Winter. Welcome Back, Don't Be A Stranger.

At last -- a few days of fantastic skiing! This winter (2024-25) started late, was far too dry, and now is ending early. Hurry back my friend, but try to be on time.

Cross country ski conditions this morning (Sunday, February 23rd) were fantastic on the Blue Hills Trail in northwest Wisconsin. Temps started at 23 degrees F, rose above freezing for the first time in 3 weeks, and later in the day hit the low 40s. During the past week, timely grooming of the packed powder and sugar snow surfaces made for wonderful skate or classic skiing this morning before the predicted warmup moved in later in the day. Quite a contrast to the minus 30F windchills a few days earlier.

Enjoy the following photos showing the beauty of the Blue Hills Trail cross country ski trails in northwest Wisconsin -- taken February 21 - 23 (2025). As lovely as the pictures are, the skiing was even better. Right click the photos to open in a new window and enjoy the full size image.

If you'd like to help offset our expenses, follow this link for donations and annual memberships.

It's been almost two years since we've had enough snow to boast of good conditions for cross country skiing in northwest Wisconsin at the Blue Hills Trail. After warm temps and rain produced a total meltdown in late December 2024, a very dry January 2025 was almost as discouraging as the 2024 January/February record warmth that kept us from enjoying any semblance of wintry weather a year ago. If interested, follow this link to view local snowfall data from the past 25+ years.

Come on out and Ski the Hills! In the past couple weeks, we've received enough snow and cold weather to once again enjoy cross country skiing in the beauty of winter in the Blue Hills of northwest Wisconsin. Take a look at the following photos taken while skiing on a lovely blue sky day at 20 degrees F on February 20 (2025). All these photos were taken on the East Side of the Blue Hills Trail.

If you'd like to donate to help offset our costs, follow this link.

January 17th: it's been another very dry start to this winter of 2024-25. 4" of snow prior to Christmas 2024 before that disappeared during a rainy warmup; and only 3+ inches since. Here's a link to 25 years of local snowfall reports.

The 3+ inches of snow that fell January 12th made our groomers happy. They gave it a try, and rolled (packed) the East Side of the trail system, creating a corduroy surface. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of moisture in that snow, and the resultant base is very thin. Most of the groomed trails have grasses showing, and underlying rocks or dirt spots that might catch your skis. But NOTE: we're lucky to have one short section of trail that is offering 'OK' skiing: the 'Gravel Road' has just enough base to conceal most of the rocks. On the East Side map, this is the section from 1-2-3-4 plus a 1/2 km beyond intersection #4. Be sure to use your rock skis on any of the trails, and use extra caution knowing that it's likely you'll find an occasional rock that can throw your balance.

The West Side trails are ungroomed and have about 3 inches of snow that you can explore. Once again, be aware that there is no underlying base -- so it's likely you'll discover some hidden rocks and dirt spots. Enjoy the little snow we have. And hope for a nice snowfall in the near future.

Our 36th Annual Fundraising Banquet was held Saturday, November 2nd at Lehman's Supper Club in Rice Lake. While bidding on many silent auction items during the social hour, attendees shared the camaraderie of like-minded silent sports enthusiasts. After a fabulous buffet meal, our president (John Waldron) reviewed the 'State of the Trails'.

Then we were greatly entertained by guest speaker Sam Thayer as he educated us regarding responsible foraging in the Blue Hills, tempting us with his tasty descriptions of edible wild plants.

To close the evening we 1)selected the winner of our fall raffle (Bryn Rademaker won the $250 gift card for use at Spring Street Sports in Chippewa Falls), then 2)distributed the silent auction items among the winners.

Fun evening.

Many THANKS TO OUR MEMBERS, many THANKS TO OUR DONORS! And a big thank you to Butch and Trudy Lehman (Lehman's Supper Club).

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

We're trying to make the best of a warm, dry winter (2023-24) at the Blue Hills Trail in northern Wisconsin.

