Ox

Omemee maybe?

I wondered if there was a river running through there. It's really weird, but where a river/crick/whatever runs through a lake - seems to STAY "river" for some reason. You would think that the whole lake would slowly drift that direction, but the lower/original trench always seems to be the weak link, and you can see it open up first.

Man, I agree that it looks AWFULLY thin there! Is there a spring there maybe? I know some shallow lakes have issues with that regularly in some spots. Is it an illussion, or is there a gap between the ice and the water there? I sure hope the rest of the lake is better than that! ESPECIALLY with ATV's as they don't skirt accrost the top like a snowmachine.

Just looked at the OFSC map, and Manitouwadge isn't on the map at all. Prolly be a good place to go to for off-trail and not have to buy tags. Could ride out of there in a few different directions each day. The terrain aint all that extreme to the north, but we spent a cpl hours trying to git up a big hill that came straight off the N side of a small lake (swamp?) one day - only to meet the groomer once we hit the top. I'm not sure that the groomer would have gone down that hill tho anyhow. (onto the ice) We are in agreeance that there IS still at least one motel in town eh?

I highly expected that was all Crown.

Hydro: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Abitibi+Canyon,+ON,+Canada/@49.717424,-81.6017282,16365m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x4d16327856e495c9:0xb99603fe74e3013c!8m2!3d49.8790539!4d-81.571385 Terrain? Other than the Canyon it'self, I'm not sure there's more than 10' of topography between Cochrane and Moosonee. It's aboot as dead flat as you can git. I could look up the marks on the topo map, but don't want to dig'm out right now. We're lookin' at a big pc of paper with hardly any lines on it!

I wonder if that is even deeded property, or a right-of-way on Crown Land up there?

There must be some sort of understanding on both sides as I am sure that it was posted here a month ago that it was all groomed. Prolly just can't post it officially open until the T is dotted and all the I's are crossed? I can't imagine that the hydro is concerned about anything other than liability, which I think is pretty much covered by law anyhow?

Yeah, what he said.

Or I could be wrong.....

I don't think that's the one that he actually meant tho.

OK, using your ratios, I figgered out Mamma's 'Burban. We took a trip through Da UP Eh! over Labour Day weekend. Up through the Mak, all over Da UP, and back down through that cheesehead state and back through Chi-Town.... We averaged 10.3 litres/100 on her (2013?) 'Burban with the 327 (I spose?) but it shuts off cyls when not needed. Many of the newer gassers are really good. My BIL had a 3/4 ton 4wd with the small hemi and got 15mpg (US) just around home. And had plenty ass to pull race car. I don't want to have anything to doo with all that smog schidt on the new diesels! On contrast, I got 15.3MPG (us) with my dually empty this week round tripping Toronto (401) with the Cummins on winter fuel. That was way better than expected on winter fuel! .

re: Diesels I never understood the whole "Maintenance costs" argument ??? In the last 20 years and >330,000 miles, I have put prolly $2500 (US) in "repairs" on my Cummins motors. 280K miles on '99 from new, and the '06 from 145K to 195K. (So not 5 brand new motors) An injector pump on my '99 and an injector on my '06. I have heard of WAY higher repair bills for other motors, but not the Cummins. ??? Other than that - of course there is alternators and whatnot, but that's all the same anyhow. Oil changes, folks like to fuss about that, but nothing says that you have to use the most expensive schidt that you can find on the shelf. Diesels have been running for >100 years on less. I run Rotella most of the time, but I have ran Mobile 1 if I think I'm gunna park in the bush @ -30* as the old '99 doesn't like to start that cold w/o being plugged in. She WILL start, but under a LOT of noted duress, so I put the thin stuff in for that porpoise. I still have that truck as it's my plow truck and my "yard truck" for my gooseneck around the farm/shop. Sure, you use 2wice as much oil at change time, but you can run 2wice as many miles between, so ??? Now - with all that said - when I was looking for a "new" truck a few years back, I am pretty sure that I would NOT have bought another diesel as I'm just not puting that many miles on my truck currently, and I think that a bigger gas would be fine - compared to the $10,000 option upcharge for the big diesels. However - I ended up buying a 10 yr old Florida truck with another Cummins in it for 1/2 price. Now the motor will wear out about the same time that the salt takes the chassis. (maybe?) Before that - I had an old '82 6.2 diesel, and yeah - I put a hole in the side of that block, but let's not count those production qty test mules eh? Also - did pump the fuel tank full of prox 3 gallons of water once when I was on my way to go sledding. Dropped tank and changed fuel filter and all was fine. The Fords that filled up that day all lost 8 injectors each! I think the bigger Internationals (skewl busses) just needed drained and filter too?) So - I would not buy a new one likely. The big Hemi seems to doo pretty good balance, but it's certainly not for maint costs, but the upcharge. It takes a LOT of miles to pay that upcharge back, and it's about the life of the truck at this point. .

