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ONE CLUB AT A TIME: A PROPOSAL TO RECONNECT ALL OF ONTARIO


LondonCalling

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I imagine it can sure be tough sitting there all day, knowing you can't leave because if someone does show up and you're not open they won't come back and will tell others about their experience and then either have no one show up or one / two people who as said order some poutine and ride off leaving you with $20 before expenses to show for the day being tied there.

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even with the soo trail open, it does not go by ernies door. you have to make it a point to do a side trip, halfway between wawa and dub to the F trail, then across dog lake to him. Ski

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.... so if one wanted to do the side trip in & out how much distance does it add ?

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from dub proper, to ernies one way it is about 50-55 km via the D trail south to F trail total mileage.

 

you go south out of dub on the D trail toward wawa, about 18-20k or so, turn left on the F trail, and you have about 30-35k to missanabi ( 50-55km one way total).

 

just shy of 10 k is on scenic dog lake itself. the club grooms a second access trail to the D trail, called the moose loop. so you can make a loop out of it, ifin you be knowin where ya be goin. it is a decent 1/2 day trip over, for lunch and back. Ski

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So you're buying gas at ernies for a round trip I guess. .. I've done 165 km of trail without refueling but there's not much left. ... I'd need a can to make a round trip. Gonna study the interactive map a bit before making the ride down to Dub this winter.

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should be able to top off in dub, ride to ernies, eat, and ride back to dub, topping off in dub. but, I would bet ernie would appreciate the fuel purchase there too.

 

your sleds should make the 100-110 km round trip without fuel though. Ski

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So you're buying gas at ernies for a round trip I guess. .. I've done 165 km of trail without refueling but there's not much left. ... I'd need a can to make a round trip. Gonna study the

interactive map a bit before making the ride

down to Dub this winter.

No problem with fuel. Hornepayne has esso as you know and dub has fuel (regular). On hard trails you can get 180 kms. My dad was getting 180 and he never gets that in southern Ontario.

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from dub proper, to ernies one way it is about 50-55 km via the D trail south to F trail total mileage.

 

 

I'm sure I could do 180km's on a tank VR700, just haven't had the need to try yet, and never carry spare gas around here.  I've done Hearst- Hornepayne twice last year, and Hornepayne to Dub is actually 20-30 km's shorter by trail, so no problem doing Dub with one fuelup.  Actually it could possibly be faster by sled than by road, if you rode your a$$ off ....   :D

 

 

 

Aahhh I misread it the first time Ski ... yeah, that's an easy in-out ride without re-fuelling.  I was just checking out Ernie's website, pretty nice webpage, very well done.  If I was to ride into Ernie's for lunch, I'd definitely want to fuel up there too, just to throw him an extra few bucks for his troubles.  Lots of labour involved for the money he makes, way out in the boonies where he is.

 

 

I was in Missinabie then Renabie one day many years ago (I was about 17) with Dad.... he had this crazy notion that 3 bricks of gold were lost or stolen from a mine, were separated, and one ended up in Renabie.  It was apparently true and from a pretty reliable source.  So off we went into Renabie with the metal detector, pop telling some local old-timer about his search for some house "for sentimental reasons" (3rd house on the end of a street when there were only 2 houses) ... the old timer lived there all his life and knew the place like the back of his hand .... it was all I could do to keep from busting a gut from the BS my dad was spewing .... lol !

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  • 1 month later...

Yet again I must apologize for being inactive on this site and in particular on this thread.

 

I sit here extremely bummed out by the lack of winter weather on my holidays and look to the weather forecasts each night before going to bed.  

 

First thing I want to say is that I emailed CCSO (Canadian Council of Snowmobile Organizations) about the interest and status of their Trans Canada Snowmobile Trail.  I just did this tonight, so no I have not gotten a response yet.

 

For those of you who don't know there was once such a trail.  The idea originated I believe in 1998 and in 2002 a trail map of the actual trail was printed.  You could ride from Nova Scotia right to BC and even up to the Yukon (there were also trails on PEI and Newfoundland)

 

Yes, we all know that this no longer exists as it once did (at least not in Ontario). 