November and December were disappointing months for those of us that enjoy winter. To top off the record high temps in December, Christmas was wet (1.5" rainfall) and the ground was bare. Finally in early January some cooler weather moved in, and by mid month we counted several snowfalls amounting to 6 inches. Just enough to groom our 20+ miles of ski trails -- and enough to entice folks to break out their snowshoes and their 'rock' skis.

The warming house has been quiet at a time of year it's usually overflowing with smiling faces. But at least for now we have a little taste of winter.

The following photos show conditions during a week of cold temps in the middle of January. Catch it while you can, the weatherman predicts another blast of hot air.

The Year That Was (2022-2023):

At our annual fundraising banquet (November 4, 2023) our 'State of the Trails' summary was a year to review our recovery from a devastating December 2022 ice storm:

Ice storm, record snowfall, and equipment issues – what an incredible challenge!

• November 2022 we graveled the first 200 feet inside the gate at the warming house. This did away with an area that had been perpetually muddy and limited access to our equipment in all but very dry conditions. November snowfall = 12".
• December 2022 early snowfalls were encouraging. We were able to groom & ski the new trail on the West Side once before the mid-December ice storm (ice + 16" of heavy tree crushing snow) devastated the trails. It took about a week to open the access road to the trailhead. Then we rented heavy equipment and operated it for 3 days at a cost of about $7000. This opened up a shortened version of the East Side Core Loop and our groomers created good skiing. When almost done with the rental equipment, the cab of the backhoe was slammed by a tree with damage that totaled out the backhoe – fortunately we had purchased short term insurance that covered the damage. December snowfall = 28".
• In early January a group of our volunteers worked in deep snow to clear another important section of the East Side trail. The snow kept coming, temps were mild, we kept grooming and enjoyed good skiing on the limited number of open trails. In mid January, the forestry department hired heavy equipment to open Excelsior Road on the West Side, then we groomed it and enjoyed it. The rest of the West Side had too much ice storm damage to open more trails. In late January, our Honda UTV acted up by mysteriously shattering its fan blade – a quick trip to the shop in Rice Lake fixed that problem. January snowfall = 16".

• February skiing conditions remained very good with mild temps and timely snowfalls. In mid-February, a team of our volunteers worked in deep snow to remove ice storm damage from the East Side ‘Washout Trail’. This created a connection with Rut Road that included more of the Core Loop. Meanwhile, John Kann worked overtime to add two new snowshoe loops that were well tromped. Hats off to John Kann! Our 2017 Arctic Cat Bearcat Groomers’ Special snowmobile is a big workhorse, powerful and maneuverable. It nicely complements the Honda Pioneer. Unfortunately, the Bearcat overheated on multiple occasions the past two winters, presenting a diagnostic challenge that we finally solved in February. A $4 fuse (a circuit breaker fuse) was the culprit! February snowfall = 13".
• March remained snowy, and we kept on grooming. In early March, the rear tracks on the Honda showed signs of failing rubber – perhaps due to the incredibly hard work required to groom the chunky condensed snow after the heavy equipment operated in December. We ordered replacement rubber tracks, and the day after the new tracks arrived the left rear track ‘failed’ and we replaced the rubber track in the parking lot. Truly a wrestling match replacing that track! Even though we still had a deep base, because the forecast showed warmup & rain, we decided to move grooming equipment to storage after the final grooming on March 20^th. In late March, good crust skiing was available throughout! March snowfall = 20".
• April 1^st delivered 12" of dense snow in the form of a blizzard! Then a week later, good crust skiing was available again. The next surprise? Ttemps soared into the 80s for 5 days, followed by 3" of heavy snow, followed by 1.5" of rain that melted most of the remaining snow. In late April we assembled a work crew to remove the mess of damaged trees around the warming house. April snowfall = 15".
• Total snowfall for the winter set a record for the 25 years we’ve kept records: 104 inches! The previous record was 89 inches during the winter of 2013-14.
• During the first half of May, on four occasions we assembled work crews and cleared more of the ice damaged trees. At that point, thick clouds of mosquitoes and gnats chased us out of the woods. In late May we were also able to install large vents in the storage container where our snowmobile sleeps – hopefully this will reduce the potential of condensation & moisture damage to its electronics (recall the corroded circuit breaker fuse?)
• In late June, we began our summer trail mowing. However, during hot weather, the Honda UTV developed several problems that were likely related to a faulty speed sensor. During the month that it took for the repair, trail work was on hold. 
• In July and August, we hired a crew from the Flambeau Correctional Center to help clear ice storm damaged trees. They did a fantastic job clearing many of the West Side trails, and several East Side trails. Money ($2000) well spent! Another oddity this summer was the heavy growth of burdock – thick forests of burdock 6 feet tall.
• As the bugs became tolerable in late July, our own volunteers again worked to remove damaged trees on several more occasions. By September 1^st, the entire trail system was (mostly) clear of the ice damage. All told, probably more than 3500 damaged trees – about 100 trees per kilometer – were removed from our 35 km of trails.
• Our annual fall workday on October 1^st was lightly attended on a day with temps in the upper 80s. Despite the heat, a lot of important trail work was accomplished that day.
• Despite a dry, hot summer, the fall colors were very good and hung on longer than usual.
• What A Year!!! Many thanks to all our volunteers & donors – the trails are now in great shape for winter.

