After careful consideration and much deliberation, the Oneida County Snowmobile Council and the Oneida County Forestry Department, have made the difficult decision to keep the Oneida County Snowmobile Trail System closed until further notice.

Note that Oneida County Trails must all open and close together.  A decision to open trails requires 7 out of the 10 voting clubs to vote in favor of  opening.  While our Minocqua Forest Riders Club did vote YES to open the trails, there were not the 7 required votes to open, so all Oneida County trails remain closed.  Our Forest Rider volunteer groomers have been out panning and preparing the trails to establish the best possible base for when there is more snow and a decision is made to open the trails.

Full text of the Oneida County PSA is below.

The below PSA was published today by the Oneida County Snowmobile Council and the Oneida Country Forestry Department
Oneida County
Forestry, Land & Recreation
Public Service Announcement
DATE: January 24, 2025
TO: News Media (and other interested parties)
FROM: Oneida County Snowmobile Council (OCSC) & Oneida County Forestry Department
RE: Oneida County Snowmobile Trail System

After careful consideration and much deliberation, the Oneida County Snowmobile Council and the Oneida County Forestry Department, have made the difficult decision to keep the Oneida County Snowmobile Trail System closed until further notice.

The decision to legally open snowmobile trails each year is often a difficult one and not taken lightly. As members of the communities we serve, we are well aware of how critical snowmobile season is to the Northwoods and how trail closures can adversely affect businesses and tourism dollars.

Additionally, we have to give equal consideration to rider safety and negative impacts to public and private lands that many of our trails utilize. At this time, we feel that most areas throughout our county’s snowmobile trail system, do not have adequate snow to be able to ride safely, and damages to public and private lands may occur in many areas if trails were to open under current snow conditions.

As the custodians of the trail system, both on public and private lands, we understand the privilege it is to use these trails and do not want to abuse that privilege and/or risk rider safety.

Please be assured we WILL open our trail system as soon as we get substantial snow to facilitate safe riding throughout Oneida County. Once the decision is made to open snowmobile trails, the Oneida County Forestry Department will issue a Public Service Announcement with local media outlets.

Until then, we ask riders to please be patient as we continue to assess the snow conditions. Stay off closed trails and do not ride behind locked gates. Failure to do so, could result in citations or penalties from local law enforcement agencies.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation with this matter.

Any questions or comments can be directed to OCSC President – Jim Wendt @ 715.891.1610 or the Oneida County Forestry Department @ 715.369.6140.