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April 8 Hearst to Hornepayne Ride


Techdenis007

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Well after enough suckoling I got "permission" to run out for a solo ride .... decided that Hornepayne would be a good destination, giving me a good option for some exploring.  Prepped the sled last night, had it ready for this morning.  

 

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Took the local trail straight up to the marina, then West and North, catching the Fushimi loop and headed West.  Great trail, good conditions, a little dusting of snow helped with cooling and sliders.

 

Pink highlighter on map below .... (days' track in yellow) ...

 

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Stopped just above the Fushimi park gates for a couple of photos ... conditions of those trails were 8 or 9 out of 10 ... just excellent.

 

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Once back on the A trail, things got back to their usual pogo stick ride ... too bad because that highway trail used to be so fun, different groomer operator obviously 'cause it used to be flat and fast.  Now playing with traffic is no longer an option.

 

Got to Mooseland, there was evidence of idiocy on the little bumper trail that cuts across the parking lot, some bonehead felt it was necessary to cut through the groomer trail ... 

 

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Sure was glad to get back onto the Hornepayne trails, nice and flat as usual (with a couple of normal bumps here & there).  Speeds back up to normal, got some good time in, had some nice morning sun, great for long range photos and some sled pics ...

 

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Almost into Hornepayne, had to make evasive manoeuvers to prevent injuring this little guy, who was sleeping in the middle of the trail warming up in the sun ....

 

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Had a good lunch at Cindy's, coffee with Matt17, and chatted with a gentleman and another lady (and her daughter) that are related to my dad on the Caraquet family side.  Nice talking to people with the "down home" accent ... 

 

Fueled up and backtracked to Mooseland, this time doing a little bit of exploring some of the firewood / bird hunting bush we frequent in the summer and fall.  (the 2 pink highlighted bits.).  The 2nd one near Calstock hadn't seen any traffic all winter, poor little short-track sled had its work cut out for it.  Thankfully there was a bit of crust to help support the sled, 'cause in 4+ feet deep of snow I didn't want to be getting stuck ...

 

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I would never gotten into here if it wasn't for the wider skis. They're a handful to turn, but man, they sure do the job in this stuff ....

 

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Back on the A trail heading towards town, got to the Kabina river crossing and spotted this furry little guy ... hadn't seen one before, chatting with Revrnd, we've determined that it's a Mink ... I've seen several Martin before, and a couple of Weasels (they're adorable in their white winter coat), but never a Mink before...

 

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Finished the bouncy A trail ride back to local trails, saw I wasn't going to make my goal of 400 km for the day, so detoured back onto the Marina trail and ran the lake and river around to the East (where Sledjunk got a flat tire on his Vector last month ...) and back home. 

 

Orange track on the map below ....

 

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Goal reached, 408 km for the day.  This gives me a season total to date of 5543 km, and sled total since purchased of 6054 km (in 1 season plus a bit late last year). 

 

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Cool...will look through tomorrow.

Very interested 

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denis, I believe that is a fisher, not a mink. (think, bigger than a marten). mink have short legs. 

 

I have something you matt and I can work on for a future endeavor. :D Ski

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5 minutes ago, skidooboy said:

denis, I believe that is a fisher, not a mink. (think, bigger than a marten). mink have short legs. 

 

I have something you matt and I can work on for a future endeavor. :D Ski

 

I'm gunna go with Jammies Boy here. 

It's been 35 years since I caught a mink, but I'm thinkin' that he would have been shorter, and a diff shaped head too?

I don't think they've got that long schnoot?

(Could google "mink" and find out tho. LOL!)

 

 

 

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might need your expertise on this endeavor too ox!  be a good trip. Ski

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Looking thru the Wikipedia explanations, photos, etc.  I now believe that this little fellow is a Martin.  I've seen a couple of other critters that I thought were martins, usually in the bush up a tree looking around, maybe they were martins too, or fishers ... this guy seems a bit smaller than they were.  He was a good ways off too, and not too co-operative with the photos ... he was cute anyways ... :D 

 

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I don't think I'm an expert at much related to this forum. (Save for the recoils)

I think you hafta be paid to become "expert" status. 

And I seem to be on the outgoing payments end of this here endeavor ....

 

Hoping to scarf up a new sled this summer... 

ROAD TRIP!

Good deals on hold-overs in Utah I hear..... Colorado too ....

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Another tbing is the fisher have a kind of funny humped up gait. We saw this animal and asked a trapper friend about the animal we saw. W/ my description he said it was a fisher. I had seen several carcasses @ the old MNR office in the 70s. We used to play road hockey in their parking lot in the winter. The trappers had to drop off the skinned carcasses for a study. On the weekends theyd just be laying in a pile beside the building.

 

Us kids could probably sue them for emotional trauma being exposed to dead animals.

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Looks like a great trip, Denis.  I wish it wasn't such a long drive, or I'd be up to join you.

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