sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 This year, I finally got to do my first saddle bag trip. Trax & Derek invited me to join them on a ride from Pine Falls Lodge (near Sudbury). We headed out from Pine Falls early Saturday morning to Cochrane via Shining Tree, where we met Evil, Mr. Evil, and Mini-Evil. They joined us for the trip to Cochrane where they would spend the night and then head back home. We were also going to meet up with Lex and Mr. Lex in Timmins. As has been my luck this year, I started having the temp light come on shortly after leaving Pine Falls Lodge due to the hard trails inthe cold morning. After meeting the Evil's and having lunch at Three Bears in Shining Tree, we headed off toward Timmins. The route to Timmins took us down Grassy Road which was snow covered but ploughed. The temp light would come on every few miles and I would have to stop and pile snow on the running boards. Finally, we reached the end of Grassy Road, and turned onto groomed trail just as the light came on again. I figured, no problem, I'll just slip over here into the powder and take care of this. After a couple of jumps, the light was not going out. Looking closer, I realized that this was not the temp light but the oil level light This is NOT supposed to happen on a 4 stroke! I stopped and started to check and noticed a small drip of oil from under the hood. A couple of other Yamaha riders stopped and lent their opinions and suggestions. We removed the side panel and shortly found that the oil tank was cracked near the bottom mounting bolt. My first thought was that my trip was over! The Yammie guys offered a piece of JB Weld putty to try to fashion a patch. I figured that this might just work! We tipped the sled up on its side and dipped a rag in some gasoline to clean the tank as best we could. I kneaded the putty and applied it and tried to make sure I had the patch complete. I still had a problem! I did not have any spare oil. After a short discussion, we decided that the Evil's would head on ahead to Timmins to get some oil for me and Derek would tow me toward Timmins until we met the Evil'son the way back. As it turned out, we were on the outskirts of Timmins when we met (a 50 mile tow!) We added a litre of oil and I was good to go! We were too late to meet Lex & Mr.Lex as they knew what was happening with us and headed directly to Lillabelle Lake Resort in Cochrane. We continued on to Cochrane without further incident. Sorry, no pics from Saturday. "This ain't no scenic tour" :poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Sunday was planned to be a trip to the Abitibi Canyon. I had heard of the canyon many times so was quite keen on this adventure. In the morning, at breakfast, had a surprise. Sitting at another table were Krusty and Metro and Metro's son. With Rod's help, they had contacted the local Polaris / Yamaha dealer as they needed a belt for Metro's son's Polaris. Despite the fact that is was Sunday, they were opening upto meet us and help out. After discussion, I decided to join them and buy some more oil to keep the tank topped up. There was no sign of leaks overnight so that was a good thing! I also decided to visit the local Canadian Tire to pick up more of the repair putty. While there, the rest of my party met me there and we were ready to start off. A quick stop at North Adventure Inn where we were to spend the night to drop off our bags and we were off. Smooth Rock Falls for fuel and then on to the canyon. The trails were in great shape. This is what passes for an outhouse in Northern Ontario!!! Some views at the canyon. The power dam. On the way back, Trax demonstrated how deep the snow is off trail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Monday we were off to Hearst. I should have known something was wrong when I could not only keep Derek in view but actually passed him! At the next stop, he reported that the engine light was coming on and the engine wouldn't rev past 7 grand. 'Mr Lex' checked a few things and figured that it might be the TPS. A couple of calls and we found out that the nearest dealer that could help us was in Timmins. We continued on to Smooth Rock Falls for fuel and then backtracked to the C trail and headed to Timmins. When we got to the dealer, we had to wait for the service staff to return from lunch and look at the sled. In the meantime, Trax contacted Evil who suggested that the mapping may need to be updated. When the techs returned, they checked oout the sled and updated the mapping and we were off again. Or so we thought As we reached the edge of town, 'Mr. Lex' realized that his sliders were worn through! A quick discussion revealed that we had everything we would need to change the sliders except a 10mm Allen key. Lex and Trax headed to get rooms at the Travelodge for us while 'Mr Lex', Derek, and I headed to CTC and the dealer to get what we needed. Back at the hotel, we changed the sliders and then headed off to East Side Mario's (next door) for dinner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 We decided that the next leg of our trip would be to Elk Lake. After reading the reports on the forum, we wanted to see what the Elk Lake Eco-Centre looked like but intended to stay elsewhere. As we travelled through Val Gagne, we had to stop to take pictures of the 'Sledder's Christmas Tree' When we arrived in Elk Lake, we asked the locals about lodging choices and found that the only options were a local motel with no restaurant nearby, or the Eco-Centre. The Eco-Centre certainly is impressive, as it should be with that much public money poured into it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Wednesday was the last day of our adventure. Lex and 'Mr Lex' were to head to New Liskeard where their truck was and we were heading back to Pine Falls Lodge. When we left the Elk Lake Eco-Centre, the trails were frozen hard and provided little cooling. The temp light came on again! Then, to make matters worse, we travelled down Beauty Road which was ploughed to the dirt for almost the whole width. We were able to manage with only 3 or four stops down the 15 - 20 KM length of that section to load snow on the running boards. With the exception of a very rough section of the C trail just outside of the Sudbury Trail system,the rest of the trails were in good shape and we made good time. The lake crossings were a combination of water and slush (but they did provide lots of cooling and lube!