My husband and I decided to take advantage of the warm weather over the weekend and went on a winter wheelin’ ride side-by-side. Mind you, we don’t have doors on our ATV, nor do we have a heater. Yet somehow, on that February Saturday, we were able to bundle up and stay pretty comfortable as we set off on an adventure.
Our first stop was Hugo’s Bar in Brimson to check out the Vintage Snowmobile Show. The lack of snow turned this annual event from a “ride” to a “show,” but the party was hopping when we hopped out of our ATV to wander over to the classically cool sleds.
Twenty-three sleds were registered in the show, each with their own reasons to oooh and aaahh.
The one that I lingered over was the 1965 red, white, and blue Polaris Colt. We saw a few old Yamaha Phazers. We currently own a 2007 Phazer. What an incredible transformation these machines have made over the years.
Jesse Willimark, who owns Hugo’s along with his wife, Jessica Larson, advised the turnout was better than expected. “Everything is here,” he said. “The food, the fire, the people… usually everybody jumps on their sleds and takes off to go somewhere else.”
In previous years, the sleds would find their way to the Pequaywan Area Trailblazer’s Club and the Pequaywan Inn. Still, when I checked in after the event, Hugo’s Bar was happy to announce, “There were a lot of great people there who stopped and looked at sleds and enjoyed the outdoor fires. It was a fun, great day!”
Afterwards, we spent hours out exploring the logging roads that we often explore in other seasons. Familiar trails that were usually mud, crud, or dust took on a new magical quality with the few inches of snow sparkling in the warmth. We stopped to hike into the woods, and we were able to access areas that are sometimes too wet and buggy to attempt. We turned for home when the sun started going down. On some of the ice slick roads, my husband showed off his driving skills, fishtailing and whipping some 360s.
I often ask my husband, when we are headed out into the wilderness, “did this just become the best day ever?” The winter wheelin’ ride in the wilderness, with a stop at a local vintage snowmobile show, was certainly one of the best days ever for sure.
