Iron Range Off-Highway Vehicle Trail Maps

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ATV/OHV Guide

1 AURORA • BIWABIK • BUHL • CHISHOLM • EMBARRASS • EVELETH • GILBERT • HIBBING • HOYT LAKES • MOUNTAIN IRON • VIRGINIA

CRAWL. CLIMB. CONQUER. WANDER FREELY. NEVER GET LOST. Before you hit the trails, download the Avenza Maps App and search “MNDNR + Park or trail name” and track where you are or how far you’ve gone on your next trail ride.

Avoid getting lost with offline navigation. Avenza Maps only require an internet connection to download the app and new maps. Available from the App store or Google Play.

There are hundreds of miles of forest roads, challenging terrain and climbing areas waiting to be explored. Plus plenty of lodging, dining and entertainment options. Contact Iron Range Tourism for information on campgrounds, hotels, resorts and must-see attractions in the area, including the Soudan Underground Mine, Minnesota Discovery Center, Hull Rust Mine View and more!

Iron Range Tourism ironrange.org 111 Station 44 Road, Eveleth, MN 55734 | (218) 749-8161 Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) (888) MINN-DNR U.S. Forest Service Laurentian Ranger District (218) 229-8800 Cook

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The Iron Range is an ATV and OHV rider’s oasis.

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2 | Discover the Range | ATV/OHV Guide | ironrange.org

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CENTRAL RANGE > HIBBING TO SIDE LAKE The Northern TRAXX GIA ATV Club trail covers a combination of 19.5 miles of low-traffic gravel roads and 18.5 miles of trail to connect Hibbing, Chisholm and the Side Lake/McCarthy Beach area. Northern TRAXX is open in the winter. Visit the MN DNR website for more information.

From Hibbing, use Dupont Road to head east to Kangas Road, then follow Kangas to Grace. Follow the trail toward Chisholm, where riders can enjoy reclaimed mine pit views and water access within Redhead Mountain Bike Park.

From Chisholm, the Northern TRAXX trail goes north–parking at the Chisholm Armory parking lot. The route roughly follows Hwy 5 to the Side Lake/McCarthy Beach State Park area. In all the trail is 38 miles of easy to moderately difficult riding with lots of scenery and plenty of places to stop along the way.

In the Side Lake area, access the Taconite State Trail–Big Aspen ATV Connection by following County Rd 65 north and then east.

Jump on the Taconite just east of the Sturgeon River bridge on CR 65. See page 6 for more information on Big Aspen.

The Chisholm Grant-in-Aid ATV trail is open year-round except during deer season. Class II ATVs and OHMs allowed (no OHMs on county road right-of-ways).

Find lodging, camping, restaurants and gas in Hibbing, Chisholm and the Side Lake area. Visit IronRange.org to get you started.

NOTES: ATVs are allowed on most roads in Hibbing. They must follow speed limits and stick to the shoulder area. ATVs are NOT allowed on Howard Street or First Avenue, unless crossing. Riding allowed 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Chisholm streets are open to ATVs. Riding 6:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

TOP 5 RANGE TRAIL RULES 1. Stay on the trail and respect land ownership 2. Pick up afteryourself 3. Share the trail— with people and animals 4. Gear up 5. Know the laws OFF-ROAD LINGO Everyone’s got to start somewhere, right? If you’re new to hitting the trails, we’ll help you learn the lingo here.

Grant-in-Aid (GIA) The creation and maintenance of locally initiated trails that are financially supported by the state of Minnesota.

Rules of the Road Off-Highway Motorcycles (OHM) are prohibited from being driven on all city and county roads.

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From Eveleth, use the Genoa to reach the Iron Range Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area on the east side of Gilbert, and explore around 36 miles of trails with scenic views. In the OHV Rec Area, there are designated and multi-use trails for ATVs, OHM and ORVs. ORVs are not allowed on the Genoa Trail due to ownership restrictions. (Please respect allowed trail uses or we may lose the privilege to ride).

Take the core trail through 13 miles of the OHVRA Expansion area (loop trails still under development) and traverse the state’s tallest bridge on your way into Virginia. This is an out-and-back ride.

Find hotels and motels in Eveleth and Virginia, plus vacation rental in Gilbert, and campgrounds in Gilbert and Eveleth. Dining and gas easily found here.

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NOTES: The OHVRA and Expansion area are open May-Oct. 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. daily, and weekends after firearms deer season through April. There is no admission fee but all machines must be registered. Machines registered in another state must have a Minnesota Trail Pass.

Virginia, Gilbert and Eveleth are ATV-friendly. ATVs use shoulder of city streets, avoid main corridors. en

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4 | Discover the Range | ATV/OHV Guide | ironrange.org

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It advocates for safe, responsible riding, and provides clubs with the tools they need to build public trails that protect our natural resoursea snd are fun and sustainable.

Visit atvmn.org for info and membership.

LOCAL CLUBS Babbitt ATV/Snowmobile Club 218-827-3504 dcsoular@frontiernet.net Northern Traxx ATV Club 218-969-6789 northerntraxxatvclub@yahoo. com northerntraxx.org Prospector ATV Club 218-343-2019 prospectorsatv@gmail.com Quad Cities ATV Club 218-780-4522 quadcitiesatvclub@gmail.com quadcitiesatv.com

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ATV MN is a state-wide association that represents 70 ATV clubs and ATV riding families.

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BIG ASPEN CONNECTION: SIDE LAKE TO BIG ASPEN REC AREA In the Side Lake Area, jump on the Taconite State Trail off of County Road 65 (see above, ATVs allowed on Taconite only east of Sturgeon River), and travel 17 miles east on “The Tac” to reach Big Aspen, a Superior National Forest recreation area with 21 miles of looped, multi-use trails with scenic vistas.

Gas and food are sparse between Side Lake and Big Aspen, but The Wooden Table and Oasis restaurant/bars are on the way, and dining and gas are available in Side Lake (French Township).

NOTES: There is currently no connection to Virginia from Big Aspen. Hibbingto-Big Aspen is an out-and-back ride with many places to stop for food along the way.

ATVs are allowed in Big Aspen May 1-Nov 20. No other motor vehicles are allowed. Spring Conditions may cause trails to remain closed later than May 1.

Ranger Snowmobile/ATV Club 218-290-1531 blackhawk@lakeconnections.net

6 | Discover the Range | ATV/OHV Guide | ironrange.org

EAST RANGE > AURORA/BIWABIK/HOYT LAKES This 22-mile multi-use trail connects the communities of Aurora, Biwabik and Hoyt Lakes, including Giants Ridge resort in Biwabik and the Vermilion Trail and Fisherman’s Point Campgrounds. Park at the entrance to Biwabik and ride to Hoyt Lakes as an out-and-back, or see below for trail connections to Stony Spur II and Jackpot Loop.

Lodging, camping, dining and gas in Biwabik and Hoyt Lakes, with dining and gas in Aurora.

EAST RANGE TO STONY SPUR II AND JACKPOT LOOP In Hoyt Lakes, follow the shoulder of Hwy 11 east to the Skibo Road/ Forest Road 120, and turn on to Forest Road 113. From Forest Road 113, go north and east to Forest Road 112. These trails are open to ATVs, side-by-sides and HLV only. At Forest Road 112, you have entered the 25-mile Jackpot trail system, which offers several loops and connects to the Stony Spur Trail, which leads into Babbitt if you turn west and toward the Prospectors Trail (Ely/Finland/ North Shore). Combined, these trails are remote and largely in the Superior National Forest.

Find lodging, camping and gas in the Babbitt/Hoyt Lakes/Ely/North Shore areas.

MESABI MOUNTAIN (ORV-ONLY) This Grant-in-Aid ORV-only trail along the Laurentian Divide offers four miles of challenging obstacles. Thirty-five inch tires, lockers and a winch are recommended for this trail, which is ranked difficult.

Scenic overlooks provide a good place for a break.

Mesabi Mountain is in Eveleth and accessible from the Super 8 parking lot.

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COUNTY ORDINANCE St Louis County allows ATVs to ride on county roads outside of city limits. Scan this QR cote to download a map showing county routes open to ATVs (through the ordinance). This map is a geo-pdf and can be uploaded and used in Avenza Maps DNR RULES AND REGS Visit dnr.state.mn.us/ohv/index.html to learn more about DNR Grant-inAid (GIA) ATV trails. This link shows the trails that are maintained with GIA funding, meaning these maps only show a part of the larger system of routes open to ATVs. As a rule, most of the ATV routes not shown on these maps are on roads where ATV is a secondary use.

Know before you go!

Make sure to visit these pages before hitting the trails.

U.S. FOREST SERVICE MOTOR VEHICLE USE MAP The U.S. Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Maps (MVUM) can be downloaded and used on Avenza. We strongly encourage using these maps to know where you are and to ensure that you are riding where you are legally able to ride. Find the Superior National Forest MVUM at fs.usda.gov/main/superior/maps-pubs (scroll to the bottom of the page).

CONNECTIONS ON THE WAY Gilbert to Biwabik: This long-awaited connection will complete the Ranger Trail system in the East Range communities of Biwabik, Aurora, Hoyt Lakes and Gilbert/the OHVRA. Look for this to be complete for the 2023 riding season Virginia to Britt Area: This route would connect Virginia and Big Aspen to Chisholm and Hibbing. Look for this in the next five years.

Hibbing to Alborn/Pengilly 2022 Chisholm to Buhl 2023-2024 Tower to Pfeiffer Lake Big Aspen to Pfeiffer Lake/CR361/Cook

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ironrange.org | 111 Station 44 Road, Eveleth, MN 55734 | (218) 749-8161

8 | Discover the Range | ATV/OHV Guide | ironrange.org AURORA • BIWABIK • BUHL • CHISHOLM • EMBARRASS • EVELETH • GILBERT • HIBBING • HOYT LAKES • MOUNTAIN IRON • VIRGINIA