 

But hey, a guy can always remain hopeful.  I try to remain optimistic that by the time I retire in 10 years this trail will again exist and I will be able to ride it and cross it off my bucket list.

 

I look to signs like the reopening of the D trail from the Sault through Halfway Haven and up to Wawa and the rebirth of the Chapleau club and their efforts to again maintain a trail to Timmins and possible with Marathon now entering District 13 and the Longlac / Geraldton club now in District 15 as optimistic signs. 

 

Maybe next winter there can be a maintained trail to connect these clubs so they are no longer islands.  I know people are riding the old trail up there. 

 

Well that's it for now I guess.  

 

oh, here is a link to the CCSO website        http://www.ccso-ccom.ca/transcan.html

 

you will probable have to copy and paste the address.

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So to follow up on my email last night here is the reply I received

 

Merry Christmas ad a Happy New Year Rick

Please call me to discuss early in the new year

The TCST is very much alive and well in many parts of Canada
- it is estimated that we currently have over 14,000 kms of trail
in place - yes we have some holes but it is still the longest 
snowmobile in the world - many will argue the longest trail
but a few links in the chain are now broken

Perhaps you can stir the interest to again get Ontario actively
talking about it to "re-kinder the interest"

Connecting is a problem - I live in Thunder Bay where the link
no longer exists but all good plans come together when a few
dreamers make plan to make reality happen

That is what happened in the 1st place

Dennis

 

I will contact him in the new year and was just wondering if I can put forward some other names to him.  

 

The fact that he lives in Thunder Bay I hope means he is active within the OFSC

 

A question I have for anyone out there is approximately how many kilometers of the old trail are missing in Ontario ?

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So to follow up on my email last night here is the reply I received

Merry Christmas ad a Happy New Year Rick

Please call me to discuss early in the new year

The TCST is very much alive and well in many parts of Canada

- it is estimated that we currently have over 14,000 kms of trail

in place - yes we have some holes but it is still the longest

snowmobile in the world - many will argue the longest trail

but a few links in the chain are now broken

Perhaps you can stir the interest to again get Ontario actively

talking about it to "re-kinder the interest"

Connecting is a problem - I live in Thunder Bay where the link

no longer exists but all good plans come together when a few

dreamers make plan to make reality happen

That is what happened in the 1st place

Dennis

I will contact him in the new year and was just wondering if I can put forward some other names to him.

The fact that he lives in Thunder Bay I hope means he is active within the OFSC

A question I have for anyone out there is approximately how many kilometers of the old trail are missing in Ontario ?

Dennis Burns is a past president of the OFSC and Current president of the CCSO...

Dennis is a class act and is a grass roots volunteer.... He's good people....

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Yet again I must apologize for being inactive on this site and in particular on this thread.

 

I sit here extremely bummed out by the lack of winter weather on my holidays and look to the weather forecasts each night before going to bed.  

 

First thing I want to say is that I emailed CCSO (Canadian Council of Snowmobile Organizations) about the interest and status of their Trans Canada Snowmobile Trail.  I just did this tonight, so no I have not gotten a response yet.

 

For those of you who don't know there was once such a trail.  The idea originated I believe in 1998 and in 2002 a trail map of the actual trail was printed.  You could ride from Nova Scotia right to BC and even up to the Yukon (there were also trails on PEI and Newfoundland)

 

Yes, we all know that this no longer exists as it once did (at least not in Ontario). 

 

But hey, a guy can always remain hopeful.  I try to remain optimistic that by the time I retire in 10 years this trail will again exist and I will be able to ride it and cross it off my bucket list.

 

I look to signs like the reopening of the D trail from the Sault through Halfway Haven and up to Wawa and the rebirth of the Chapleau club and their efforts to again maintain a trail to Timmins and possible with Marathon now entering District 13 and the Longlac / Geraldton club now in District 15 as optimistic signs. 

 

Maybe next winter there can be a maintained trail to connect these clubs so they are no longer islands.  I know people are riding the old trail up there. 

 

Well that's it for now I guess.  

 

oh, here is a link to the CCSO website        http://www.ccso-ccom.ca/transcan.html

 

you will probable have to copy and paste the address.

