Banadad 2011 Trail Plan

I.                  BANADAD TRAIL ASSOCIATION (BTA) 

This year marked the second year that the Banadad Trail Association (BTA) has overseen stewardship of the Banadad Trail.   The mission of the Association is to maintain and enhance the Banadad Ski Trail, preserve the history of the forest and the trail, promote the appreciation and care of wilderness lands that the trail runs through, and ensure that the Banadad Trail is preserved and continued for future generations.

At its annual meeting in October 2010, the membership elected officers and the board of directors, including re-electing several long-term members and adding new members who bring additional expertise in mapping and forestry and financial expertise.  Founding President Karen Monson passed leadership to Linda Bosma.  The full board meets quarterly, either by conference call or in person on the Gunflint Trail.  In addition to the regular board meetings, a formal committee structure has been adopted this year, including Trails/Maintenance Oversight, Membership/Fundraising, and Finance Committees, which meet regularly.  After a lengthy application process, the BTA has received official notification that it has been awarded non-profit status as a 501(c)(3) organization.

In conjunction with the annual meeting, BTA board members and other volunteers put in a weekend of trail maintenance, coordinated with the USFS’ prescribed burn in the area.  Heavy snows this winter and unexpected storms have required a higher than expected amount of work on trail grooming and maintenance, made possible with Grant In Aid funds from the Department of Natural Resources and support from the USFS. 

BTA members and volunteers staffed a booth at the Midwest Mountaineering Winter Expo for the second year in a row in Minneapolis (November 2010).  Skiers represented the Banadad Trail during the Volkski celebration in January 2010, and have secured several business sponsors from the Cook County area this year.  In May the Association planted 600 Red and White Pines at the eastern end of the trail system. The planting of these trees is the association’s contribution toward maintaining the Banadad as a carbon neutral trail system.

II.               THE BANADAD TRAIL SYSTEM

The Banadad Ski Trail System is a public ski trail managed by the Banadad Trail Association, under an agreement with the Gunflint Ranger District (USFS) and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The Minnesota Ski Pass and BWCA Day Permit are required to ski the Banadad Trail System. Free public parking is provided at the trail’s eastern and western trailheads.

The Banadad Trail System consists of the 30-kilometer Banadad Trail, an intimate trail through the Boundary Waters Wilderness, and another 13 kilometers of trails (Lace Lake, Tim Knopp, Seppala and the Tall Pines Trails) located at the Banadad's eastern end. All the trails are single tracked.

The Banadad Trail was originally constructed as a series of logging roads in the fifties and sixties.  As a result the trail is blessed with a good gravel roadbed.  All but one of five original bridges along the Banadad has been replaced over the years.  Skiers now bypass the one bridge that has not been replaced. The other trails in the Banadad Trail System were constructed as ski trails over the past twenty years.
The old Finn Lake and Tucker Lake logging roads that were to become the Banadad Ski Trail were cleared by the Gunflint Ranger District, USFS staff in 1982 and 1983 at the request of winter resorts on the Gunflint Trail. Area resorts first groomed the trail in 1982.   The construction and grooming of this trail was authorized under two provisions in the 1978 Boundary Waters Act that called for the construction of recreational trails including, ski trails, within the BWCA and allowed grooming by snowmobile of some of these ski trails.

The Banadad Trails are centrally located along the 200-kilometer Gunflint Nordic Trails. The eastern end of the Banadad connects with the Central Gunflint Trails and at the western end skiers must walk along the Gunflint Trail 1/8 of mile to the Loon Lake Landing where they can then ski into the Upper Gunflint Trail System.

There are six USFS BWCA Day Permit boxes along the Banadad Trail. Two permit boxes are located at or near the eastern trailhead, and the others at Swamp Lake Portage, Lizz Lake Portage and the western trailhead. Boundary Country Trekking collects permits at the eastern and western trailhead boxes and supplies all the permit boxes along the trail with permits during the winter. For the maintenance of these boxes BCT exchanges their winter Guide Packer Permit fee with the USFS in lieu of cash. The BWCA Day Permits are used to determine the number of skier days each winter. 

The major problem facing the trail is the annual accumulation of brush. Much of this brush grows several feet per year. This problem is particularly acute near the remote interior center of the trail where traveling to the work areas is extremely difficult. This problem is now being addressed through the “Remote Interior Widening Project[i]." This project was initiated in 2005. (More detail on this project appears later in this document.)

Last year’s USFS Mead’s and Dawkin’s Lakes prescribed burn have resulted in opening the forest canopy to brush producing sunlight and causing half burned-out trees to fall into the trail thus multiplying our maintenance problem

             Tree planting May 2010

While Nordic Skiing is normally considered an eco-friendly sport, the Banadad Trail System continues to take this one step further. Three years ago the Banadad Trails became, what we believe to be, the nation's first carbon neutral ski trail.[ii] The BTA is committed to continuing this tradition.

Tree planting along the Trail-2010

III.           Review of the 2010-2011 Season

Continued partnership with Boundary Country Trekking (BCT) - The BTA continues to partner with our contractor, Boundary Country Trekking, to provide oversight, direction, and essential expertise on maintaining, grooming, and improving the Banadad Trail.  BCT implements the BTA Trail Plan elements as we secure funding and resources and provides valuable guidance on monitoring issues and care of the trail.  This expertise in an invaluable resource for the BTA Board’s stewardship of the Trail.

Maintenance and grooming- This past fall volunteers logged 3,904 hours working on the Banadad’s eastern end and the Lace Lake Trail. Boundary Country Trekking staff did the reminder of the trail’s work.

