Anyone here ride quads or sxs? Been riding quads for a long time and just got a wildcat sport. Sweet machine.  It would be nice to ride with other members sometimes.  

Always interested in trying out new places as we usually go to Wayne and bear Creek.  Phoenix, perry state Forest, mines and Meadows, allegheny Forest are some places I'm interested in hitting this year.

I do on occasion, but current do not have a quad or UTV.  I have access to some, but I've been looking to buy for a while now.  Just can't find the right deal.

When I do ride, it's in Muskingum Co.

We have a quad and a Razor.

We took them to Wayne this past Saturday.

Thinking about Hatfield/McCoy or upper Mich next.

I was just at Wayne this weekend.  Father and Uncle were there with the toyhauler from Thurs, my brother and I and some family came Friday.  We were at p3 where did you guys stay?  I was suprised how few people were there being fourth of july weekend, a lot of day riders not many campers.

I brought my 3 year old son with me, his first time riding not at home.  I have full harnesses in my sport, and I added a retractable lap belt that holds a booster seat for him.  Puts him at the perfect height to use the harnesses and so he can see the trail (also raised my seats 2")  and the half windshield keeps all the air from going right in his face.

been watching a lot of youtube videos of royal blue, and hatfield and would love to go there.  The ivy branch black diamond trails look fun lol.

We stayed in a huge cabin off blue liine road(Corbin Cabins).
There were about 12 of us that stayed there.
Only 6 of us rode though.
We went up to Dorr head first, but did not unload there. Later we went to Monday Creek and unloaded there and rode south. Trail was flooded at one point, but not over the floorboards.

I have a Razor 4 and was not really aware that it was 60 inches wide until I came home. I had it there last year too. Glad I did not get caught by a Ranger and fined.

Last year we stayed in New Straitsville, I think. We stayed at a campground, my friend has a motorhome and we towed the razor with that.

We also took our X2 800 Polaris. We only rode for a couple hours.

I was going to take our laptop and look up where I could buy permits and we did not have internet at the cabin and no cell service. So we just drove to Carbon hills and got them and went on to Monday creek trail head.

I was surprised not as many too.

I wish they would raise the width limit to 60 inches, I had no problem with the trails. Probably will not go back, my wife loves her Razor, not too keen about the quad, like I am.

Might go back out to Utah next year. Went a couple years ago and it was fantastic.

We went to Prescott Arizona this summer but did not take the Polaris'. I went to Gunsite Academy for a week and no time to ride.

I've been out of riding away from home for a bit as the kids were too young, but I used to ride WNF, Haspin (IN), and Big Rock (KY) a lot.

I also like to ride down in TN at coal creek.

Currently I have been sticking to land the family owns in Warren and Adams counties, trying to train the kids and get them ready for random trail riding.

I am hoping to start getting them out next year. I'd like to be able to make a trip to Hatfield McCoy, Silver Lake Dunes, Royal Blue, or Coal Creek.

I have a "toy hauler" I made from an enclosed trailer that hauls 4 atvs and 3 dirt bikes; still haven't taken the plunge into a SxS yet.

Phoenix in Steubenville is awesome. Joe has done a lot of work to his track. I can't comment  on the Jeep trails or sxs stuff but the high speed track he made for the Raptors is awesome. He also has a great shop for fixing and mod'ing vehicles.

I would like to go to Haspin Ind sometime.

I have a 3 y.o. grandson who loves riding on and in ours.

My son said the small town he lives in is having a golf cart poker run in town. He is going to see if they would allow my Razor 4. They are allowing that it need not be street ready to participate.

Just went to Haspin for the first time a couple weeks ago for a Steel Soldiers rally. Nice place though the "rally" itself was a bit lackluster.

Lots of UTVs out there. Was pretty impressed to see how some of them handled the trails.

My ride was a bit larger though... My buddy and I (mine's the open top):







We didn't hit anything too wild since my friend had just painted his truck and wasn't ready to add some pin striping to it. I took a couple of the more challenging paths though.

