Outside of northern MN, there are no ATV trails, and the ditches are closed in the spring and summer, leaving nowhere to ride. I am wondering how hard it would be to get a group together to form a club that uses the grant in aid program to turn some of the wide ditches we have into ATV and dirt bike trails so they can be used all year long.
Is anyone interested? I'm in the west metro, so i'm wondering if anyone else is interested in Carver/Wright area.

Bruce Russell

 

Hi bjr2000: We recently moved away from Minnesota or I'd sign up. I'm a former Delano resident now living in Colorado. I got interested in ATVs just recently here in Colorado. I know the local Delano snowmobile club has a trail route along the Crow River and county 16. Of course, riding on the snow is less harmful to the terrain than slashing ATVs would be.

However, I understand Minnesota now has limited use of secondary roads for ATVs. My friend in Watertown was riding his Can Am side by side around town all the time before I moved away. I do not know the "rules", but something like getting a permit from the local police and maybe some street legal equipment like mirrors and signals and the like.

Then the gravel road system would be great riding on ATVs. Who needs trails when we have perfectly good dirt roads that go around lovely lakes or along the rivers in Minnesota. No speeding or stunt riding though.

David

 

My understanding is that city and township roads are by default legal to atvs, without an ordinance. My reasoning for the ditch trails on county and state roads is that there are some places, especially gas stations, and other places that people would like to ride to that are inaccessible during the summer months. As well as township roads that only connect to county roads.
Also, i looked into the atv trail by the crow river that you mentioned and my search turned up nothing, could you point me in the right direction?

Bruce Russell

 

I didn't mean to mislead you. The snowmobile trail I spoke of reverts back to a grass filled ditch in the summer. There is no ATV trail. I have never seen an ATV in the ditches in Minnesota. But plenty of snowmobiles in the ditches all winter.

Check with your local authorities and find out where you can ride on gravel roads.

David

 

Definitely do the leg work and get a club up and running. Their is a lot of work behind the scenes that no one ever knows about. While i doubt that they would give you access to ride in the ditches do to the damage that would be done as well as the dirt that would get washed down into the rivers and streams. But once you get going you can always apply and start creating your own trail system.. Its a lot of work so don't get frustrated i have trails that are now in the system for the 3rd year now and on their final step of approval

 

I would love to help get some club going, Me and my friends recently got into off road riding and there is no where to go! If you go to the DNR website all the trails for riding are at least 2 or 3 counties away from the metro area. I live in Buffalo and have been asking around trying to find places to ride but seems pretty hopeless. I saw this gravel pit on the way to Monticello from Buffalo on the left side of the road I have seen Dirt bikes and ATV's in there but there is wire fencing so whoever owns the property doesn't want people in there. My buddy up in Monticello lives near a snowmobile trail that he claims doesn't run through anyone's private land and he sees Dirt bikes and quads riding on it a lot. It runs all the way up to Clearwater and he asked his dad and he mentioned we can ride on it as long as our vehicles are licensed but on the DNR website they say absolutely no off road riding on snowmobile trails especially for bikes which is what I am on so no clue.. All I know is that the only way to ride is a 2-3 hour drive north for 10 miles of trails its pretty ridiculous. I wish people were cooler about off road riding but I am cursed to live in the agricultural zone

Jim

 

Hi xt250guy: Forming an ATV club would certainly provide more recreational opportunities. I believe you are right, there are limited off road trail opportunities in east central Minnesota.

My mission is to get folks interested in secondary road riding. Yep, it is boring for some as there is no speeding, racing or stunt riding and the like. Gotta follow all traffic laws of course. But a Saturday morning cruise with ATV buddies on a route someone planned and scouted out might be quite enjoyable. Our machines have about 80 mile comfortable range on a tank of fuel. That is a good three hour ride or more. You could cruise around a lake, or along a river, or into a wooded area, etc. I think it is much better than leaving the ATV in the garage most of the time.

Many states have street legal ATV laws. There are restrictions, but operating our bikes on secondary roads posted 45 mph or less would give us a ton of riding opportunities.

Maybe some entrepreneur will buy an abandoned gravel pit in the country and set up a dirt bike and ATV "park" where you pay your fee, sign a bunch of waivers, put your safety gear on and go ride in a mud pit, or over whoops, or jumps, or technical terrain climbing. There might even be Saturday evening racing.

David

 

An ATV club is a great idea but I wouldn't know how to get one organized. RiderPlanet USA lists private parks in adition to public trails. There may be some nearby that you don't know about. Minnesota ATV Trails Page 1

 

Jumbo: Thank you kindly for your research and posted link. It's great info. It might give the OP some ideas on how to better enjoy his ATV.

I always considered Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota similar in terrain and climate. They are great Great Lake states.

David

 

I don't know how the terrain compares but the weather in Michigan is actually milder than Wisconsin and Minnesota most of the time. As the cold weather systems move in from the northwest they either peter out in the middle of Lake Michigan or make a detour. The exception to that being that the west coast gets pounded by lake effect snow, but the whole rest of the lower peninsula is spared. It's like being hundreds of miles farther south and it's more like Ohio weather.

Warm Great Lakes saving Lower Michigan from dropping to 15 degrees below zero | MLive.com