See the following link for the latest BEAST News Update.
Dec 15
BEAST 306 @ Ramsay Conc 4C Trail Rework Project
The BEAST 306 trail north of Wolf Grove Rd has gone through some changes due to landowner turnover during the past 20 years. The trail at one time had used the old Drynan hunt camp property. It left the 4th line and headed west through Drynan’s to the 3rd line and then on to Clayton Rd. A reroute saw the 306 stay on the 4th and then on to Clayton Rd….the way the trail has been for a great number of years now.
That current trail had been identified as a potential target for a trail improvement project. The roadway in this corridor is narrow and has four residential laneway entrances to be crossed. Signage had been utilized in the past to help with snowmobile traffic at laneway intersections, but moving the trail to the opposite side of the roadway was a better, safer alternative and an idea in the making.
The trail relocate was a daunting proposition; the untraveled portion was approximately 700metres long and plenty wide enough with no unreasonable ditch grades to negotiate however the undergrowth and trees had been ignored for a great many years. This provided a seemingly mountainous task to even consider.
Enter the tireless BEAST volunteers and neighbours residing along and near this trail! Cooperation with equipment, tools and manual labour over 2 days of (crazy hard) work and some wet weather, the new trail had been cut and cleaned up.
Work started on Friday afternoon with four men armed with saws. Saturday at 8am the men mustered and began working. This squad quickly became a platoon and vehicle parking started to become an issue on the narrow roadway. By lunchtime the task was not quite at the halfway mark, but troops travel on their stomachs so hot pizza and pop was served in a local resident’s garage (plenty of room for social distancing!), with cookies and coffee to energize the afternoon. We returned back to work and gave it our best until darkness and freezing rain made things unsafe for this type of work. Sunday morning a group of seven men assembled and worked till 2pm to cleanup the rest of the downed trees and brush.
We had 17 bodies at our strongest point for a good portion of the day on Saturday. Some could only dedicate a few hours, some the entire length of the project …. this is how it’s done; many hands make light work. That being said there was nothing light about this work!
There was lots of other parts too. A backhoe with operator, a huge 12” wood chipper, a tractor/loader, two trucks with dump trailers all donated by businesses and personal interests alike. An appreciative sledder came along with his fuel supply truck and provided a diesel fuel contribution to the effort!
Besides sore backs and bodies, there were no injuries or damages. Safety was a priority and professionalism was apparent. There were new acquaintances made, and everyone pulled together. Residents who were not involved were completely understanding of our efforts and were not in the least upset by some minor delays in temporary road closure. Some were amazed and very impressed by the BEAST Army that had descended on their quiet lane for the weekend!
We hope that this effort will provide a safe, more enjoyable trail that should accommodate better early and late season usage, as well as showing local residents that we listen to their concerns too.
Many thanks to our hardworking volunteers who made this
possible. The BEAST and all the snowmobile clubs rely on volunteer
participation to make our pastime enjoyable and safe. Most of our trail work is performed by people who donate their precious time …. people who have a desire to contribute, not complain. Please consider becoming a volunteer!
Grant Penstone
Dec 01
BEAST News Update 1 Dec 2020
Nov 23
BEAST Workday#1
BEAST Workday #1 took place on Saturday 21 Nov, and we had a great turn-out!
17 people Southwest
12 people Northwest
22 people Southeast and Northeast
Thank you to our BEAST volunteers!
BEAST Southwest: Ian Edwards reported: There were 3 teams assembled, 17 volunteers in all. Signing, picketing, and brushing was tackled in 3 different areas, and a lot was accomplished. Planning to re-group next week and figure out the next steps.
