Winter
Motorized Recreation in the Superior National
Forest and BWCA
December 19, 2003
Contact: Kris Reichenbach
218-626-4393
Winter Motorized Recreation on the Superior
National Forest
The recent snowfall was welcome by winter
enthusiasts across the northland
and many folks may plan to head to the Superior
National Forest with their
snowmobiles. Large areas of the Forest are open
to recreational motor use
but visitors are asked to follow some simple
guidelines: Safety is the
first priority. Know where you are. Pay
attention to ice depths. Be
aware of areas in which you are permitted to
ride. Follow Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources rules for
off-highway vehicles. Please be
respectful of vegetation, wildlife, and other
Forest visitors.
One area on the Superior National Forest that
is generally off-limits to
motorized recreational use is the Boundary
Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
(BWCAW). All motorized and mechanized forms
of winter travel are
prohibited by federal law in the BWCAW except
for the purpose of accessing
Canada via the overland portage between Crane
Lake and Little Vermilion
Lake, and in Cook County, via a specific
corridor from Seagull River
through Saganaga Lake. Motorized transportation
on these routes is
restricted to snowmobiles which are 40 inches or
less in width,
manufactured for ice and snow travel only, and
of a type which was in
regular use in the BWCAW prior to the passage of
the 1978 BWCAW Act. All
terrain vehicle (ATV) use is not allowed on
these routes or anywhere else
in the BWCAW. There is no provision that allows
motorized or mechanized
travel along the Canadian border within the
BWCAW beyond the specific
exception for snowmobiles on these two routes.
For more specific information, contact the
local Superior National Forest
office nearest to the area that you plan to
visit.
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