DULUTH, MN - Snowmobiling has changed since the days when most of Minnesota’s 18,000 miles of (gas tax funded) snowmobile routes were developed. Today’s snowmobiles can go 100 miles per hour. Advertisements promote machines flying over drifts and speeding through turns. Many property owners no longer want the noise, fumes and sometime bad behavior related to this high performance sport in their backyards.
Happily, educated property owners can close unwanted snowmobile routes quite easily. To cross private land, snowmobiles clubs must have legal easements which can be withdrawn at any time. While legal easements require a delay before unwanted routes can be closed, if no legal easement exists, trespass can be halted immediately. Many of Minnesota’s snowmobile trails were built through trespass.
Often whole neighborhoods of property owners are interested in restoring peace and quiet in their backyards.
Easement Education Fact Sheet
Because more and more property owners are withdrawing their easements for motorized recreation in recent years the DNR has attempted to purchase "permanent" easements on pulbic land, i.e., easements that could never be withdrawn. There are several good reasons why private property owners would not want to give a permanent easement for a snowmobile or other motorized trail across their land. The below letter sent by six property owners in Hermantown to their neighbors sums up these reasons.
Dear Neighbor Letter
For assistance in restoring winter quiet in your backyard or neighborhood contact MRR at 218-740-3175 or e-mail us at info@MnResponsibleRec.org.
