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BRIDGTON — The Bridgton Easy Riders Snowmobile Club recently enjoyed its annual snowmobile adventure, which this year was a five-day trip to Madawaska, the most northeastern city in the USA.
Twenty-four members of the club (mostly couples) trailered their sleds north on Sunday, Feb. 4, arriving at the Gateway Motel in Madawaska in time for the Super Bowl game, snacks and pizza.
The next three days were filled with exploring the area’s excellent, groomed snowmobile trails leading to and through Caribou, Van Buren, Limestone and Allagash, all of which have colorful local eateries where they stopped for lunch. Before dark each day the group returned to Madawaska in time for supper at one of the nearby restaurants
Northern Aroostook County is quite different from the rest of Maine, they discovered, with some trails passing through forests but others traversing miles and miles of beautiful rolling, snow-covered hills with long-distance vistas and expansive views of the St. John River, which forms the border with Canada. Some trails are on old railroad beds, one of which is elevated in places. The area is steeped in history, as well, and local food has a French flavor. (Try the poutine or some ployes.) Neither is it unusual to hear the French language spoken.
The club divided itself into two groups — fast and slow — although by the third day of riding even the least experienced members of the “slower” group were riding like pros. On the last day, the “Fast Group” took off for Two Rivers in the Allagash — a 140-mile round trip. This is a very remote area in the crown of Maine near the Canadian Border where one must carefully calculate a sled’s gas mileage to make sure the trip can be made safely. Two Rivers is a rustic restaurant that sits on the Wilderness Waterway between the Allagash and St. John rivers, resembling an old trapper’s camp with every sort of wildlife mounted on the walls.
Meanwhile the “Slow Group” headed for Van Buren and Ouellette’s Trading Post. Ouellette’s has been in business for 87 years and is a virtual living museum of merchandise. If they don’t have it–you don’t need it! They also have gasoline and good food. The distance covered was about 80 miles.
Both the leader of that group and the last in line had Collette Communicators on their helmets, so there was no risk of anyone being left behind. Easy communication allowed the group to slow down or stop if any rider had a problem on the trail, and could warn of sleds approaching from ahead or from behind and warns if a groomer is nearby. Riders have local trail maps on their sleds, and the leader’s sled was equipped with GPS snowmobile trail maps from GPS Trailmasters, which paints a route to your destination and keeps track of food and gas stations.
It wouldn’t be a snowmobile trip without a few mishaps, but members of the club look out for one another, so if a sled tips over in deep snow there are friends with shovels and a tow rope to help haul it out. Mostly, though, there were fun times, lots of laughs, great companionship, a few adventures and terrific snowmobiling.
The Bridgton Easy Riders is a fun, active club. In addition to its annual trip, some members also organize day trips when local snow conditions are good.
Meetings are at the Bridgton Community Center the second Friday of the month, from September through April. Meetings consist of a pot luck supper at 6 p.m. followed by short business meeting. New members are always welcome.