Trail groomers logged 188 hours covering 742 miles.

Dawkin’s and Mead’s Lake Prescribed Burns- The Meads Lake burn resulted in significant damage to the trail going west four miles from the Meads Lake Portage.  The worst damaged area was a 2000-foot section just west of the Old Winchell Lake Fire Trail where the fire destroy a beautiful area of old growth White Cedar and young White Pine.
 The southern end of the Old Winchell Lake Fire Trail, used by maintenance crews to access a portion of the trail’s east end, also received considerable damage. This trail was never re-cleared by Fire Crews.
     
It is anticipated that the removal of burnout trees that have fallen across the trail and the growth of brush in fire-opened areas will present a major maintenance problem on the east end of the Banadad.
On the trail’s other end the Dawkin’s burn, only minimal damage was done to the trail with mostly spot burns along a four miles section from the BWCA entry east. Maintenance of this end will mainly require monitoring for fallen burnt trees.
Remote Interior Widening- A one-mile section along the trail’s western end was widened and a Minnesota Conservation Corps (MCC) crew widened another 2 1/3 miles on either side of the trail’s midtrail junction.
Snow Cover-The 2010-11 season was good snow year along the Banadad and throughout the state. The result was that the Banadad’s skier days were down considerably from last year. In years when other nearby areas and the state have good snow conditions, the Banadad Trail’s skier days go down as skiers have many other ski venues. See annual skier days 2004-05 to 2010-11. [iii]

Winter Mix Storm- a late December wintry-mix storm left down trees and brush blocking the entire trails system. The trail was unusable for about two-weeks.  Reopening the trail require 213 hours of hand labor by volunteers and paid staff at a cost of over $3,400.

New Snowmobile- With the assistance of Grant from the DNR and loan from Cook County the BTA was able to purchase a new Skandic SWT 800 snowmobile and leveler groomer. The snowmobile is leased to Boundary Country Trekking by the BTA to ensure reliable equipment is available for grooming the trail.

Tree Planting- During May 2010 the BTA planted 800 +/- conifers along the Lace Lake and Tall Pines Trail and the Little Ollie Road.  Hedstrom Lumber Company in Grand Marais donated the trees.

IV.            This years -Projects and Plans 

• Contracted Services Interior Widening – A ½ - ¾ mile section on the east end of the Banadad from 2^nd bridge west to near Ham Lake Burn will be widened this spring. Project scheduled to be completed in May or early June using remaining funds received through our Capital Improvement Grant.

.

·        Volunteer Crew

o       West end BWCA entrance to the first beaver Pond beyond Dawkins Bridge
-
Cut and clearside and center brushthis fall.

o       Banadad Green-Up to 600 Red and White Pines to be planted in and round the Lace Lake and Tall Pines Trails- May 7 and 14

• this summer Request use of   MCC crew during to:

o       Widen West end from the first beaver pond east of Dawkins Bridge to 100 yards beyond second beaver pond

o       Hike remainder of west end Banadad cutting out all down trees and over hanging brush Widen ¾ mile section from mid trail junction west cutting overhanging brush from the mid trail junction to Bedew Lake Yurt Camp ¾ mile

• West end reroute/easement agreement- BTA will be working with new owners of Trap Lake property to try to work out an easement agreement.

·        Prescribed Burn areas- Request USFS Fire Crews

o       Winchell Lake Fire Trail- Request the use of USFS fire crew- to reopen the Fire Trail and cut out all the burnt trees that had fallen over the summer onto trail between the Skipper Lake Portage south to the Banadad Trail. - Approximately1 mile.

o       Meads Lake Burn- request use of USFS fire Crew to cut out all trees that have fall across trail due to the USFS Meads Lake Prescribed Burn along the Banadad west from the Meads Lake Portage west to the second bridge directly north of Moon Lake approximately four miles.

·        Sign/kiosk- Install a sign/kiosk with map at intersection of Lace Lake and Central Gunflint’s Poplar Creek Trail

Banadad Bridge- Rebuild bridge and cut out Ham Lake fire burn area (1 ½ miles east of Bridge – need crew of 4-5 volunteers and 1-2 paid staff. Project will take two days with one night camping on Rush Lake. Scheduled for early September. Crew will need a BWCA “work permit” from USFS.DRAfT 1

Potential Projects

The Banadad Trail Association will also try to secure funding to undertake these additional efforts (at the time of this Trail Plan, such funds are not secured):

·        Mowing –If BTA can find the money, an ASV or other tracked vehicle with brush hog would be hired to brush the: Lace Lake/Tall Pines Trails (3 ½ miles), Banadad east end outside of BWCA (1 ½ miles), and/or Moose Trail 4 ½ miles)

·        Snow Season Emergency Clearing- again this year the BTA will have to be prepared to re-open a brush clogged trail caused by rain followed by heavy wet snow.

Challenges

An extra heavy snow season this year challenged the BTA and its contractor BCT to keep the trail open this year on a few occasions.  Supplemental DNR Grant In Aid funds were essential to keeping the trail open and groomed.  There were some days the trail was not in good skiing condition due to the time necessary to remove downed trees and overhanging brush.  This is a challenge the BTA Board has discussed this spring, and while it may not always be possible to clear and remove downed trees and branches immediately after an unusually large snowfall, it is important to have information available on the trail conditions, to alert skiers to any potential problems.  To this end, BCT will provide timely updates that caution skiers when such trail conditions have occurred.  While the Banadad is a wilderness ski trail in large part, and skiers should approach it as such, the trail has a long established reputation for being groomed at high standards.  A future goal for the BTA is to develop the structure and capacity to address such emergency situations and this is an on-going long-term goal in our Trails/Maintenance Committee’s work.

