I live in Central MN and was wondering were other Minnesotans ride. I do a lot of ridding around the Fort Ripley trails, good system of trails there. I was just curious on some other ridding spots. Thanks guys
If you are from Baxter, you are pretty close to Spider Lake, just north of Motley, that has some nice trails. I didn't know Ripley was open, many years ago, I took my son there, and there were ropes cutting off all the side trails, talked to a local land owner,said some guys had bought the land at a DNR auction, and closed it off for developing, so we never went back. I recently moved to Duluth, so I am checking out the trails around here as soon as I'm settled in, but I really like Iron River, Wisconsin, great trails, easy access, and you can drive to several towns right on the trail.
Hey, I've ridden quite a few of the MN trail systems and some are definitely better than others.
Here's the places I've been and what I think of them:
Fort Ripley Trails - Nicely maintained, smooth, and easy. Nothing special and relatively short.
Gandy Dancer - Combine this trail with St. Croix State Park simply for the massive train bridge going over the St. Croix. Its an old railroad bed that goes over a beautiful, shallow spot on the St. Croix (great for swimming) and allows you to ride right into Danbury, WI where you can find restaurants, gas, and a casino.
Iron Range - THE BEST, but only if you have 4x4. This park is hardcore, extremely challenging, but tons and tons of fun.
Nemadji - The best trail system in state. Tons of trails and they're all beautiful. Easily could consume a whole weekend.
Pine Center - This trail system is my main stomping grounds since its by my Grandpa's cabin. Great trails, very fun to ride. Lots of variety.
Soo Line North and South - Avoid at all costs. Absolutely miserable. They're abandoned railroad beds that are straight, flat, and very rough (at least where we rode them). Just miles and miles of deep moguls.
Soo Pits - Not a bad place to spend the day. Its a large, open, abandoned gravel pit with big hills, jumps, etc. Not much in the way of trails though. Good for a day.
St. Croix State Forest - Easily one of the most beautiful trail systems in the state. Very rocky and scenic, with a beautiful little river flowing through. Nice campsites and you can hop on the Gandy Dancer and ride to WI too. Great trail system.
Tri-County ATV Park - AWESOME park if you ride a sport quad. Two large abandoned gravel pits with tall walls and jumps. And now they have a new MX track out front that has everything including a 30' tabletop that you can see pics of me jumping in my gallery! Easily spend an entire day here. Definitely worth the trip.
Also, check this page out, its a map of all the trails in the state.
We're hoping to check out the Iron County, WI trails this weekend.
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2006 Arctic Cat DVX 400
-Holeshot HD Tires
-Pro-Armor Bullhorn Bumper
-Powermadd Trailstar Handguards
-Arctic Cat Nerf Bars
-Full Skid Plates
1986 Suzuki LT230S - SOLD, but not Forgotten The LT230S Vault: For Everything 230S!
I have been paging through and don't see many Minnesota riders on the forums like it used to be. Well, anyways, I went to Nemadji last Thursday and had a great time! They are logging a few trails and it was like SOUP! The other trails were very wet. So, you want to hit the mud and then the water. It was a blast! A pair of Shift Mud pants kept me dry and warm. The logging outfits are really changing the face of the Nemadji for ATVs. The forest does have a few newly diverted trails through the woods, where you are unsure if you are really on the trail. The trees were yellow and the trails were covered in leaves. It was fantastic!
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'07 Raptor 700
Dobeck EFI controller, White Bros E2, ITP wheels, HD rears, GNCC fronts, GYTR front bar, Powermadd guards, Vapor comp, X-bars and Riser, ProArmor full nerfs
I have been paging through and don't see many Minnesota riders on the forums like it used to be. Well, anyways, I went to Nemadji last Thursday and had a great time! They are logging a few trails and it was like SOUP! The other trails were very wet. So, you want to hit the mud and then the water. It was a blast! A pair of Shift Mud pants kept me dry and warm. The logging outfits are really changing the face of the Nemadji for ATVs. The forest does have a few newly diverted trails through the woods, where you are unsure if you are really on the trail. The trees were yellow and the trails were covered in leaves. It was fantastic!
Sounds like a great time! They're logging around the Pine Center trails right now too.
__________________
2006 Arctic Cat DVX 400
-Holeshot HD Tires
-Pro-Armor Bullhorn Bumper
-Powermadd Trailstar Handguards
-Arctic Cat Nerf Bars
-Full Skid Plates
1986 Suzuki LT230S - SOLD, but not Forgotten The LT230S Vault: For Everything 230S!
Were do you Minnesotans Ride???