Hoping to head out there again in the fall for the next SS rally and hit some harder stuff.

We ride all over Ohio, PA and WV.  Wayne, Wellsville, Rumble on the Ridge, Marienville, Hatfield even Royal Blue in TN.  
We have property in WV so we ride there a lot too.  
I have always had a dirt bike, but most of the guys I ride with have been on quads for years so for the last 15 years or so I've had sport quads and that is 99%of what I ride.  A few of them have gone to SxS's.  A couple of Razr's and a couple of X3's.  
If you've never been, you need to hit a few sections of Hatfield and Wellsville.  Hatfield has something for everyone.  Not all of Wellsville is as bad as some make it out to be.  We take the kids to all of em.

Where is a good place to stay if I went to Hatfield?

We usually buy our passes at the go mart on rt33 about 15min west of the haydenville/dorr run trailhead exit.

I took my 60" wide wildcat sport that weekend because I also brought my 3 yr old to ride with me (4pt harnesses, booster seat, helmet) and just kept an eye out for rangers.  There are 2 spots with permanent fixtures limiting width that I just avoided, otherwise the trails are fine for wider units.  I've seen a chevy s10 rolling down a pretty rough area before.  I know it's limited to 50" wide, but I've been riding quads there for over 10 years now.  I've heard some say they will be opening up to 60s and some flat out deny that.  I think they are losing revenue by limiting that, which is one of the reasons they are lowering season pass prices to 35 bucks from 45, since alot of side by side owners are riding elsewhere.  There was one ranger (who actually had a lot of formal written complaints against him) nearly threaten to write my brother a ticket for his normal atv being too wide.  It came stock with 26" bighorn tires that looked a bit wider than 50.

Ohio riders make up the largest portion of out of state pass sales to the hatfield mccoy trail system.

ETA:  We like to stay at the dorr run trailhead because there are 5 parking areas to camp at and a lot more variety in trails.  If you camp at monday creek the only trail you can access right away is Main Corridor and head north to New Straitsville or south and hit all the trails near Dorr Run.  This way you can run various loops and return to camp to relax/drink/eat then head back out vs. riding for 2 hours south from New Straitsville just to access all the loops.  We usually hit the loops on Friday doing 30min to 1.5 hr short rides, then Saturday morning head out on Main Corridor for a 5 hour round trip (plus the short connectors up north) ride.

I agree that they must be losing a lot of revenue by not allowing 60" machines.  We went on a holiday weekend and were shocked that there were not many riders out on the trails.

After I found out that my UTV was too wide, we decided not to take our ATV there anymore, and would go to  trails where we could take both.

We want to go to hatfield mcCoy  trails but are not sure about what town to go to. We visited a small town a while  back to try to sort that out, but a cabin rental was the best bet.

The motel there was pretty shabby.

Yea, my brother is looking into organizing a week to head down there and has talked to a few different people that go.  I agree with just getting a cabin would be the best way to go since you can access almost anything in those towns via your quad/sxs/dirtbike.  I'll ask him what the consensus was on which trail sections were better and cabin recommendations.

ETA:  I've been to bear creek a few times this year as it's the closest riding area to me at a 1hr drive.  It's not bad.  Saturdays kinda sucked because that place draws some interesting people who spend more time revving their machines in the parking lot than out riding.  During the week when its "closed" you can call them and if you have 3 or more people they'll let you come ride.  So we went down on a Wed. and it was just myself, brother and father for the whole place.  It's not a huge park but it's good for a day ride when you want to get away.

Also, I keep hearing great things about Phoenix, but haven't been able to make it on any of their open ride weekends due to having events like bday parties, get togethers etc...  Thats 2 hours away but still doable for a day ride.  Perry state forest is free and open to 60" machines and is pretty much a ride where you want from what I hear.

After I got back from Wayne, I let some friends ride my ATV and they kept shutting it off and restarting it about every five minutes.  They had some relatives that were 12 and 14 that were doing it.
I walked over to tell them just to leave it running, when it would not start again.