There are a few old boys from this area that rode that trail Rick, they had a support vehicle and all, although I can't confirm if they rode the whole thing end to end, I do know they made the effort.
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There are a few old boys from this area that rode that trail Rick, they had a support vehicle and all, although I can't confirm if they rode the whole thing end to end, I do know they made the effort.

I am having a beer with one of those old boys right now.

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So to follow up on my email last night here is the reply I received

 

Merry Christmas ad a Happy New Year Rick

Please call me to discuss early in the new year

The TCST is very much alive and well in many parts of Canada

- it is estimated that we currently have over 14,000 kms of trail

in place - yes we have some holes but it is still the longest 

snowmobile in the world - many will argue the longest trail

but a few links in the chain are now broken

Perhaps you can stir the interest to again get Ontario actively

talking about it to "re-kinder the interest"

Connecting is a problem - I live in Thunder Bay where the link

no longer exists but all good plans come together when a few

dreamers make plan to make reality happen

That is what happened in the 1st place

Dennis

 

I will contact him in the new year and was just wondering if I can put forward some other names to him.  

 

The fact that he lives in Thunder Bay I hope means he is active within the OFSC

 

A question I have for anyone out there is approximately how many kilometers of the old trail are missing in Ontario ?

Count me in.  You can have him contact me anytime.  I will send you a PM with direct contact information.

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  • 4 weeks later...

So looking today at the ITG I just noticed that D trail connects all the way to Marathon now.  I keep getting side tracked with work and for at least the third time now, I've let this thread go stale.

 

I knew about connecting the Soo to Wawa and the reopening through Chapleau to Timmins but not this.  

 

Thank you Thank you Thank you to Dubreillville and Marathon for connecting this.  It may be part of my annual March Break Pilgramage north.  

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it is not fully connected yet, marathon has to groom ALL THE WAY TO DUBREUILVILLE. The ofsc will not let Dub go west of their limits. at some point, with traffic upswing and support, we are hoping this trail will open, and stay open. thanks to the marathon group for biting off this big hunk, and trying to get us all back connected. hopefully at some point the ofsc will let the other clubs, and districts, that are connecting, and benefiting from this trail, help the marathon club out. Ski

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At the ofsc AGM this year and under the more on the snow proposal, Shaugnessy said that with the upcoming new district grooming model (a synopsis of more on the snow) he said the districts would be in charge and not the ofsc.  I'll have to talk with Graham Snyder (first vp ) at our next district meeting perhaps there is more to this.  

 

I'll message Luc as well.  And I do have to get back to Denis Burns who is charge of the trans ontario trail.  

 

As long as its sustainable there should be no limiting. 

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info came from luc, I spoke with him in person, while in his store a week ago. I am unsure if it was a disctrict decision, or ofsc decision. he stated, with the trackers, and new rules, they cant go where they want or need to. only what is authorized at that level. Ski

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I saw that on the ITG the other day ... that would be pretty amazing, to ride from Hearst to Dub, then to White River, and then onto my childhood campground, White Lake Prov. Park.  What an awesome trail system that would be, I love the hilly curvy topography of that area.  Must make some "interesting" grooming, as I've read about already.  

 

Sure would like to enjoy that sometime in my lifetime ....

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I spoke with Luc last night after reading this and it was a district decision, key word being was.  He said district has now given the ok.  He didn't say exactly what each clubs share would be.   I'm thinking now that I might head to Dub for my March Break instead of Cochrane where I usually go.

 

I'm not sure what District 13 has arranged with their gps units. ie if they have imposed limits.  As for new rules, Our district trails committee is actually going the other way, where we are looking sharing more trail and doing away with artificial club boundaries.  Our district wide association managed to buy two new groomers (about 3 years old) with the efficiencies that we have been able to make.  And that was in the longest riding season in recent memory.   Neither of these groomers came from the supposed groomers that the ofsc has purchased. 

 

That being said there are many differences in every district.   I'm just happy to see all the reconnects in the north such as this and back through Chapleau etc.

 

Huge advantage on the exchange rate for US riders too. 

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