain Trail connecting ITS 86 and ITS 87 will be groomed on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday nights of this week. There is an active logging operation along this route and the road is shared for 1 mile. Go easy through there and yield to equipment. Everywhere else is flat and fast!
 
• Breakneck Ridge Trail to Blanchard is now open and groomed with good riding.
 
• Pleasant Pond Trail  (club trail) will be groomed on Wednesday. There is a  1/4  mile stretch along the back side of Pleasant Pond that is rough. Other than that, it's clear sailing.
 
All told, the trails are in good shape and there is very enjoyable riding to be had. Although there is plenty of snow in most places, remember that there are still a few hazards out there . . . . . . . ride with caution at all times.
 
For day trippers, there is a FREE PARK AND RIDE LOT at Northern Outdoors Resort on Route 201. Gas, trail maps, food, restrooms and trail info are available right at the Lodge. Call 888-770-SLED for details.

Jim Yearwood
Northern Outdoors Snowmobile Club

Many, many riders out enjoying the trails this past weekend. All 100 miles of The Forks Trail System are open and being groomed regularly. Drivers report that overall conditions are good with fine riding. Generally speaking, trail sections on unplowed roads are very good and woods trails are fair, with a couple of poor spots. Our trail system is about 85% roads and 15% woods trails. Plenty of snow on the ground to groom out the road sections, but we need more snow to smooth out the woods trails. There are still a few hazards out there especially on the woods trails, such as wet spots and rocks poking through, so be careful.
 
•    ITS 86 from Berry's Store heading east toward Greenville is scheduled to be groomed Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights of this week. The 1 mile of Intown trail is roughed up and tough to smooth out until we get some new snow. The 1 mile Power Line section near Moxie Lake is rough, with some wet spots. Brochu Road section is flat and fast!
 
•    ITS 87 heading south toward Bingham will be groomed Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights of this week. There is an active logging operation for 2 miles along the Divide Road section, but there is a solid hard packed base on the road. Go slow and yield to equipment. The 3 mile spur trail up to the Moxie Mountain Overlook is open and groomed . . . . outstanding views of Sugarloaf Mountain and the Bigelow Range!
 
•    Kennebec River Trail from Northern Outdoors to Berry's Store will be groomed on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights of this week. The last 1 mile section as you approach town is rough and needs more snow. Otherwise, it's decent riding through there with nice views of the Kennebec River.
 
•    Bald Mountain Trail connecting ITS 86 and ITS 87 will be groomed on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights of this week. There is an active logging operation along this route and the road is shared for 1 mile. Go easy through there and yield to equipment. Everywhere else is flat and fast!
 
•    Breakneck Ridge Trail to Blanchard is now open and groomed with good riding.
 
•    Pleasant Pond Trail  (club trail) will be groomed on Wednesday. There is a 1/2 mile stretch along the back side of Pleasant Pond that is rough. Other than that, it's clear sailing.
 
All told, the trails are in good shape and there is very enjoyable riding to be had. Although there is plenty of snow in most places, remember that there are still a few hazards out there . . . . . . . ride with caution at all times.

For day trippers, there is a FREE PARK AND RIDE LOT  at Northern Outdoors Resort on Route 201. Gas, trail maps, food, restrooms and trail info are available right at the Lodge. Call 888-770-SLED for details.

Jim Yearwood
Northern Outdoors Snowmobile Club
 

The New Years Weekend storm dumped 12" - 18" of snow on our area, depending on the exact location. All 100 miles of The Forks Trail System are open and groomed. Groomers have been busy and report that the trails are generally in great shape with excellent riding. Since it is early season, there are still a few hazards out there such as wet spots and rocks poking through, but overall conditions are very good. Cold temperatures coming in should help to freeze over any wet areas.
 
•    ITS 86 from Berry's Store heading east toward Greenville  will be groomed again on Friday and Saturday nights. The 1 mile Power Line section along Moxie Lake is rough, with some wet spots. Brochu Road section is flat and fast!
•    ITS 87 heading south toward Bingham  will be groomed again on Friday and Saturday nights. There is an active logging operation for 2 miles along the Divide Road section, but there is a solid hard packed base on the road. Go slow and yield to any equipment. The 3 mile spur trail to the Moxie Mtn. Overlook is open and groomed . . . . outstanding views of Sugarloaf Mountain and the Bigelow Range!
•    Kennebec River Trail  from Northern Outdoors to Berry' s Store will be groomed again on Friday and Saturday nights. Other than a couple of wet spots, there's good riding through there.
•    Bald Mountain Trail  connecting ITS 86 and ITS 87 will be groomed again on Friday and Saturday nights, and has great riding. There is an active logging operation along this route and the road is shared for 1 mile. Go easy through there and yield to equipment.
•    Pleasant Pond Trail  was opened and groomed on Wednesday. There is a 1/4 mile stretch along the back side of Pleasant Pond that is rough. Other than that, it's clear sailing.
All in all, the riding season is off to a great start! Although there is plenty of snow, remember that it's early season and there are still a few hazards out there . . . . . Ride with caution at all times.
 
For day trippers, there is a FREE PARK AND RIDE LOT  at Northern Outdoors Resort on Route 201. Gas, trail maps, food, restrooms and trail info are available right at the Lodge. Call 888-770-SLED for details.