BEAST Northwest, Audy Bedard reported: Sat Nov 21, we had had 7 helpers, 2 of which were very junior workers, Katlin and Paisley MacHardy. A lot was accomplished, until we encountered bow hunters, which cut our day short. Hoping to complete trails next weekend. Volunteers: Andrew, Kelly, Katlin, Paisley ,Darin ,Dave, Audy
BEAST Northwest, Grant Penstone reported: Sat Nov 21, Had Todd Russell, and 4 new guys (and 4yr old George too) come out. They were Dan (and George) Paige, Chris Watters, Cameron Watters (high school volunteer hours), and Clay Timmons come and join in the fun. Dan, Chris and Clay are avid local sledders and will be back out to help some more! We got brushing/signage/pickets done from Sugar Bush Rd to 308/306 junction with the exception of two directional arrows on Ken’s property, as I ran out. Will return to put those up.
BEAST Northwest, Grant Penstone reported: Sun Nov 22, with Darrell Drew, Blair Howatt and Doug Argue we went up the BEAST 308 along Ramsay Concession 2B to Rath’s and we brushed, picketed and signed the trail behind their house. Then we did Marshall Lake Rd from Concession 2B to the new trail through Charlie’s (called Over Dan’s Hill). We got it all brushed and signed, just need to return to install a couple of directional arrow signs, as we ran out.
BEAST Southeast and Northeast, Shaun Cunningham reported: Sat Nov 21, we had 22 people out to help and got all of Richmond 95% done. Was a great day.
Contact us at info@thebeast.ca if you can help us out for Workday#2 this coming Saturday Nov 28, or Workday#3 on Saturday Dec 5. We will follow Covid-19 protocols and social distancing.
Nov 23
In Memory of George Laight
Sad news, George Laight passed away Friday Nov 19. George was a great friend to us all and we will miss him greatly. Our sincere condolences to Valerie Mullen and all of the family. Details available at following link.
In addition to him and Val snowmobiling with BEAST friends, one of his passions as an active volunteer was Trail Patrol and he was our BEAST Trail Patrol Coordinator for the past few seasons. He was also recognized at the District Level for this when he received the Upper Canada Snowmobile Region District Safety Ambassador award for 2019. George had also joined the BEAST board last season as a Director-at-large.
Shown below is George receiving the 2019 award, with UCSR VP Scott Buckley on the left, and UCSR President Bruce Robinson on the right.
Nov 06
BEAST Trail Work Days, Saturdays Nov 21, 28, and Dec 5
Help us get the BEAST trails ready with signage and picketing for the 2021 Season!
BEAST has organized workdays that provide an opportunity to pitch in and help us get trails ready for the season. Often, we hear from people that they want to help but family commitments or their work prevent them from participating. We are offering three different choices again this season, but don’t let your unavailability on those specific dates stop you from volunteering to help. We do have some volunteers that work on the trails during the regular work week, which may be better suited for shift workers or people who have more time during the week than on the weekend.
Many hands make light work, so why not give our team a hand? We all seem to be able to make time in our plans to snow-mobile on the weekends after the trail work is done and ready to ride. We would appreciate it if similar planning could be considered to pitch in and help rather than leave it all to the few die-hard volunteers. I can assure you that you will learn a lot about the sport that you may not have known and you will have a lot of laughs with a great bunch of people.
Having assets like a chainsaw, an ATV or power tools are all great things but not absolutely necessary to have. All that is needed is to show up, and we will figure out a task for you.
Workdays usually start around 9 am with people meeting at a designated location a few minutes early so we can organize work groups. There are the usual meeting places to choose from, so pick the one closest to you and come on out!
Workdays usually start around 9 am with people meeting at a designated location a few minutes early so we can organize work groups. Pick the closest meeting place to you and come on out!
Remember that given COVID-19, we will all have to follow public health guidelines, such as frequent hand washing or sanitizing, social distancing, and wearing masks where appropriate. Also sanitizing of equipment and not sharing or handling the same equipment.
Note: Due to changing protocols for meeting and gathering during this COVID-19 pandemic, all dates and times could be changed, modified, or cancelled at any time. Please consult the website www.thebeast.ca and our Facebook page for up to date information.