---

i.  The project proposes to widen remote areas of the trail not normally accessible to BTA’s volunteers. Project standards are as follows; where brush is the dominant vegetation- cut/clear brush along trail right away to minimum width of eight feet (8') and removes all brush overhanging right away, where conifers are the dominant vegetation- cut brush and conifers to create a minimum of a six (6) foot trail right away. Thin conifers on sides of right away to promote growth of remaining conifers and trim all over hanging conifers branches up to a minimum of ten (10') high.

[ii]  See “Cross-country ski resorts go green,” MSNBC by Roger Lohr, December 7, 2007.

[iii] [iii]  These figures were based the USFS BWCA Permits collected from trail users. The non- permitted skiers estimate is based up 10% non- permitted skiers. Note: in 2010 the percentage of non-permitted skiers was reduced from 20 to 10% for each year. Not included in these totals are the skiers on the Moose Trail most of who came from Voyagers Point on Poplar Lake.

Local day skiers                     Non Local ski     Estimated Non permitted  Skiers    Total Trail Days

2004-05                    116                                         428                          55                                      599                                                      

2005-06                      130                                       601                          73                                       804                         

2007-08                         99                                      720                         82                                        900                   

2008-09                         71                                      583                          65                                           784              

2009-10                       177                                      783                           96                                           1056          

2010- 11                      170                                      560                            73                                            803

Membership Form

Membership Year October 1st to September 30th

Name ________________________________________



Address _________________________________________________



City/State/Zip code _________________________________________



Phone ( ___)________________ E-mail ________________________________________


Membership Levels


$15 Resident (Cook County, MN only)

$25 Individual

$35 Family

$50 Trail Maintainer

$100 Trail Builder

$250 Founding Member (2009/10 only)

$500 Lifetime Preservationist

$________ Banadad Booster (additional donation)

Total Enclosed $____________

Send to Checks Payable to:


Banadad Trail Association-(non-profit application pending)

Mail To: Checks Payable to: Banadad Trail Association

Mail To:

Banadad Trail Association
P.O. Box 436
Grand Marais, MN 55604

For additional information call: 218-388-9476

                                            

Banadad Trail Association Membership Form

 

Membership Form

 Membership Year October 1^st to September 30th

Name ________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________

City/State/Zip code _________________________________________

Phone ( ___)________________ E-mail ________________________________________

Membership Levels

            $15   Resident (Cook County, MN only)

            $25   Individual

            $35   Family

            $50   Trail Maintainer

            $100 Trail Builder

            $250 Founding Member (2009/10 only)

            $500 Lifetime Preservationist

            $________ Banadad Booster (additional donation)

            Total Enclosed $____________

Checks Payable to: Banadad Trail Association (non-profit application pending) Mail To: Banadad Trail Association P.O. Box 6 Grand Marais, MN  55604 For additional information call:             218-388-9476

 

Banadad and Adjoining Ski Trails
2010 Trail Plan

I. BANADAD TRAIL ASSOCIATION (BTA)

After twenty years of managing the Banadad Ski Trail, Boundary Country Trekking
has turned over the trail’s management duties to the recently formed Banadad Trail
Association (BTA). The mission of the Association is to maintain and enhance the
Banadad Ski Trail, preserve the history of the forest and the trail, promote the
appreciation and care of wilderness lands that the trail runs through, and ensure that the
Banadad Trail is preserved and continued for future generations.

Since its’ founding meeting on February 14, 2009, the BTA has actively undertaken
oversight of the Banadad Trail. The BTA has an eleven member board of directors
composed of residents from within and outside of Cook County. The full board meets
quarterly, either by conference call or in person on the Gunflint Trail. In addition to
full board meetings, numerous committees have met many times to establish a website,
membership recruitment strategies, and general operation of the trail. The Association’s
Board is in the process of preparing documentation for submission to the Internal
Revenue Service for non-profit status as a 501(c)(3) corporation and plans to submit
this application in spring 2010.

This year BTA members and volunteers staffed a booth at the Midwest Mountaineering
Winter Expo in Minneapolis (November 2009), distributed over 500 brochures, created
a website, and are currently planning a long-term membership recruitment plan. The
BTA recruited volunteers for trail maintenance in fall 2009. When the trail was
seriously damaged and closed due to heavy snow in January 2010, board members
responded quickly with volunteers and donations to clean up the trail - reopening the
trail a little over a week after the storm. BTA secured grants from the Department of
Natural Resources and the United States Forest Service for trail maintenance projects.

Banadad Trail Association Board of Directors
Officers:
Karen Monsen, President- Stillwater, MN, mons0122@umn.edu
Linda Bosma, Vice President- Minneapolis, MN, inda@bosmaconsulting.com
Karla Miller, Treasurer, Duluth, MN, dakar07@charter.net
Barb Bottger, Secretary, Gunflint Trail, MN, jbbottger@boreal.org

At-Large Board Members
Peter Spink- Plymouth and Gunflint Trail, MN
Wayne Monsen- Stillwater, MN
Jim Morrison- Gunflint Trail, MN
Anne Rykkan- St. Paul, MN
Chris Matter- Hudson, WI
Tom Rice – Shoreview, MN
John Bottger- Gunflint Trail, MN

Contact Information
bta@boreal.org

P.O. Box 436
Grand Marais, MN 55604
Website- www.banadad.org
The Banadad Trail Association has contracted1 with Boundary Country Trekking
(BCT) to provide the trail’s maintenance and grooming services. BCT can be reached
at 218-388-4487/email bct@boundarycountry.com.