Jim Yearwood
Northern Outdoors Snowmobile Club
 

The 2010 Maine Snowmobile season is underway. This past weekend The Forks area received around a foot of snow.  We now have plenty of snow to work with, and our groomers will get the trails packed and in great shape for riding.

On Saturday night we groomed ITS 86 east toward Greenville, ITS 87 north to Berry's Store and south toward Bingham, and the Bald Mountain Trail. We will groom the entire Forks Area Trail system, including the Kennebec River Trail, on Monday.  We will plan to open the Pleasant Pond Trail later in the week.

Gas, food, restrooms and trail info are available at Northern Outdoors on Route 201. Call 888-770-SLED for details.
 
Jim Yearwood, Trailmaster
Northern Outdoors Snowmobile Club
 

ATVSource.com recently carried a profile of Northern Outdoors including a  brief history and background on the company and its decision earlier this year to cater to ATV's and UTV's looking for a convenient base-camp from which to explore Maine's extensive network of ATV Trails.

Northern Outdoors is long established as one of Maine's most popular one-stop Snowmobile Resorts and is now aiming to appeal to powersports enthusiasts year-round with the addition of a spring / summer / fall spur trail which connects to Maine's extensive network of over 6,000 miles of dedicated ATV trails. 

For more information on Northern Outdoors visit www.NorthernOutdoors.com or call 800-765-7238

Northern Outdoors and The Herbert Grand Hotel have teamed up to offer a new Inn-to-Inn snowmobile package for the 2010 season.

This three night, two day package includes one night lodging at the historic Herbert Hotel, Kingfield with breakfast and two nights lodging in a cozy cabin at Northern Outdoors, in The Forks. and optional snowmobile rental for two days.

Riders will enjoy a variety of trails as they explore a 200+ mile loop originating in The Forks and incorporating ITS 86/89 to Eustis, ITS 115 south to Stratton, Carrabassett Valley and Kingfield, before returning to The Forks, via ITS 84 to North Anson and ITS 87 north, past Solon & Bingham. The base package can be extended to allow for addition riding at either lodging location.

Package prices start at $189 per person for lodging. Snowmobile rentals and equipment are available at Northern Outdoors.

For full details or additional information contact Northern Outdoors at  800-765-7238.

This fall we're going to take the Kennebec River Brewery on-the-road to a number of Brewers Festivals in Maine and New Hampshire.

First up is the Maine Lakes Region BrewFest  on September 26, at Point Sebago Resort, Casco, Maine.

On October 3rd, we'll be at The Redhook Brewery, in Portsmouth, for the New Hampshire BrewFest.

The following weekend we'll be on the Maine coast at the Fourteenth Annual Acadia Oktoberfest at Smuggler's Den Campground, Southwest Harbor.

We round out the fall events with the Maine Brewers Festival, November 6th & 7th at The Portland Expo.

Come on out and check-out fine craft brews from many New England brewers. We'll have trip getaway drawings and your favorite KRB beers on tap.
 

Last week we hosted our first guests doing a Hut-to-Hut hiking trip on the new Maine Huts and Trails system. The huts and trails are located between the Carrabassett Valley and the Kennebec Valley.

Our guests came all the way from the Caribbean to Maine last week! Erik and Ada, originally from the Netherlands, are currently living in St. Maarten. They told me they wanted to escape the summer heat of the Caribbean and experience a classic New England vacation. They planned their trip to include the weekend in Boston, exploring the coast of Maine and, authentic backcountry hiking in Maine’s North Woods.
 
Erik and Ada are enthusiastic European hikers it seems. They are both avid adventurers who have hiked in many locations including Scotland, Wales, France, Nepal and Dominica. They liked the Hut-to-Hut trip for its simplicity. After a night at Northern Outdoors, they were shuttled 90-minutes to the Poplar Stream Trailhead for the start of their 25-mile, three-day hiking journey, with their first overnight at The Poplar Stream hut and the second night at the new Flagstaff Lake Hut. From the Flagstaff hut they hiked back to the Kennebec Valley. Erik celebrated their hiking success and being the first to navigate the new Valley to Valley route this summer, with a couple of KBR pints, and Ada with two cups of green tea! 
 
Ps. Erik and Ada definitely got their wish to escape the heat of the Caribbean. It rained solidly the first two days of their hike, but they were well fed and well cared for by Maine Huts & Trails staff.  We are pretty excited about this new way to explore the western mountains of Maine. Guided and Self Guided Trips are offered from July to October for individuals and small groups. Custom programs can be developed for colleges, organizations and corporate groups – call 800-765-7238 for details

 

If you live in New England, there is little doubt that you’re wondering when the rain is going to cease. Rain or shine, the group that joined me on the Penobscot River were not going to be detoured by weather. The 9 gentlemen in my raft were on a collective 40^th birthday Maine adventure vacation. Or as we like to call it, a “Mancation.”

Despite a bit of overcast, the day could not have been better. A great run through the gorge & crib had the boat cheering for more, and Nesowadnehunk Falls was happy to oblige. On the lower river, I came to find out that for some this was their 4^th trip down the Penobscot River. It was an awesome day and great crew. I hope to see them again when they return to The Forks Resort with their kids for a Maine family vacation.