Saturday, May 16th at Norway Ridge Pathway, AHS instructor, Andrew Wolfgang and his Environmental Club students hosted a nature walk. Andrew and his students helped identify birds, their calls, emerging fauna and flowers. We even aged a few of the large white pine trees. One tree was 175 years old! What an awesome , interesting and educational way to start out the day. