Meet at 8:30 and start ride at 9:00 AM from the Willow Flowage “Handicap Accessible Nature Trail” parking lot. Public restrooms are available across the street from the Willow Dam boat launch in the parking lot, just south of the meeting location.
Meeting location where rides leave from:
5043 Willow Dam Road, Hazelhurst, WI 54531
Bathroom facility very close to the start area (1/4 mile):
5022 Willow Dam Road, Hazelhurst, WI 54531
This is directly across from the Willow Flowage Boat Launch at the Willow Flowage Dam.
-(1/2 way point) Lunch break at 11:00 and finishing up around 3:30 pm.
1/2 way location is also the Lunch location : Oneida County Willow River Picnic Area; Town of Lynne, WI. Meet here if you wanted to ride 1/2 of this ride. (Detailed location: Off of Rapids Road-closest address to picnic area is 13485 Rapids Road, Lynne, WI where picnic area is 1/2 mile SE of that address).
Finish is where we start/park.
POST RIDE FOOD:
Meet at the nearby Willow Haven Bar & Grill Supper Club, 4877 Haven Drive, Hazelhurst, WI 54531 Phone: (715) 453-3678
https://www.facebook.com/WillowHavenBarAndGrill
Estimated Ride Time: 9:00-11:30 (11:30 -12:30 lunch) 12:30-3:30 = 5-6 hours. Will break into groups to meet everyone's pace. Cheryl to ride the rear with a 'no drop' ride.
Bring: lunch, electrolytes, jacket, hydration pack and water bottle(s).
Course details:
46-47 miles of gravel roads, snowmobile double wide trails and paved roads. The goal is to stay off of paved roads but we must use some to make it around the Willow. The gravel roads are fairly flat but the double wide snowmobile trails are hilly. For those riders that did this in the past, this version removes Iron Gate Road from the ride. The road has degraded too much over the last several years from UTV/ATV use, and is not graded on a regular basis. Instead, at the intersection of Lamar Springs Road, and McCord Road, the route will head right (south) on McCord Road, to Kelly Fire Lane, to Gobbler Lake Road, to Burrows Lake Road, to Hwy Y, then Willow Dam Road to the finish. This route change will add on about 4 miles, but will be on gravel roads that are less used by UTVs/ATVs than Iron Gate Road. There will be some deep gravel in places on Kelly Fire Ln. and Gobbler Lake Rd., but significantly more rideable than Iron Gate Rd. There is no way to get around some gravel roads used by UTVs/ATVs and other vehicles. Unfortunately, there are few other options for a reroute, as the Kelly Fire Ln and Gobbler Lake Rd. areas have a lot of bogs, and no established logging roads. However, you will have scenic views of the Gobbler State Natural Area, from the top of a classic Esker on Gobbler Lake Road.
Surface Sum of Mileage
Dirt 10
Gravel 30
Paved 7
Grand Total 46-50 miles for long ride or
39 miles for the shorter ride. Groups will split off after
the 1/2 way point/lunch location.
Interesting features: Water fall at the Cedar Falls Campground, where the Tomahawk River enters the Willow Flowage (the campground has modern toilets); Water fall/rapids at the lunch location on the Willow River; many road-creek crossings (we cross creeks on top of gravel roads); a ~1,200 foot long esker. Since an esker is essentially all gravel, it will be loose, but not very deep. That part of the route is used by UTVs/ATVs, trucks, and cars (stay to the right on the esker hills), but is not used by UTVs/ATVs to the extent that Iron Gate Rd. is.
A Fat bike is recommended. If you wish to ride a mountain bike or gravel bike, 50mm tires (2” or larger) is recommended. This is a social ride ...stopping for breaks/ pictures along the way. If there is a group that wants to finish more quickly, the routes are posted in the chat in gpx or fit file formats.
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