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NCDN Update. Clocks Ticking


Turbo Doo

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6 hours ago, volunteer2 said:

Well the Last song has sung.  It's done.   Sitting in Kap in tee shirts having bevves with Tricky

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For the 4 sad responses   don't be sad.  Omg it's so good have this year under our belt

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20 hours ago, volunteer2 said:

For the 4 sad responses   don't be sad.  Omg it's so good have this year under our belt

Yes, considering how things looked last fall we (except for the sledders in D10 & D11) don't have a lot to complain about.

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On 3/17/2021 at 9:41 PM, revrnd said:

Good to hear as it usually is pretty quiet there (other than when the OCers get there). When @irREVerent and I arrived, there was nobody there.

 

Any sledders @ the Apollo?

We weren't past the Apollo until early Saturday PM, when we pulled back into Kap on the L143 to close out the season. There were 3 rigs there, IIRC. There were 9 or 10 rigs at the Advantage Motel. All of the little motels along hwy 11 in Kap had some trailers in their lots. Seemed like everyone had a piece of the pie. I could see how there is a parking problem at the Super 8. It was beyond full Sunday AM when we left town. Thanks revrnd and 1049 for recommending the Advantage, and to Turbo Doo and 1049 for suggesting we stage out of Kap. The 2.5 day and 1000 km ride was literally as good as it could have been. We only rode 40 km of really rough  A trail from Mattice to Opaz Saturday PM. The rest of the trip was 7 to 10 out of 10, and we got to see the season truly end. BTW, how long does it take to get from Hornepayne to Hearst by trail? Report with pics to follow.

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3 minutes ago, tricky said:

We weren't past the Apollo until early Saturday PM, when we pulled back into Kap on the L143 to close out the season. There were 3 rigs there, IIRC. There were 9 0r 10 rigs at the Advantage Motel. All of the little motels along hwy 11 in Kap had some trailers in their lots. Seemed like everyone had a piece of the pie. I could see how there is a parking problem at the Super 8. It was beyond full Sunday AM when we left town. Thanks revrnd and 1049 for recommending the Advantage, and to Turbo Doo and 1049 for suggesting we stage out of Kap. The 2.5 day and 1000 km ride was literally as good as it could have been. We only rode 40 km of really rough  A trail from Mattice to Opaz Saturday PM. The rest of the trip was 7 to 10 out of 10, and we got to see the season truly end. BTW, how long does it take to get from Hornepayne to Hearst by trail? Report with pics to follow.

You're welcome. I'm just passing the word along about the Advantage. I'm thinking Slomo may have stayed there before it became common knowledge on OC. My last stay in Kap' before we started staying there was in 2016 @ the Super 8 w/ Dave & @apeXMAN That was an end of season ride too. I think we were the only sledders that were staging there (2 rigs).

 

Depends on who's leading... :poke2:

 

 

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9 minutes ago, tricky said:

We weren't past the Apollo until early Saturday PM, when we pulled back into Kap on the L143 to close out the season. There were 3 rigs there, IIRC. There were 9 0r 10 rigs at the Advantage Motel. All of the little motels along hwy 11 in Kap had some trailers in their lots. Seemed like everyone had a piece of the pie. I could see how there is a parking problem at the Super 8. It was beyond full Sunday AM when we left town. Thanks revrnd and 1049 for recommending the Advantage, and to Turbo Doo and 1049 for suggesting we stage out of Kap. The 2.5 day and 1000 km ride was literally as good as it could have been. We only rode 40 km of really rough  A trail from Mattice to Opaz Saturday PM. The rest of the trip was 7 to 10 out of 10, and we got to see the season truly end. BTW, how long does it take to get from Hornepayne to Hearst by trail? Report with pics to follow.

Glad you guys had a good season ending trip. Hornepayne to Hearst or vice versa,  can be done relatively quick. Last season Mrs Turbo Doo and Myself left Hearst at 1130am,  after a very very late night with @Evil, and rode down to Hornepayne and back, and were back in our rooms at the companion, changed and enjoying bevies at 4pm. Gas at esso and late lunch at Cindy's.  It's 160km, one way, or 320kms round trip.  As @revrnd says, it all depends on who's leading,  right @Evil..

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A buddy and I were in Cochrane Best Western on Wed and switched to Chain of Lakes Motel in Kap on Thursday and Friday.

Chain of Lakes was a decent little place.  Needs some updating.  But clean.  And rooms were comfortable for a couple guys.  My wife probably would not be impressed to stay there but it is Northern Ontario.  My buddy said his wife would not mind it.   I guess it’s all in how you choose to experience the stay.