Weight may be a bigger difference in a start/stop and lower speed route application, but if you are long haul and faster speed, aerodynamics will trump weight for sure. Those V nose trailers cut through the air so much better than the old skewl 4 place blunt nosed trailers! I towed a chums narrow/V-nose 3 place (prolly a 60* included angle) about 3500 miles out west many years ago and hardly knew it was back there. (behind a 1 ton dually Cummins) Planning to hook onto his newer one in another week or so and try it again. If my gooseneck is empty (6000#) or even loaded with steel bundles (say another 12K?) it doesn't make much difference once it's rolling, but you put a big flat thing up there to catch wind, and all you can hear is the pipe the whole trip and kan't pass a fuel pump!

Apparently they are talking about them opening for THIS season? But when the new buyers bought Halfway, they were "too late" in the year to open the D from Searchmont to Wawa. Likely doo to maps being already approved and whatnot is my guess? But the short stretch from Marathon down the hydro is OK I guess? Is there any reason they couldn't "Wilderness Trail" the stretch to Hornepayne by signing it, and clearing it, but not grooming it? (yet) Like the Wakamatta route to Aubrey mentioned the other day? Half the way to Hornepayne could be ridden on the plowed road if need be.... Or - the trail runs within eyesight of it anyhow.... (or used to anyhow - they could have moved it in the last umpteen years for all I know)

Well, hooking up to Hornepayne would be much more value than the second leg to Dunc Lake.

Those look like a wind break to me.

I remember staying in town one week and got the last room between both motels (both owned by same people at that time) and then the next time - had the whole place to ourselves. Gotta love the traveling hockey teams! LOL!

Well, to be fair, how many trail riders have a saw or axe on their sled? They may have brought one if they knew it was like this, but if they knew it was like that - they likely would have stayed home. So that cuts both ways... There is a writ on this very subject in the front of the current issue of (I think) SnowTech. Me and my boy took a pass through - what I believe is known as "Trail 7" north of Wawa a few years ago and there was deadfall everywhere! We cut our way through quite a bit, but started running out of daylight, and Shirley someone with a chainsaw could make 5x the progress that we were. I don't know if we were almost through the worst of it, or just getting to the bad spot, but we did clear many fells. I later seen it posted that they had gotten that trail open - maybe a year later (?) for the first time in many years - because it was all fell in! LOL! There was this day in 12/99 that we did ride on through tho. I'm kind'a of the mind that much of it really wouldn't need cut down tho? With the guards on the groomers, I would think that it would knock the snow off of them and they could start to retract, usually after the sun comes out tho... ??? This was between the Cow and Montreal Rivers I believe. It was the only spot like this that I can recall. Actually - this pic may have been taken when we stopped for an oncoming groomer up from Searchmont. They were however cutting the sapplings too. Prolly better in the long run?

Okay .... LOL!

OK, now how doo you propose that any of those are life saving items? Maybe MACHINE saving items. Maybe other property saving items. But life? I can't think of many scenarios that any of them will have much effect on the opperator. ???

BTDT (may have told this before?) When I bought my 2002 800 Summit with hydro brakes, I was used to a 580 with mechanical calipers on my Grand Touring. After unloading I was kneeling or standing on it (not a sit-down rider typically) and grabbed some gas to go, and the sled went out from under me. Quick grabbed some brake - only to be over the bars checking the headlight fluid! Quick grabbed some gas to git the sled back under me, and again - it's gitt'n away from me.. Quick grab some brake aggin - and I'm double checkin' the headlight fluid aggin... Finally - this dog and pony show came to a halt. I never lost the machine. When I collected myself, I looked around to see if there were any witnesses. Nope! Never happened! LOL! The motor/clutch was way more responsive, and that brake! OH MY! It's OK to tell 15 yrs later. This new 850 is a similar experience. No dog and pony show this time, but I tried to set the track up the hill a cpl of times and the track just grabbed and the motor jerked the machine right out from under me! I already had a 2.25" lug on the same size track, but this thing is night and day different! Gunna need 4' of sugar to set that track around here! So - I can understand what a beginner is dealing with even on the 600's! I wish the 850 had a more progressive throttle for sure!

Well, quite honestly - I've had it in there (wherever it is?) for many years. I don't anticipate actually using it. It's for emergency use. That being said - we did dry-wall screw my chums visor back on once, and it stayed that way for 10 years at least. (still?) Only for him to have to doo it to the other side several years later when that side broke. I doubt that I will ever remember the act of him breaking it. LOL!

So what on Earth is the "flat metal" part all aboot? Maybe sumpthing like young David, and you can unwind the tape 'till just aboot the end, and then use the metal as sling-shot material? To be used in defense of wolves, or maybe offense to get a partridge when stuck in the bush for a cpl days?

I believe that I have some in one of my packs - wrapped flat onto just it'self. Am I dooing it wrong? Is this "news"?