II. BACKGROUND ON THE BANADAD TRAIL SYSTEM

The Banadad Ski Trail System is a public ski trail managed by the Banadad Trail
Association, under an agreement with the Gunflint Ranger District (USFS) and the
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The Minnesota Ski Pass and BWCA Day
Permit are required to ski the Banadad Trail System. Free public parking is provided at
the trail’s eastern and western trailheads.

The Banadad Trail System consists of the 30 kilometer Banadad Trail, an intimate trail
through the Boundary Waters Wilderness, and another 13 kilometers of trails (Lace
Lake, Tim Knopp, Seppala and the new Tall Pines Trails) located at the Banadad's
eastern end. All the trails are single tracked. The Banadad Trail was originally
constructed as a series of logging roads in the fifties and sixties. As a result the trail is
blessed with a good gravel roadbed. All but one of five original bridges along the
Banadad have been replaced over the years. Skiers now bypass the one bridge
that has not been replaced.

The other trails in the Banadad Trail System were constructed as ski trails over the past twenty years.
T\he old Finn Lake and Tucker Lake logging roads that were to become the
Banadad Ski Trail were cleared by the Gunflint Ranger District, USFS staff in
1982 and 1983 at the request of winter resorts on the Gunflint Trail. Area resorts
first groomed the trail in 1982. The construction and grooming of this trail
was authorized under two provisions in the 1978 Boundary Waters Act that called
for the construction of recreational trails including, ski trails, within the BWCA
and allowed grooming by snowmobile of some of these ski trails.

The Banadad Trails are centrally located along the 200-kilometer Gunflint Nordic
Trails. The eastern end of the Banadad connects with the Central Gunflint Trails and at
the western end skiers must walk along the Gunflint Trail 1/8 of mile to the Loon Lake
Landing where they can then ski into the Upper Gunflint Trail System.
There are six USFS BWCA Day Permit boxes along the Banadad Trail. Two permit
boxes are located at or near the eastern trailhead, and the others at Swamp Lake
Portage, Lizz Lake Portage and the western trailhead. Boundary Country Trekking
collects permits at the eastern and western trailhead boxes and supplies all the permit
boxes along the trail with permits during the winter. For the maintenance of these
boxes BCT exchanges their winter Guide Packer Permit fee with the USFS in lieu of
cash. The BWCA Day Permits are used to determine the number of skier days each
winter.

The major problem facing the trail is the annual accumulation of brush. Much of this
brush grows several feet per year. This problem is particularly acute near the remote
interior center of the trail where traveling to the work areas is extremely difficult. This
problem is now being addressed through the “Remote Interior Widening Project2." This
project was initiated in 2005. (More detail on this project appears later in this
document.)

While Nordic Skiing is normally considered an eco-friendly sport, the Banadad Trail
System continues to take this one step further. Three years ago the Banadad Trails
became, what we believe to be, the nation's first carbon neutral ski trail.3 The BTA is
committed to continuing this tradition.

III. Review of the 2009-2010 Season

Certainly the most significant event in recent years is that of the Banadad Trail
Association taking over the management of the trail. Other milestones along the
Banadad this past year include:

• With the help of a Minnesota DNR Capital Improvement Grant the 3-kilometer 

• Tall Pines Trail surface was graded with a bulldozer. This enabled

the opening of the entire Tall Pines Trail.

• A new parking area that accommodates four cars was opened and

maintained on the trail’s east end.

• At the eastern trailhead a kiosk was installed with trail maps, trail

information and a BWCA permit box.

• At the western end, near the permit box, a post was added with trail maps

and trail information.

•  Signage was installed for the new Tall Pines Trail.

III. 2008-09 Accomplishments

• Seventeen volunteers from the Banadad Trail Association, North Star Ski

Touring Club (NSSTC), and Adventure Vacations (a Twin Cities adventure
Travel company) worked on the Trail in fall 2009, contributing a combined
total of 225 hours of volunteer labor. Without these volunteers, it is doubtful
that the trail could be maintained.

• BCT’s paid staff logged over 200 hours maintaining and 115 hours

grooming the Trail.

• Ninety-four additional hours of volunteer and paid labor was a record, reopening

the trail following the late January 2010 ice/snow storm.

• Remote Interior Widening
• A six person Minnesota Conservation Corp (MCC) crew worked for eight

days widening remote areas of the Banadad. The crew camped along the
trail and hiked the entire west end of the Banadad. They removed most of
the large trees that had fallen on to the west end of the trail and widened two
remote interior miles.

•  BCT’s paid staff widened a quarter of a mile of the trail’s eastern end.

• Vegetation Management

• Three hundred red and white pine trees were planted along the southeast

side of the Tall Pines Trail.

IV. Projects and Plans

2010 Projects and work plans5 (Note: underlined items indicate BTA
projects not yet funded or secured. Except when outside contractors are used all
costs are based on the Minnesota DNR “allowable cost.”)
1. Remote Interior Trail Widening: The BTA plans to widen approximately 1½ miles
of trail near the Banadad Bridge. Widening will require 120-150 hours of labor.6
Recommendation- BTA requests Minnesota Conservation Corps crew (MCC) for
up to eight days. Crew will canoe in and camp on Rush Lake. Seeking MCC crew
for six to eight days, canoes and $300 for BCT to provide logistical support to
MCC Crew. Timeline: Summer/Fall 2010.