I messed with it enough to figure out that the problem was in the OFF/run/Off switch on the left handle.  I later took it apart and found nothing visible wrong. I could get it started, but had to push and probe the switch to get it.

I called Honda East in Maumee(Toledo) and they said that is a common problem with the switch going bad. I cannot get in until July 27th.

I still have not power washed either one since I got them muddy.

Wife and I have made the trip up to the UP of Michigan for the last couple years. Just about every type of trail to choose from (flat sand county roads, windy forest to technical stuff). Extremely UTV friendly and It would take a life time to ride them all. No rules, no speed limits just fun... be prepared though, we rode all week and only saw a handful of other riders.

Couple shots from our ride to crisp point light house and the two heart river. Kind of a gray day, but was a great afternoon trip.


 



and the tactical JD..




I've heard of a lot of trails around the Gaylord area (old tank trails from the military base) that I haven't tried yet, might be our next destination.

The honda switch does suck. When they go bad I splice the wires to run. I use the key switch to turn them off anyway.

When someone borrows mine and actually uses the kill, I sit on it like an idiot the next time trying to figure out why the damn thing won't start

SDC.
Where at in the UP of Mich did you go?

Are there places to stay nearby or did you have to camp?

We were going to go up there last year but it was like an 8 hour drive and we could not find anywhere close to stay online.

We ended up going to Wayne last year too.


Yeah my polaris switch must just be the contacts on it, that is all there is to the switch, just pushes in the contacts.

I'm also curious about the trails in Michigan and about where to stay.  Do you have to pay to access them?  Is it a National forest area?

As for Hatfield, I talked to my brother and he said his friends say they like to stay at Ashland Resort, they have over 30 cabins available to rent and you can access 3 of the main trail systems from there, Pocahontas, Pinnacle and Rock House.

This sounds like a plan. I will look it up. I have internet problems a lot, so I will try while it is working.

Would like to go there, if not yet this year, maybe next.

I would also like the Michigan thing. We looked it up last year and there is a National Forest up there. Awful far 6 hours from N.W. Ohio.

I just looked up the Ashland Resorts. It says firearms are forbidden at their campgrounds.  I almost always carry, so that is probably out for me.

I went up to gray wolf lodge and did not know that firearms were forbidden. I was carrying and I have my own rules too. I do NOT leave firearms in my vehicle overnight, so....

There may be some other sites that have trail heads with cabins that allow carry.

The cabin we stayed at near Wayne allowed carry and several of us were carrying. The owner was very conservative. Heck being a businessman, why should he not be?

My guess would be drunk rednecks shooting off rounds late night around a camp fire lol.  Might be a case of concealed means concealed and don't ask don't tell.

When i go to Wayne, i usually have a few in me. Last time i brought my fnx tac with aac tirant and trijicon rmr along with a few Glocks lol.  Which reminds me i have to look up an soc gcode holster with rt mount to keep in my new sxs.

My guess would be drunk rednecks shooting off rounds late night around a camp fire lol.  Might be a case of concealed means concealed and don't ask don't tell.

When i go to Wayne, i usually have a few in me. Last time i brought my fnx tac with aac tirant and trijicon rmr along with a few Glocks lol.  Which reminds me i have to look up an soc gcode holster with rt mount to keep in my new sxs.

Yes, that could be outta sight outta mind.

The last 2 years we stayed in Grand Marais, they have a couple of mom and pop hotels and a campground. Nice little town with a beautiful beach and access to a number of trails with lots of stuff to see within a 2 hour trail ride. Pictured rocks, a couple light houses, 3 or 4 water falls, pine stump, Seney wildlife refuge and 3 or 4 other towns are a comfortable ride.. I recommend the trip to Crisp Point, the two heart and pine stump, its about a 4 hour loop with awesome scenery/nice trails and Pine Stump Makes a hell of a burger. The economy revolves around tourism, snow mobiles and atv's so your welcomed with open arms by just about everyone.