 

Overall good trip with just over 900km in 2 1/2 days which included a hwy 11 shutdown Thursday and a trip to GM dealer.  

 

For my my first time riding the area I really enjoyed it.   The outer loops were great.  I recognized some of the places from pictures that had been posted and the trail Numbers.   I do not understand how the outer loops get such limited traffic when the A trail gets beat up pretty good.  

 

Thank you to everyone for posting all your travels.   It was really interesting seeing places I had read about.

 

 

 

 

 

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10 hours ago, Turbo Doo said:

Glad you guys had a good season ending trip. Hornepayne to Hearst or vice versa,  can be done relatively quick. Last season Mrs Turbo Doo and Myself left Hearst at 1130am,  after a very very late night with @Evil, and rode down to Hornepayne and back, and were back in our rooms at the companion, changed and enjoying bevies at 4pm. Gas at esso and late lunch at Cindy's.  It's 160km, one way, or 320kms round trip.  As @revrnd says, it all depends on who's leading,  right @Evil..

The last few years when I've been riding, I tend not to want to lead, I just feel that I don't ride as fast as the rest of the gang. The other thing is that for the most part on the Northern Blastoff trips, I was lead and my brother rode @ the back w/ the S-I-L & my buddy in the middle. Nowadays, I'd rather ride in the middle or bring up the rear. It's a bit more relaxed 'back there. Besides seeing most of my riding down here is solo, it's a nice change to let someone else lead.

 

That being said a couple of times the other week on L125 (of course LOL) & L129 I had it pretty much pinned. @irREVerent commented that I wasn't lollygagging (or something similar) along. I guess when the sight lines are good and the trail wide I'm more comfortable to run somewhat quicker.

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22 hours ago, Sksman said:

A buddy and I were in Cochrane Best Western on Wed and switched to Chain of Lakes Motel in Kap on Thursday and Friday.

Chain of Lakes was a decent little place.  Needs some updating.  But clean.  And rooms were comfortable for a couple guys.  My wife probably would not be impressed to stay there but it is Northern Ontario.  My buddy said his wife would not mind it.   I guess it’s all in how you choose to experience the stay.

 

Overall good trip with just over 900km in 2 1/2 days which included a hwy 11 shutdown Thursday and a trip to GM dealer.  

 

For my my first time riding the area I really enjoyed it.   The outer loops were great.  I recognized some of the places from pictures that had been posted and the trail Numbers.   I do not understand how the outer loops get such limited traffic when the A trail gets beat up pretty good.  

 

Thank you to everyone for posting all your travels.   It was really interesting seeing places I had read about.

Glad your 1st trip up there was enjoyable!

 

Thanks for the update on the Chain of Lakes. I've know it was there, but have never heard of anyone staying it. Good to keep in mind if you happened to be in town during a hockey tournament (I guess that's 1 thing we didn't have to work around this winter). How was the access to it?

 

On the bold, I think folks just stick to TOP A if they're trying to put on miles. I know when I was 1st riding thru there on loops we stuck to TOP A as well. It wasn't until 1 stop @ the Moonbeam clubhouse than an older couple told us about the L123 and guiding us to it. Since then we've spent more time on it than TOP A. The previous 2 winters when we were discussing the route to or from Kap on the Great Big Loops, L123 & L125 was part of the day.

 

 

 

 

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57 minutes ago, tricky said:

We weren't past the Apollo until early Saturday PM, when we pulled back into Kap on the L143 to close out the season. There were 3 rigs there, IIRC. There were 9 or 10 rigs at the Advantage Motel. All of the little motels along hwy 11 in Kap had some trailers in their lots. Seemed like everyone had a piece of the pie. I could see how there is a parking problem at the Super 8. It was beyond full Sunday AM when we left town. Thanks revrnd and 1049 for recommending the Advantage, and to Turbo Doo and 1049 for suggesting we stage out of Kap. The 2.5 day and 1000 km ride was literally as good as it could have been. We only rode 40 km of really rough  A trail from Mattice to Opaz Saturday PM. The rest of the trip was 7 to 10 out of 10, and we got to see the season truly end. BTW, how long does it take to get from Hornepayne to Hearst by trail? Report with pics to follow.

Glad it all worked out Tricky!!!

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13 minutes ago, Sksman said:

I do not understand how the outer loops get such limited traffic when the A trail gets beat up pretty good.  