2. Remote Interior Widening: The BTA plans to widen a ½-mile section just west of
“Moon Lake” Bridge.7
Recommendation- BTA will direct BCT to secure a private contractor for project
estimated at $1000 for project. Timeline: Spring or Fall 2010.

3. Remote Interior Widening: The BTA will widen 1/10 of a mile east of west end
Recommendation – BTA will contract with BCT to provide its’ grooming staff to
widen this short section during grooming runs. Estimated cost $160.
Timeline: March or early winter 2010.

4. Remote Interior Widening: The BTA will widen 2/5 of a mile from the western
end of the Banadad to just east of the second beaver pond9.
Recommendation - BTA will direct BCT to secure a private contractor for project
using the balance of the Minnesota DNR Capital Improvements Grant to fund
project. Estimated cost $1000. Timeline: Summer/Fall 2010.

5. Mowing on east end of Banadad Trail outside of BWCA (USFS Land): The BTA
proposes mowing four miles of this section with a brush hog.
Recommendation- BTA seeking up to $600 to fund project. Timeline: Fall 2010.

6. Install new signage and map at junction of Lace Lake and Central Gunflint’s Poplar
Creek Trail on state land.Recommendation- BTA Volunteers and BCT staff will complete. Estimated cost
$100 funded by BTA from DNR Grant-in-Aid. Timeline: Summer 2010.

7. Reroute 150 foot section of the Lace Lake Trail (on State Land): Planned
Reroute near west end south side of the Lace Lake Trail would avoid large
rocks. Two people using chainsaws estimated at about 8 hrs.
Recommendation- BTA Volunteers and BCT staff to complete. Estimated cost
$250 funded by BTA from DNR Grant-in-Aid. Timeline: Fall 2010.

8. Reroute the west end Trailhead to ensure continued access to the Banadad, direct
connection with the Upper Gunflint Trails and provide a larger and safer parking
area. Recommendation – The BTA will continue working with the USFS on this project
with the objective of locating a route in 2010. Timeline: On going.

9. Widen and clear the a two-mile long section on the west end of Banadad going east
from the Dawkins Bridge. This is a proactive effort, since this section is not
currently heavily overgrown at present; current work in 2010 will preempt the need
for more costly and labor-intensive work later on. Recommendation- The BTA will seek a Youth Conservation Corp (YCC) crew with
coordination and logistics support provided by BCT. Seeking YCC crew and $200
for project. Timeline: Summer 2010.

10. Provide and coordinate regular maintenance by BTA Volunteers Hand Labor
Crews. The BTA will recruit up to 30 volunteers to work over 3 fall weekends.
Volunteer crews will concentrate on the west end of the Banadad and inward up to
three miles from trailhead; the east end from Winchell Lake Fire Trail west for up
to 2 miles; and the Lace Lake and Tall Pines Trails.Recommendation- BTA will seek $1500
to support logistics, coordination, projects
and supervision for BTA Volunteers and BCT staff through Minnesota DNR Grantin-
Aid funds. Timeline: Fall 2010.

11. Inspect bridges at the beaver pond creek west of Winchell Lake Fire Trail and north
of Moon Lake. Both Bridges are 12’ in length.
Recommendation-The BTA will direct BCT staff to inspect the bridges while
supervising the volunteer trail crew working on that portion of the trail.
Timeline: Fall 2010.

12. Vegetation management: The BTA plans to plant 500 trees along Tall Pines Trail
near Yurt, at the east intersection of Tall Pines and Lace Lake Trails, and by the
gravel pit on the Lace Lake Trail. All the planting is on Minnesota State land.
Recommendation- BCT staff and volunteers will plant trees; the estimated cost of
$250 is budgeted in the BTA for continuing the Banadad as a Carbon Neutral
Trail. Timeline: Early May 2010.

13. Treat 50 yards patch of Canadian Thistle along Tall Pines Trail.
Recommendation- BTA will direct BCT to kill thistle using herbicides and remove
and burn dead plants as prescribed by the Cook County Extension Office,
estimated cost of $50. Timeline: Spring/Early summer 2010.

14. Administrative-Update and reprint Banadad Trail Maps and Brochures.
Recommendation- Estimated cost of $500 paid by BTA. Timeline: Fall 2010 and
ongoing as needed.

15. Regular Maintenance/Grooming by BCT staff. Ongoing to open and groom the
Banadad Trail for skiing throughout the season.Recommendation- Estimated cost of approximately $7000 paid from DNR Grantin-
Aid, BTA and BCT. Timeline: 2010-2011. Continuous annually (contract
between BTA and BCT to be renegotiated on an annual basis determined by
available funding and conditions.)

2011 Projects
• Complete project not completed from the 2010 Trail Plan.
• Repair Banadad Bridge
• Remote Interior Trail Widening Projects (USFS Land): on going project with a
goal of widening another 1 to 2 miles of the Banadad during 2011.
• Moose Trail: mow with brush hog for 4 ½ miles.
• BTA Volunteers: recruit up to 30 volunteers over 3 fall weekends for maintenance
projects identified annually.
• Continue to work on west end trail reroute and parking area. (USFS Land)
• Replace the two bridges inspected last season if necessary (secure or raise
necessary funds).
• Continue tree planting with location to be determined.
• Continue regular maintenance and grooming regime.

