Last Sunday we took a road trip out to Pontiac Lake State Recreation Area. It’s one of a handful of state parks that are open to snowmobilers as long as there are at least 4″ on the ground (yes, I still have sledding on the brain though it will be in the mid 60s this week!)
We thought we’d come scope it out before coming out here with the sled trailer, so we knew where to park, where to ride, etc. At the entrance, the ranger we spoke with was super friendly and helpful, and gave us a map showing the hiking and mountain bike trails that we could ride on.
We started at the bike trail, which had a very nice map and a station for fixing your bike and airing up tires! How nice!! It’s hard to see but there are tools hanging from a thick steel cable. In the background there is a vault toilet, which was as nice as vault toilets go.
We started our trek through the slushy snow. It looked better than any trails up north, which are down to dirt. Unless you are fortunate enough to live in or travel to the UP, who got pummeled with heavy snow.
We walked the bike trail and approached Gale Road. There is a narrow passageway between the gate and a rock, which appears to have received a few snowmobile kisses.
The trail looked pretty muddy beyond this point, and the ranger did tell us the mountain bike trail is narrower, so that may not be our first choice anyway. We turned back and made our way to the hiking trailhead.
Once there, we found the entrance closed to vehicle by large boulders, but to the right, was a passageway wide enough for a sled, and there were several ski tracks in the snow.
Beyond the short path was a huge open area! About the size of a football field. How cool to have a large open area in which to play around in! Not something we get to do up north.
To the right of the field was an opening that led to what looked like some type of service road. It was gated at Gale Road where we went in. It looked even slushier and Bill’s boots weren’t the type to go trudging through wet conditions so we decided to head back.
In fact, I was afraid my muck boots sprung leaks as my feet felt pretty cold and wet! Turns out they were just cold. Check out the size of that paw print! I’d swear there were bears back here. That wasn’t the biggest one we saw.
We really liked the park! Now we just need snow. Hoping for one more good storm so we can return with our sleds.