Here are some specific thank yous…

• Thanks to everyone attending our fundraising banquet, and to everyone that helped with trail work this past year. Your support in the form of donated time and money makes it all possible.
• Thanks to our volunteers for removing downed trees & their 45+ hours of mowing this past summer. An incredible team effort!
• Thanks to John Waldron & Geary Searfoss for serving as officers. They bring boundless energy and wonderfully creative ideas. World’s best volunteers!
• Thanks to last year’s grooming team for creating great skiing conditions despite the incredible challenges resulting from the ice storm.
• Thanks to Jan Paulsen for photos from the banquet, and for decorating the banquet site. Leaves, acorns etc from a recent hike on the ski trails.
• Thanks to Kirk Paulsen for donating his engineering skills in designing the new trail maps several years ago, and for updating them as the trails evolve. His maps are highly accurate & informative. NOTE: thanks to Kirk’s engineering tech skills, you can visit our website & easily place our maps on your phone for use with the App called Avenza Maps. You’ll be able to take advantage of satellites to follow your location in real time. Very useful.
• Thanks to Kristine Paulsen for her ongoing involvement with our website – what a great portal she has provided us!!
• Thanks to John Kann & Dan Bjugstad who continue maintaining our network of dedicated snowshoe trails – after the December 2022 ice storm, John almost single handedly opened two new loops through the downed trees.
• Thanks to the Rusk County Forestry department for mowing most of the West Side, and parts of the East Side. With them, we have a great partnership maintaining the Blue Hills Trail.
• The distant loop on the West Side (C-D-F-G-H-I) remains beaver territory. For now, we think we can coexist and avoid removing the beavers. In fact, their two active dams undoubtedly help control runoff during heavy rain events – thus minimizing erosion of the ski trail. Because that loop is so difficult to groom – and because we now have more & better trails on the West Side – that loop will receive minimal grooming and be considered a wilderness loop. We’ll groom it if/when conditions permit.
• The big timber sale that was cut last fall on the Far East Trails still has lots of wood (400 cords of wood = 40 truckloads) that needs hauling. Markets for hardwood pulp logs have been poor this year – the loggers will try more hauling in November 2023 if they can find a market. The loggers realize we plan on grooming in early-mid December and should be done using Rut Road (part of our East Side Core Loop) by that time.
• One West Side timber sale was cut during June, a clear cut where the new trail (between intersections Y to Z)  joins Excelsior Road. It’s already growing back quickly, don’t let its appearance shock you.
• The trail system has two timber sales that have been bid out and await logging – one on the East, one on the West.
• Remember, the entire trail system is non-motorized. If you find motorized vehicles on the trails, educate their operators to the contrary. And consider reporting this to the Rusk County Sheriff’s department.
  