 

So glad that you enjoyed the trip and figured out the irrational trail choices that so many make on the NCDN. On Saturday, we only had to return from Hearst to Kap. Even on a good day, using the A trail all the way would not be much fun, but this past Saturday the A trail was like a busy, mushy, washboard highway. But it was packed with sleds, when local loop trails were almost empty. We left Hearst westbound on A, to the western L163 intersection, then took the top of 163, 165, 159, 161 and 153 to Mattice where we had to rejoin the A trail. We road the 40+ km of $hit to Opasatika, then jumped on the L123 and L143 back to Kap. On those last two local trails, which were in perfect condition, we only saw one group of six riders. I am left to conclude that sledders are lazy (won't take the time to read a map) or not very clever (don't know how read a map). In any event, I hope most of them stay that way and leave the nice trails to serious sledders. We are lucky on this forum to have advisors who can help us plan the best routes and lodgings anywhere in the province. Regarding this trip, there was good advice from many quarters and its much appreciated.

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1 minute ago, tricky said:

So glad that you enjoyed the trip and figured out the irrational trail choices that so many make on the NCDN. On Saturday, we only had to return from Hearst to Kap. Even on a good day, using the A trail all the way would not be much fun, but this past Saturday the A trail was like a busy, mushy, washboard highway. But it was packed with sleds, when local loop trails were almost empty. We left Hearst westbound on A, to the western L163 intersection, then took the top of 163, 165, 159, 161 and 153 to Mattice where we had to rejoin the A trail. We road the 40+ km of $hit to Opasatika, then jumped on the L123 and L143 back to Kap. On those last two local trails, which were in perfect condition, we only saw one group of six riders. I am left to conclude that sledders are lazy (won't take the time to read a map) or not very clever (don't know how read a map). In any event, I hope most of them stay that way and leave the nice trails to serious sledders. We are lucky on this forum to have advisors who can help us plan the best routes and lodgings anywhere in the province. Regarding this trip, there was good advice from many quarters and its much appreciated.

I usually do L123 aviods town too and take L155 as well on way to Hearst. 

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8 hours ago, revrnd said:

Glad your 1st trip up there was enjoyable!

 

Thanks for the update on the Chain of Lakes. I've know it was there, but have never heard of it. Good to keep in mind if you happened to be in town during a hockey tournament (I guess that's 1 thing we didn't have to work around this winter). How was the access to it?

 

On the bold, I think folks just stick to TOP A if they're trying to put on miles. I know when I was 1st riding thru there on loops we stuck to TOP A as well. It wasn't until 1 stop @ the Moonbeam clubhouse than an older couple told us about the L123 and guiding us to it. Since then we've spent more time on it than TOP A. The previous 2 winters when we were discussing the route to or from Kap on the Great Big Loops, L123 & L125 was part of the day.

 

 

 

 

123 was our saviour on Friday.   

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10 hours ago, tricky said:

So glad that you enjoyed the trip and figured out the irrational trail choices that so many make on the NCDN. On Saturday, we only had to return from Hearst to Kap. Even on a good day, using the A trail all the way would not be much fun, but this past Saturday the A trail was like a busy, mushy, washboard highway. But it was packed with sleds, when local loop trails were almost empty. We left Hearst westbound on A, to the western L163 intersection, then took the top of 163, 165, 159, 161 and 153 to Mattice where we had to rejoin the A trail. We road the 40+ km of $hit to Opasatika, then jumped on the L123 and L143 back to Kap. On those last two local trails, which were in perfect condition, we only saw one group of six riders. I am left to conclude that sledders are lazy (won't take the time to read a map) or not very clever (don't know how read a map). In any event, I hope most of them stay that way and leave the nice trails to serious sledders. We are lucky on this forum to have advisors who can help us plan the best routes and lodgings anywhere in the province. Regarding this trip, there was good advice from many quarters and its much appreciated.

We rode from Kap to Hearst on Friday.  Took the 155 on way over then went north and took the same trails starting on 163 on way back.   I think after all said and done Friday was 480km for us.  

 

If not for 123 I was thinking of calling a cab to come get me in Opasatika.   I would have brought truck back for sleds.  It was brutal beat up.  

 

Groomers were out around Hearst Friday but the 8c temps were making it tough.  

 

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Last hurrah short tour was a total success, as parts of it have already been described earlier in this thread. Adding some pics now. A highlight of the trip was meeting Volunteer 2 and crew in Kap at the Advantage Motel on Wednesday evening. We discovered that we had basically the same plans for the next three days. Unfortunately one of our new found friends, had a sled go down on Thursday and 2 guys drove home on Friday.

