The winter of 2009-2010 started out slow, never really picked up pace, so it should be no surprise that it ended early here on the East Coast. While French and Bill headed to the west coast for marginal condition snowmobiling, Sooley, Maffer and I decided to head to the Sooley cabin for an end of winter adventure.

What little snow fell this winter was rapidly melting in the warmer than usual March temperatures, as was ice on the ponds. Soon after arriving at the cabin, I was the first to check the ice to determine whether it was safe enough for travel or ice fishing. I believe by the picture above we decided best not to test the ice further from shore and curtailed plans for fishing. A quick tow with Sooley's truck was all that was required to free Project Foreman from the pond. Since the air box didn't go under, no water got inside the motor, and pulling the air box drain prior to extraction let water in the snorkel drain out as we extracted the bike. The front differential also remained unscathed with not enough water infiltration to cause any harm for the weekend.

Our time at the cabin this trip was very relaxed. We spent a lot of the time fixing up old trails, cutting a new trail from the potato field towards the river, and clearing a place for future camping trips. Sooley did a great job of barely missing Maffer's borrowed bike with a falling tree, just breaking a few clips that hold the  windshield in place!

While at the cabin, we also took our gear and did a little coyote hunting. Although we didn't have any luck while we were hunting, there was quite a lot of sign in the area, and we had some calls back to our electronic caller when we tested it at night.

All in all it was a great relaxing weekend. We made the best of not having snow, and had a great time.

Cheers, MIKE