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyzer Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Bad day snowmobiling is still better than a good day at work ....Make sure when you get your new oil tank use rubber washers on both sides of the tank ...Glad you aleast got out, next year will be better ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Wow. You'll be writing for one of the sled magazines next year. Awesome report. Kudos to your fellow riders, as well as others who assisted. Sledders truly are a special group of people. ________________________________________________ First Saddle Bag Trip ... And what do you call those things you carry on regular day trips :poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mossy Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Wow.You'll be writing for one of the sled magazines next year. Awesome report. Kudos to your fellow riders, as well as others who assisted. Sledders truly are a special group of people. I can see that..... Sledjunk the other intrepid snowmobiler! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catdoo Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Good report SJ, we met a fellow in the garage at North Adventure who was riding a Yamaha and noticed he had "ice scratchers" mounted on his skis and he said his overheating troubles are over when hitting hard trails. The scratchers kick up a lot of snow and provide sufficient cooling. The only thing he mentioned was beware of backing up, they break off so just "park" them and you're good to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Good report SJ, we met a fellow in the garage at North Adventure who was riding a Yamaha and noticed he had "ice scratchers" mounted on his skis and he said his overheating troubles are over when hitting hard trails. The scratchers kick up a lot of snow and provide sufficient cooling. The only thing he mentioned was beware of backing up, they break off so just "park" them and you're good to go. Definitely looking at scratchers for next year. Hopefully a design that will work in reverse (or at least not break). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Bad day snowmobiling is still better than a good day at work ....Make sure when you get your new oil tank use rubber washers on both sides of the tank ...Glad you aleast got out, next year will be better ..... I called my dealer from North Adventure Inn on Monday and had the oil tank changed under warranty on Thursday. Thanks for the suggestion about the rubber washers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Wow.You'll be writing for one of the sled magazines next year. Awesome report. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Well, lucky for you.............we got pics!!! We just got off Grassy Rd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mossy Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Thats a Evil Mini me!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revrnd Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 SJ, great report! I just finished last night editing your sled tracks (check your email). Hopefully I guessed correctly where TOP C's new route is NW of Wanapitei. Any pics from the mountain west of Cochrane? Also, you answered my question I had about the name of the place you stayed @ in Elk Lake. How did you find Pine Falls Lodge? Would you stay there again? We're hoping to head north from the Sudbury area next winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Thats a Evil Mini me!!!!! Ya poor thing! She's a trooper on the sled...............340 miles in 2 days and never complained once............ Even at 80 mph.............she's a great passenger! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Great pics, Evil! Thanks (I think) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Great pics, Evil! Thanks (I think) Sorry SJ.................I can't take credit for the pics!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 Even at 80 mph.............she's a great passenger! No kidding!! I was following her riding with Trax and it was like they were one! She was in tune with every turn. Impressive to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irREVerent Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Hey, SJ...great pics and report! A lot of those scenes were very familiar, as we covered much of the same country (including the canyon) on our trip this year. Thanks for posting them. Sorry to hear about the oil leak...not fun when you are in such remote country. Just shows how helpful most sledders are when there's a breakdown. Too bad you were on the end of a tow-rope for the trip up L143 to Timmins...having run it for the first time this year, it instantly became one of my favourite trail links in the north. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledjunk Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 SJ, great report! I just finished last night editing your sled tracks (check your email). Hopefully I guessed correctly where TOP C's new route is NW of Wanapitei. Any pics from the mountain west of Cochrane?Also, you answered my question I had about the name of the place you stayed @ in Elk Lake. How did you find Pine Falls Lodge? Would you stay there again? We're hoping to head north from the Sudbury area next winter. Pine Falls Lodge was excellent! I arrived late Friday night and shared a cabin with Trax & Derek. Great accommodations and the breakfast was excellent. Because we were planning on an early departure, they even opened the restaurant early for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SlowTouringGuy Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Lex and 'Mr Lex' were to head to New Liskeard where their truck was ................ And I think the Indomitable MRS. STG and I saw them the morning they were leaving to meet you. Were we next door to them at the EconoLodge in New Liskeard (?) The Indomitable and I headed out for a long weekend loop in the area and they said they were meeting Trax in Cochrane. Small world. Great report on your trip. I'd like to try that place near Sudbury you stayed at. Lots of places to check out. Lots of trails to ride. So much Sledding, so little time.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revrnd Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Lots of places to check out. Lots of trails to ride.So much Sledding, so little time.. W/ being retired this winter I was hoping to get more sledding than usual. However dealing w/ issues meant I never was out of Oshawa for a complete week in January. Once we got back from our Northern Blastoff, the season in southern Ontario unravelled pretty quickly. I never got over to the Mazinaw trails & there's a couple of trails over there I want to get GPS tracks for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giddy UP Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Great report SJ! Can't wait to get back up there next year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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