REGIONAL— Snowmobilers appear to be in a hurry to hit the trails. According to several area conservation officers, they encountered numerous speed violations, with several snow machines clocked in the mid-to-upper 90s over this past weekend in northern St. Louis County.
Cook-area CO Shane Zavodnik reported an exceptional number of speed violations, encountering dozens of snowmobilers traveling well beyond a reasonable speed.
Ely-area CO Sean Williams also reported issuing a high number of speeding violations over the weekend on area trails. He also reported a recent rash of people attempting to drive cars and trucks on snowmobile trails and becoming stuck. He is advising visitors in the area to be observant of snow-covered roads they are unfamiliar with and to keep an eye out for snowmobile trail markers so they can avoid a similar fate.
CO Anthony Bermel, of Babbitt, also reported a high rate of extreme speed violations in his work area. He issued several citations over the weekend for speeds at least 25 miles-per-hour in excess of the legal speed limit of 50 miles-per-hour.
Snowmobile trail conditions remain in good to very good condition in most places, although the recent mild weather has exposed a few bare spots in sunny locations.