2012 Projects

• Complete projects not completed from the 2011 Trail Plan.
• Remote Interior Trail Widening Projects (USFS Land): on going project with a
goal of widening another 1 to 2 miles of trail.
• Lace Lake Trail (State Land): mow with brush hog for 2 1/2 miles.
• BTA Volunteers: recruit up to 30 volunteers over 3 fall weekends.
• Continue to work on west end trail reroute and parking area. (USFS Land)
• Continue tree planting with location to be determined.
• Reprint Trail Maps.
• Continue tree planting with location to be determined.
• Continue regular maintenance and grooming regime.

V. Other Concerns to consider

• Trail Volunteers . In the past the USFS provide Workmen’s Compensation
coverage for trail volunteers. The BTA needs to ensure that this coverage will
continue.

• USFS’s Mead’s and Dawkin’s Prescribed Burns. It is our understanding that these
and other “Blow-Down” prescribed burns are currently on hold for review by the
USFS. However BTA remains concerned about the Meads and Dawkins prescribed
burns and any future prescribed burns along the Banadad. We feel that if any
portion of the trail where conifers have displaced side brush is burned, it will negate
all our efforts to replace the side brush with conifers. If these conifers are burned,
we will be faced with more brush and such burns will detract from the natural
beauty of the trail.

It should also be noted that there has been good natural regeneration of young white
pine and cedar along the trail where the Meads prescribed burn is planned. Any
burn in this area is certainly going to destroy this new generation of trees.

• May 2007 Ham Lake Fire. This fire burned across 6/10ths of a mile of the Banadad
Trail’s eastern end, eight miles west of the eastern trailhead. This burn was in a 50
to 60 year old red pines plantation. The trees that were killed in this fire will likely
present a problem in the future as they rot and fall across the trail. Also, the
elimination of the forest canopy exposing this portion of the trail to more direct
sunlight has resulted in the proliferation of brush and weeds. This Trail section is
likely going to require special maintenance treatment in the near future.

History of the Gunflint Trail's Banadad Ski Trail

What is know today as the BWCAW'S longest groomed ski trail - the Banadad -- was developed many years ago from a network of old logging roads. In 1953, The Finn Lake Timber Sale modeled after the earlier adjoining and to the south Davis Lake Timber Sale was begun. The Finn Lake Road was construct to access the sale. This road was to become the eastern end of the Banadad. The road began at the General Logging Company's abandoned railroad grade just east of Poplar Lake (now the Lima Grade) and proceeded due west about ten miles to Finn Lake passing just north of Moon Lake.

Timber harvested from the area was transported along this new road to the Gunflint Trail then down to Grand Marais. Some of the tall white pine from the sale were truck across an ice road over Poplar Lake to Sam Sepalla's saw mill located where Trail Center now stands.

The construction of the road and the subsequent logging was controlled by the Kimberly-Clark Company. While several small logging camps sprung up along the road, the company's largest camp was built just north of the old Moon Lake logging camp. According to Hank Larson who was logging in the area during this period: "...in l962 there were some eighteen to twenty-four men logging in the Finn Lake area. About twelve of them were shackers. Shackers is the term used to describe the men living in the camps."

During the early l960s another road was constructed from the Finn Lake Road north between Banadad and Rush Lakes across the Banadad Creek, continuing north for another quarter mile where it intersected with the Dawkin's and Birch Cliff Logging Roads. The Dawkins Road came in from the west and the Birch Cliff Road from the east. The Dawkin's road, also know as the Rib Lake road, began at the Gunflint Trail near the Loon Lake Public Landing. The Birch Cliff road connected with what was then the Winchell Lake fire trail beginning on the Gunflint Trail just east of Poplar Lake (now the access road to the Poplar Lake Public Landing).

In l964 with the passage of the Wilderness Act most of this area was place within the newly created Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCAW). The act prohibited logging in most of the area. Road construction and logging ceased, the men moved out and over the next twenty years the forest began to reclaim the logging roads.

Meanwhile the resorts on the Gunflint Trail began developing cross country ski trails. In l972 the first ski trails of what was to become the Upper Gunflint Trail system were constructed by Borderland Lodge. About the same time the owner of a now defunct resort on Hungry Jack Lake and Bearskin Lodge began developing ski trails. These trails were to develop into Bearskin and Golden Eagle Lodges' Central Gunflint Ski Trail System.

Following a bitter struggle pitting mostly city "preservationist" against "local" people from the area surrounding the BWCAW the l978 "BWCAW Act" was passed by Congress. While local residents were not happy with the legislation, they had manage to incorporate into the bill a provision that allowed for the grooming of ski trail within the BWCAW by snowmobiles.

By the early l980s Borderland (now called Moosehorn), Gunflint and Heston's Lodges in the Upper Gunflint area and Bearskin and Golden Eagle Lodges in the Central Gunflint had develop extensive ski trail systems. They were now interested in connect the two systems. Thus in l982 at the urging of the lodges, the U. S. Forest Service authorized the construction within the BWCAW of a ski trail between the Upper and Central Gunflint ski systems. The old Dawkins road, Birch Cliff and Finn Lake system was selected as the proposed route for this trail. During the summers of 1982 the accumulated forest growth was cut and cleared by crews from the Forest Service from the Dawkins, Birch Cliff and the eastern end of the Finn Lake Roads. Grooming by snowmobile of the this trail was authorized and the trail was opened for skiing that winter. The Subsequent year the Finn Lake Road and Banadad links were cleared and this route replaced the Birch Cliff section as the Banadad's eastern end.

The Upper and Central Ski system were now connected by a twenty-seven kilometer groomed ski trail through the wilderness. First called the Ski Thru Trail, Artery Trail or Tucker Lake Trail, depending upon whom you spoke to, the trail was officially named, by the Gunflint ski resorts, the Banadad in l984.