Fish web hosts some rides throughout the year if you want to go with a group for your first trip to get the feel of the land
group rides

VV mapping makes printed trail guides and sells chips for your gps that show all the trails in Michigan. I have both and they are awesome. Id recommend getting the trail books for both atv and snow mobile, you can ride both in the summer on atv's. They have so many trails its easy to get lost if you don't have a good map.
vv mapping

As I said before if you plan a trip be prepared for whatever may happen on the trails, we put in about 500 miles a week and usually only see other riders on the weekend.

Thanks for the help on Mich sdc. Think that will be our next trip.. might do it yet this year.

Thanks for the help on Mich sdc. Think that will be our next trip.. might do it yet this year.
Double tap

No problem, let me know if you need any more info.

Not sure if your a fisherman but its worth dragging along a couple of Kayaks if you have them. The inland lakes offer some awesome pike/musky/smallmouth fishing.

If you make it to Grand Marais be sure to hit Lake Superior brewing for a hematite stout and whitefish dinner. Their Reuben is also "to die for", beer braised corn beef goodness from the gods.

I checked out that website you provided to look at trail maps around Grand Marais.  It seems like they list all those trails as 50" and under trails.  Your JD is 60 wide right?

The wife and I were thinking about doing a trip to the UP this year anyways, might just pack the trailer and sxs now.  Thanks for all the links and info you provided!  Half the battle is figuring out trailheads/parking/lodging.

Wow, did not see the trail limits of 50". I guess I thought someone said there were no limits in UP.

They have both "atv" and "orv" type trails. Most of the 50" trails are throwbacks to when you either had a atv or a jeep with nothing in-between.

With the amount of county roads, truck trails, forest service trails, logging trails, snow mobile trails and ORV routes the 50" rule has no affect on your riding. I did stubble onto a 50" trail by accident and immediately turned around before I ripped the fenders off my Deere... very tight trails that would be hard even for some of the bigger atv's.  

If you haven't ridden in the UP its hard to fathom the number and miles of trails. I've fallen in love with riding the unmapped logging trails, just make sure you have a good gps/map/compass or we may never see you again

We stay at the beach park hotel, its nothing special but nothing in the UP is 5 star lol. Great layed back couple run it, plenty of parking and we drove to all the area attractions without the need to find a trail head. M58 is all black top to the west of town but turns into a truck trail to the east of town and all the other county roads turn to sand about a mile from town.

The county roads are more of a truck trail than what we consider a "gravel road".  Adams truck trail is just south of town and has a ton of fun side trails with lakes and ponds to check out. McCloud grade is a blast if you want to top out your ride and ties in with a couple snowmobile trails that wind through the woods and border some lakes, it was one of our favorite rides and is only 10 min from town. The town gun range is also on the way, have to love a town with a municipal range

**order the vvmapping book before you go, trust me on this one... you'll be lost with out it and miss out a lot of riding**

They list a 35 mile and hour limit on county roads but its not enforced in any way shape or form, I do slow down when I pass a house as a courtesy to not dust them.

We picked up our trail stickers at cabelas on the way up, I think its 45 bucks for both the off road and national forest tags.

wife gave me the when I asked her if I should jump it lol That's what a typical county road looks like.

Haha that's a fire/logging road here and i live in a semi rural area.  All co roads that i know of in Ohio are paved, chip and seal at the very least.

Eta: i guess I'm so used to riding the few areas here in Ohio that's it's hard to picture the variety of trail types out there.  I get jealous of the guys out west who plan rides for hundreds of miles and have to plan out fuel stops and carrying all your camp on your machine.

Going to be at mines and Meadows this coming weekend if anyone wants to go ride.

Never been, any sites that give good info?

Try Riderplanet.com.  also if you check the forums for the atv/sxs you ride there's usually a rides page where they plan group outings and you can ask about different areas.

I read that mines has recently added more land and trails. This will be my first time there also but i hear good things.