INTERNATIONAL FALLS— The National Park Service has begun a planning process to draft a new access and use plan for frozen lake surfaces in Voyageurs National Park to make the park more accessible to a wider range of off-road vehicles in winter.
Ice roads are established and maintained by park staff on Kabetogama and Rainy lakes based on weather conditions, available staff, and resources. The practice was initiated in 1979 on Rainy Lake to provide a traditional mode of travel that was established prior to the creation of the park. Ice roads allow access to ice fishing locations and provide visitors with a unique way to experience the park in winter.
The planning process does not relate to snowmobile use in the park, which is already established through designated trails. Instead, it relates to other off-road vehicles, including street legal vehicles, ATVs, UTVs and other vehicles. As part of its planning effort, the park will host two in-person meetings and one virtual public meeting for the public to share their thoughts and ask questions. The first is set for Tuesday, April 18 from 5-7 p.m. at the Kabetogama Community Building, located at 9707 Gamma Rd. A second meeting will be held Thursday, April 20 from 5-7 p.m. at the AmericInn by Wyndham, located at 2500 Keenan Drive in International Falls.
The virtual meeting on Zoom will be held on Wednesday, April 19 from 5-7 p.m. The meeting link is https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83447266503. Listen-only telephone access is available by calling 1-312-626-6799 and entering webinar ID 834 4726 6503 at the prompt.
Park staff will give a brief presentation during the first half-hour of all meetings and will then be available to answer questions via an open house format until 7 p.m.
All meeting information is also available on the project PEPC page, under “Meeting Notices” https://parkplanning.nps.gov/VOYA-frozen.
You can submit comments electronically at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/VOYA-frozen, or via U.S. mail to Frozen Lake Surface Access and Use Plan, Voyageurs National Park, 360 Hwy 11 East, International Falls, MN 56649.
The public comment period for this process will be open through May 3, 2023.