Many of the trail's early beginnings can still be seen. Skiing the Banadad from the east end about eight kilometers from the Lizz-Poplar Portage, the clearing where the Kimberly-Clark logging camp is still visible. However, all that remains of this once busy log camp is a dilapidated outhouse. Further along the trail at what is now called Moose Kill Hill is the junction where the Banadad link branches north off the Finn Lake Road. Another mile and one half further along the trail is the intersection (called Mid Trail Junction now) with the Dawkins and Birch Cliff roads. The Birch Cliff road (now called the Moose Trail) is primarily used to supply the two yurts located at Bedew Lake.

In an interview a few years ago logger Hank Larson described the beauty of the area. He particularly mentioned the rugged terrain and hills along the road near Banadad Lake. The two largest of these hills were named "Whoopee" One and Two by a party of passing skiers in l985.

Note-Banadad is the Ojibwa equivalent for lost.

Spring XC Skiing

Roger Lohr- It happens every year – winter wanes and spring blooms with a flip of the calendar page. People, who live to ski and ski to live also known as snow lovers or winter worshippers can be disappointed to see springtime come. But there are a few well kept secrets about so called “spring skiing.”

Spring snow conditions have many faces and offer many different opportunities. We see wet snowy blizzards that dump deep heavy feet of pillowy snow. And the warm March or April sunshine turns the snow to beads of corn before it turns to mush. The days are longer so we can ski after work or into the early evening hours.

We lose the long underwear (well, maybe it is good to allow perspiration to wick away) and breakout long sleeve shirts, sweaters and vests instead of jackets. We change from goggles to sunglasses and dig to the bottom of the accessories bag for the sun lotion.

There’s undiscovered fun in the spring snow out there for xc skiers, who may not be familiar with it. Get out there in the morning (following a night of below freezing temperatures) when the snow is crusty and just take off on top of the unbroken snow through the woods or across an open area. You can even do it on skate skis, which treat the hardened morning snow like an oversized ice rink. Then again, if you wait until midday, the crust will soften and allow you to carve turns down hills. Set it up so you have a car at the base of your downhill, so you can drive back up to the top for some springtime “up and downing.” Skiing down hills on this corn snow may require power turns and some heavier equipment and you can expect that you’ll get sweaty even though you are lightly clothed.

Spring Tips

* Take a layer off and plan to take advantage of the longer daylight hours (sun rises earlier and sets later).

* There’s always more mountain for you to enjoy because March sees a drop in the number of skiers from the holiday vacation months such as December, January, or February.

* The snow is soft and plentiful in March and with the warmer temperatures it is the perfect time to introduce first timers to xc skiing or to take a lesson to improve techniques.

* March is a time when resorts offer deals so it can be less expensive to ski and what ever is left on store shelves is discounted, too.

* And of course, don’t miss the springtime barbecues, Mardi Gras, St. Patrick’s Day and costume fun at many resorts.

Ski Vermont Survey

Alpine skiers and snowboarders in Vermont were surveyed about their opinions on March skiing:

14% like the warmer temps and sunshine

21% enjoy the fewer skiers on the trails

11% like the snowbase and soft conditions

4% like to take advantage of bargain prices

48% vote for all of the above

2% do not partake in spring skiing

Sooner than you want, rapidly dwindling snow cover will decrease your opportunity to ski. Within a few weeks the wonderful combination of soft snow and bright sunshine is followed by the end of the season. XC skiers are known to quit skiing in late winter even earlier than alpine skiers. XC ski resorts shut down for the season for reasons that there are too few skiers more often than a lack of snow.

The spring

Boundary Country Trekking

Shortly after moving from Chicago to their family owned property, Youngs Island, on the Gunflint Trail in 1974, Barbara and Ted Young started several business ventures. These ventures were to grow into Boundary Country Trekking Ltd. (BCT). Their first venture Mid Trail Services provided maintenance and construction services to Gunflint Trail summer cabin owners. Also Ted's canoe guiding services, which he began many years previously as a teenager, continued.

The Young's introduced dog sledding trips in 1978 under the name of Young's Dog Sled Freighting Service. During this period, winter customers on the Gunflint Trail were sparse. The dog sled business, like every other winter business in the area, was very limited. In fact there were so few people around, customers and residents, Ted would often dog sled right down the middle of the Gunflint Trail without fear of meeting any traffic. Finally in the early 1980's mainly due to the publicity generated by the Will Stieger's dog sled expedition to the North Pole and Alaska's Iditerod Dog Sled race Young's dog sledding business began to grow.

In conjunction with the dog sledding business, overnight accommodations were opened in a guestroom in Young's island home in 1981. During this time cross county skiing was beginning to develop on the Gunflint. The Banadad Ski Trail was opened and the Gunflint Trail's Lodge to Lodge Skiing Program began in 1982. That same year, Young Island became an overnight stop for skiers and in the summer the Island opened as a Bed and Breakfast- one of northern Minnesota's first Bed and Breakfasts.

During this period the Youngs joined the Gunflint Trail Association and the Minnesota Historic Bed and Breakfast and Association. They also helped to organize the Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Guild and were founding members of the Guild. The Guild was recently rename the Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association

In 1984 the Youngs introduced yurt skiing to the Midwest. Their first yurt was located on Bedew Lake along the Banadad Ski Trail. This yurt was named in honor of a local Cook County character, E. J. Croft. With the help of a friend of the Youngs, Steve McCrady, another yurt was purchased the next year. This second yurt was first located near Meads Lake. A third yurt was added in 1990. Located on the Croft Yurt site, Olga's Yurt, as this third yurt was called, was named after a mythical character a guest created and wrote about in an entry in the Croft Yurt log on February 7, 1987. For the next two years other guests continued the "saga" of Olga in the log.