 

Thanks V 2 for the Friday ride on your sled - nice steering set-up with the two different makes of carbides. Now I don't have to worry that I might have to buy a Gen 4 when its time to replace my XS 900. V 2 and Kenny joined us Friday, for ride to lunch in Hornepayne and back to Hearst. Perry the groomer operator suggested a modified local loop to ride around Hornepaye - about 50 km of hardly ridden heaven. In our discussion before leaving Horepayne is was mentioned that the LCBO in Hearst closed at 6 PM and we wouldn't be able to make it back back in time. It was 3:50 when we left the Esso station and I thought some of us could beat 6 in Hearst, so I told the leader, Malcolm, to take off while I waited for Doug to fuel up, and that myself and likely Doug would pass the group shortly. I caught and passed the front four riders in 4 or 5 km, heading for the LCBO or Beer Store, and I had one headlight in my rear view mirror that stayed just behind me. When I stopped about 50 km up D108A, it was V 2 who had accepted the LCBO challenge. We continued on the breakaway to Hearst to arrive at the Hearst Beer store at 5:25, only to find it was open until 8 PM. We had assumed that the LCBO and BS would close at the same time - don't assume. That meant more time for us to drink beer in the sun drenched hotel parking lot at about +8 degrees. 

 

Saturday was to be a short roughly half day. With temps just below zero, we left town on the A trail to the west end of trail L163 and rode all the loop trails eastward over to L153 south to the A trail at Mattice. At that point we had to ride the $hit show to Opaz, then the 123 and 143 to the Advantage in Kap. I had 999.6 km for the trip. Only 50 or so were bad sledding. Great way to end the year. 

 

 

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@tricky I don't think we saw that many sleds during our travels LOL

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8 hours ago, tricky said:

Last hurrah short tour was a total success, as parts of it have already been described earlier in this thread. Adding some pics now. A highlight of the trip was meeting Volunteer 2 and crew in Kap at the Advantage Motel on Wednesday evening. We discovered that we had basically the same plans for the next three days. Unfortunately one of our new found friends, had a sled go down on Thursday and 2 guys drove home on Friday.

 

Thanks V 2 for the Friday ride on your sled - nice steering set-up with the two different makes of carbides. Now I don't have to worry that I might have to buy a Gen 4 when its time to replace my XS 900. V 2 and Kenny joined us Friday, for ride to lunch in Hornepayne and back to Hearst. Perry the groomer operator suggested a modified local loop to ride around Hornepaye - about 50 km of hardly ridden heaven. In our discussion before leaving Horepayne is was mentioned that the LCBO in Hearst closed at 6 PM and we wouldn't be able to make it back back in time. It was 3:50 when we left the Esso station and I thought some of us could beat 6 in Hearst, so I told the leader, Malcolm, to take off while I waited for Doug to fuel up, and that myself and likely Doug would pass the group shortly. I caught and passed the front four riders in 4 or 5 km, heading for the LCBO or Beer Store, and I had one headlight in my rear view mirror that stayed just behind me. When I stopped about 50 km up D108A, it was V 2 who had accepted the LCBO challenge. We continued on the breakaway to Hearst to arrive at the Hearst Beer store at 5:25, only to find it was open until 8 PM. We had assumed that the LCBO and BS would close at the same time - don't assume. That meant more time for us to drink beer in the sun drenched hotel parking lot at about +8 degrees. 

 

Saturday was to be a short roughly half day. With temps just below zero, we left town on the A trail to the west end of trail L163 and rode all the loop trails eastward over to L153 south to the A trail at Mattice. At that point we had to ride the $hit show to Opaz, then the 123 and 143 to the Advantage in Kap. I had 999.6 km for the trip. Only 50 or so were bad sledding. Great way to end the year. 

 

 

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Thanks so much for the report Tricky.  Also with his advice we did the Kap trails before heading to moonbeam. Again more great advice from an OC member. And then on the 123 600 etec  fuel pump starts to go down.  Called dealer in Hearst and they diagnosed it and no parts so done   that's when I stuck my head in the shop and introduced myself to Denis.  So now we were only 2 

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22 minutes ago, volunteer2 said:

Thanks so much for the report Tricky.  Also with his advice we did the Kap trails before heading to moonbeam. Again more great advice from an OC member. And then on the 123 600 etec  fuel pump starts to go down.  Called dealer in Hearst and they diagnosed it and no parts so done   that's when I stuck my head in the shop and introduced myself to Denis.  So now we were only 2 

My neighbours 600etec surrendered on the L159. The great team at the Hearst dealer diagnosed the problem but no parts were available. We loaded his sled on the back of my truck and he headed home. 