  

Equipment and Monies:

Thanks for your financial support. Despite the unanticipated large amount of money spent this past year on clearing ice storm debris (approaching $10,000), we're in good shape financially, and the equipment is running well. If you'd like to send a donation our way, follow this link.

‍Whenever you can, please thank the many businesses and individuals that support the Blue Hills Trail Association Inc.

After the December 2022 ice storm brought down an incredible number of trees throughout our 20+ miles of trails, spring of 2023 our officers weren't confident we'd be able to remove all the damage before the winter of 2023-24. At best, we hoped to clear the damage from our favorite trails. But guess what? As of September 1st 2023, 100% of the trail system has been cleared of downed and leaning trees. Amazing! Amazing!! Amazing!!!

Here's a time capsule of the removal of the storm damage...

• Late December we spent close to $7500 when we rented and operated heavy equipment (backhoe and skidsteer) to clear about 40% of the East Side Trails. Good skiing followed.
• Early January the Rusk Forestry Department contracted removal of downed trees from Excelsior Road on the West Side. And we thoroughly enjoyed skiing that segment.
• January/February BHTA volunteers (Blue Hills Trail Assn) spent several days clearing a few important trails on the East Side. Really tough work removing ice encrusted tree tops buried in 2+ feet of snow.
• We enjoyed some mighty fine skiing on the open trails -- and enjoyed the overall record snowfall and winter that wouldn't quit.
• In May, our volunteers provided 4 separate sessions of tree removal that buoyed our spirits. Then the bugs moved in.
• During June/July/August, we hired an affordable work crew from the Flambeau Correctional Center to clear most of the West Side trails, and several important loops on the East Side. They worked 7 full days for us! And did a great job in prepping for winter (removing not only the downed trees, but also the leaners that would block the trails when snow loaded).
• Once the bugs backed off in August, we organized several mornings for our volunteers to continue chainsaw work on the East Side. The last session was August 30th as we cleared the 'Far East' trails.

I think this is a fair estimate of the degree of damage we dealt with this past 9 months: 100 trees removed per km, 10 trees removed each 100 meters. That's an average, some areas weren't too bad, other areas were an unbelievable tangled mess. We removed many small trees, many medium size trees, occasional very big trees. For our 35+ km of non-motorized trails, that amounts to 3500 trees cleared to make way for our hunters, bikers, snowshoers, and skiers.

In between sessions to clear trees, we've found time to mow most of the East Side of the trail system. Those trails are in great shape, just in time for fall weather. The Rusk County Forestry Department is handling most of the mowing of the West Side - hopefully that mowing will soon start.

When you ski the Blue Hills Trail this winter, pause and reflect on not only the beauty, but the work involved. If you'd like to help us financially, here's the link where you can donate.

‍Happy Labor Day!

The past couple weeks, John Kann (our Snowshoe Superman) has been busy laying out a new snowshoe trail, and improving the existing Ridges Snowshoe Trail. Here are the details:

• First he added more ropes to the existing northwest loop of the Ridges Trail – human tow ropes – to help ascend/descend steep hillsides. With the addition of these ropes, he decided to name that trail segment the “Rope-A-Dope Loop". Find it on the map photo(s) below.
• Then John created a great new loop that branches off the existing Ridges Trail – it measures about 2 km in length, heads to the northeast, climbs to the east side ridgeline near intersection #12, then descends back to its origin. John named it the “Highland Loop". Look carefully at the images below.
• The snowshoe trails are marked with a variety of yellow symbols. To find your way, look for yellow snowshoe symbols, yellow signs, plastic yellow tags, or yellow paint on trees.
• Some time soon, our official map designer will add the Highland Loop to our online maps. Until then, go explore the woods and follow the yellow stick road.