Boundary Country Trekking, Limited (BCT) was incorporated in 1986. The Corporation encompassed the Youngs three different business activities- Mid Trail Service, which continued as a construction and maintenance company and secondly, a lodging business, which included Young's Island B and B and the Yurts. The third activity was the company's developing Adventure Travel business which by then included cross country skiing, dog sledding and canoe guiding.

In the mid 1980's Steve Tucker, a Kansas outdoor professional, took over the company's dog sled program and became BCT's first employee. In 1988 the dogs and mushing gear were sold to Doug Seim a Grand Marais Musher and he took over the operation of the dog sled program. This relationship continued until 1990. That year BCT joined with Arleigh Jorgenson, another Grand Marais musher in a dog sled joint venture. This joint venture works as follows: Arleigh supplied the dogs, sleds, mushers and expertise. BCT promoted and scheduled the trips, and provided the lodging, meals and logistical support. This relationship continues to the present.

In 1989 the Youngs purchased a 34-acre parcel of land on Little Ollie Lake at the outlet of Poplar Creek from Consolidated Paper Company. The following year the Mead's Lake Yurt and a small cabin, that recently had been purchased, were moved onto this property. The yurt was renamed the Poplar Creek Yurt. The cabin, named the Little Ollie Lake Cabin, was quadrupled in size and modernized in 1991.

By 1987 the company required office space to accommodate its growing business activities- particularly the adventure travel portion of the business. Young Island B and B was closed and the guestroom converted to an office. The Gunflint's Lodge to Lodge skiing program was taken over by BCT in 1990. Soon additional adventure trips were added, beginning with the lodge to lodge hiking and skiing on the North Shore (1994), snowmobile adventures (1996), Mountain biking (1997) and a wilderness volunteer program in (1997).

With the growth of the Adventure travel sector of the business, the resulting need for additional office space and the difficulties of operating their business from Youngs Island, it was decided to construct a new office, living facilities and expand the company's lodging facilities on BCT's Little Ollie property. Thus in 1998 the planning for this new facility began to take shape.

However, when the July 4th BWCA Storm hit and made a tangled mess of BCT's Little Ollie Property, the planned constructions of the proposed new bed and breakfast had to be placed on hold and attention directed to clearing the hundreds of down trees on the property.

The storm clean up was completed during the summer of 2000 and construction on the proposed building began in August of that summer. The Poplar Creek Guesthouse Bed & Breakfast, as the building was named, officially opened for business on September 11, 2001, two days after 9/ll. The 3400 square foot structure houses two bed and breakfast rooms, a rental suite, the company office, and the owners living quarters.

With the opening of the Guesthouse, the company added Inn to Inn Hiking and Canoeing to their adventure travel offerings in the summer of 2002. This same year the St Louis and Lake Counties Regional Rail Road Authority licensed the company to market and operate a Lodge to Lodge Bicycling program on the Mesabi Trail between Grand Rapids and Ely Minnesota.

In 2004 Karla and Dale Miller- daughter and son-in-law purchase another yurt and leased it to BCT. Land was leased from the State of Minnesota on Hooker Lake, one mile for from the Guesthouse for this new yurt. Name the Tall Pines Yurt, it was opened for guest rental year round beginning in December of 2004. Also during this year BCT’s canoe business was expanded and more non-guide-outfitted canoe trips were offered.

CORPORATE INFORMATION

The company was incorporated as an "s" corporation in the State of Minnesota in 1986.

Company Address/Phone/Internet- as of January 1, 2003
Boundary Country Trekking
11 Little Ollie Rd
Grand Marais, MN 55604

Phone: 800-322-8327/218-388-9972 Fax: 218-388-2253

Internet: email: bct@boundarycountry.com
Adventure program-web site: www.boundarycountry.com,
Lodging web site: www.littleollielodge.com

Boundary Country Trekking is a member of the following Trade Association

Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association- Board Member
North Shore Bed and Breakfast Association
Gunflint Trail Association- Board Member
Gunflint Scenic Byways Committee- Board Member
Grand Marais Chamber of Commerce
Cross Country Ski Areas Association

Boundary Country Trekking is licensed by and/or has Agreements with the following:

• St Louis and Lake Counties Regional Rail Road Authority for Mesabi Trail® Bicycling Lodge to Lodge
• USFS Gunflint Ranger District - Grooming and Trail Partners agreements for the Banadad Ski Trail; authorized Guide Packer and BWCA Cooperator; and lessee of USFS land for the Croft Yurt site.
  

• Minnesota DNR- Trail Grant-in-Aid Program, Road Maintenance Agreement and lessee of DNR land for the Tall Pines Yurt Site.
  

• Lutsen Tofte Tourism Association- Lodge to Lodge Skiing and Hiking agent

Late Winter-Early Spring Value Season- March 31 to May 22, 2008

Little Ollie Cabin- Midweek $99/night Weekends $125/night for two plus tax. Each extra person $15/night

Poplar Creek Retreat Cabin- Midweek $110/night $135/night for two plus tax. Each extra person $15/nigiht

Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B: Ollie's Rm $110 and Dorothy's Rm $85 with breakfast for two/night. Barbara's Rm $95

Tall Pine Yurt- $69 for two $15 for each extra person/night