South West: (New location) 2021 9th Line Beckwith,
Carleton Place Ian Myatt, 613-207-0708, info@thebeast.ca
North West: 1465 Wolfe Grove Rd, Almonte
Audy Bedard, 613-256-2973, jabedard@storm.ca
South East: Call or email for location
Shaun Cunningham, 613-227-9445, cpl1@bell.net
North East: Call or email for location
Blaine Johnson, 613-868-2164, NEDirector@thebeast.ca
Oct 30
BEAST Newsletter Fall 2020
The BEAST Newsletter Fall 2020 is now available, click on the following link.
Oct 23
UCSR and City of Ottawa Reach Agreement for Use of City Land for Snowmobile Trails
Upper Canada Snowmobile Region and City of Ottawa Reach Agreement for Use of City Land for Snowmobile Trails
Trails within the City of Ottawa Will be Open Once the Snow Hits the Ground
(Ottawa, ON: October 21, 2020) – The Upper Canada Snowmobile Region (UCSR) is pleased to announce that a new License of Occupation Agreement has been reached with the City of Ottawa to allow the five snowmobile clubs [Beautiful Eastern Association of Snowmobile Trails (BEAST), Carleton Regional Snowmobile Club (CRSC), Osgoode Carleton Snowmobile Trails Club (OCSTC), Rideau Snowmobile Club (RSC), and West Carleton Snowmobile Trails Association (WCSTA)] continued seasonal use of City land for the 2020-2021 snowmobile season and through to the spring of 2025.
“The city was very collaborative in the development of this new five-year agreement which will see the five snowmobile clubs in and around the city of Ottawa being able to continue using important portions of City land within their trail network,” commented UCSR President Bruce Robinson. “Without the city’s keen attention to this file we could not have organized this agreement in the short time we did.”
“The City is pleased to have renewed this partnership to ensure snowmobilers can continue to use designated City lands and spend time outdoors. We recognize its importance in the community and appreciate the hard work by the clubs and the district to maintain the trails. We want to remind everyone to be safe, follow the rules and enjoy these less travelled parts of our City,” explained Derrick Moodie, Director of the City’s Corporate Real Estate Office.
“A special acknowledgement and thanks goes out to the small volunteer team representing the 5 clubs, our District Manager, the city staff for their professionalism and interest in snowmobiling, and Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) staff for their excellent support and advice over the summer to reach this milestone agreement,” explained UCSR Vice President Scott Buckley.
“Snowmobilers are reminded that a Ministry of Transportation snowmobile trail permit is required on all OFSC trails including those within the city,” said UCSR Trails Director Ian Edwards. “The continued use of the city’s land for snowmobile trails will only be possible if operators follow the Motorized Snow Vehicles Act and the snowmobiler’s code of ethics while being courteous for other users of the Lands including pedestrians, cross-country skiers, snowshoers and other users.” Read the latest Cascade Business News articles to find out what is going on in the automotive world.
“Snowmobilers within and around the City of Ottawa can rest assured that snowmobile trails this winter will be open for use once the normal safety preparations, signage, and inspections are complete,” explains WCSTA President Paul McDonald.
Details on the license of occupation will be made available via club websites and social media platforms.
The UCSR and its clubs are committed to delivering the best possible trail riding experiences for snowmobilers around Ottawa and across eastern Ontario.
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The Upper Canada Snowmobile Region (UCSR), District 1 of the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC), is a volunteer led, not-for-profit association that provides the voice for organized on-trail snowmobiling in Eastern Ontario. The UCSR consists of 16 snowmobile clubs with over 3000 kms of groomed snowmobile trails managed by over 1,000 dedicated volunteers generating up to $70.8 million in economic activity (18/19 season) in eastern Ontario each year.
For questions, please contact Darin McRae, District Manager, at darinmcrae@ucsr.ca or by phone at 613-543-0374. www.ucsr.ca
IMPORTANT
Using Snowmobile Trails in the City of Ottawa.
Please read the rules for trail use at the following link.