Politics & Government
DNR Seeking Public Input On Snowmobile Trail In State Forest
The new trail would be more sustainable, wildlife agency officials said.
October 21, 2021
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is looking for the public to weigh in on a proposed change to its master plan for the Flambeau River State Forest which would convert about a mile of existing forest road into a snowmobile trail.
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The state forest is made up of 90,147 acres across Price, Rusk and Sawyer counties and its currently existing 55 miles of snowmobile trails connect with the networks in nearby counties. The change would be coordinated with a broader redesign of the area’s snowmobile trail system, allowing for a connection with the system and a “more sustainable” trail.
“The proposed new trail is on existing forest road and is a more sustainable trail,” the proposal states. “This 0.9-mile designation allows for the continued connection of the trail system. The existing primitive forest road is closed to public highway legal vehicles. The road would not require substantial improvement work to provide conditions suitable for snowmobile use. Brushing and future maintenance would be conducted by local partners through snowmobile trail maintenance agreements.”
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The existing forest road is not currently accessible by public vehicles and the area is a forest production area, meaning it’s used for logging, and does not “intersect native community, scenic resource management areas or other management overlay zones that would restrict establishment of the proposed trail.”
The proposal states that forest management officials don’t believe there will be any conflict between users of the trail and logging operations in the area and that any noise from snowmobiles on the trail will be similar to the noise from trails already in the forest.
Members of the public who want to comment can do so online or through the mail by Nov. 4.
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