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So, speaking of accolades, a big shout out is in order to Gaston's Sports in Kap.  Last week we unloaded our cousin's Vector at the Advantage only to discover an oil puddle in his trailer, and another one growing slowly in the snow under the sled.  A quick look indicated it was not a cracked oil tank, but seeping out from the belly.  Not something we were going to address in a frozen parking lot.  Rather than load up and head home we called Gaston's and they said "Bring it right over."  Dropped it off at 10 am and they called us back at noon.  Turns out it was not a big issue, and the bill was very fair.  Great people who saved the rest of our trip.

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40 minutes ago, whits-end said:

So, speaking of accolades, a big shout out is in order to Gaston's Sports in Kap.  Last week we unloaded our cousin's Vector at the Advantage only to discover an oil puddle in his trailer, and another one growing slowly in the snow under the sled.  A quick look indicated it was not a cracked oil tank, but seeping out from the belly.  Not something we were going to address in a frozen parking lot.  Rather than load up and head home we called Gaston's and they said "Bring it right over."  Dropped it off at 10 am and they called us back at noon.  Turns out it was not a big issue, and the bill was very fair.  Great people who saved the rest of our trip.

We have found most of the NCDN dealers are good to deal with. :right_on:

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27 minutes ago, whits-end said:

So, speaking of accolades, a big shout out is in order to Gaston's Sports in Kap.  Last week we unloaded our cousin's Vector at the Advantage only to discover an oil puddle in his trailer, and another one growing slowly in the snow under the sled.  A quick look indicated it was not a cracked oil tank, but seeping out from the belly.  Not something we were going to address in a frozen parking lot.  Rather than load up and head home we called Gaston's and they said "Bring it right over."  Dropped it off at 10 am and they called us back at noon.  Turns out it was not a big issue, and the bill was very fair.  Great people who saved the rest of our trip.

I think Gaston is now retired. Same great service for me in 2010, after blowing the 2nd piston in a 600SDI just outside of the Canyon Base Camp. The next day. we walked into Gaston's at 9AM, bought an Apex LTX. They had it put together, plated, OFSC decal ready to go at lunch time. We rode to Hearst to stay on schedule. (In the picture of the sleds in the Companion garage that night, looks like only our sleds there (16 Feb 2010).

 

Same thing at the Yamaha dealer in Hearst years later. A Vector had a track change before the trip. Chaincase oil leaked out of the damaged seal. Dropped of the sled just as he was closing. Mech worked  after hours, then finished the next morning, to replace the chain case side bearing and seal. Dealer had the sled ready to go by noon time.

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We were sledding the NCDN last Wednesday when my scratcher broke while we were heading towards Hearst. I called up P&L in Hearst to arrange to get a new one installed. When we arrived they drove our party to local restaurant  and picked us up so we could eat a late lunch while they repaired my sled. Hats off to them for customer service.

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On 3/21/2021 at 11:30 PM, tricky said:

So glad that you enjoyed the trip and figured out the irrational trail choices that so many make on the NCDN. On Saturday, we only had to return from Hearst to Kap. Even on a good day, using the A trail all the way would not be much fun, but this past Saturday the A trail was like a busy, mushy, washboard highway. But it was packed with sleds, when local loop trails were almost empty. We left Hearst westbound on A, to the western L163 intersection, then took the top of 163, 165, 159, 161 and 153 to Mattice where we had to rejoin the A trail. We road the 40+ km of $hit to Opasatika, then jumped on the L123 and L143 back to Kap. On those last two local trails, which were in perfect condition, we only saw one group of six riders. I am left to conclude that sledders are lazy (won't take the time to read a map) or not very clever (don't know how read a map). In any event, I hope most of them stay that way and leave the nice trails to serious sledders. We are lucky on this forum to have advisors who can help us plan the best routes and lodgings anywhere in the province. Regarding this trip, there was good advice from many quarters and its much appreciated.

We did the same run on Friday and never even encountered another sled on L123 or L145 heading back to Kap  and maybe met 20 sleds in total for the entire loop which mirrored yours exactly. Even on Saturday we rode all L trails between Kap and Smooth Rock and encountered very little traffic, even running L 125 twice just to make sure it was good in both directions. I think most riders are concerned that the they are up north and the L trails might be remote so they stick to the A

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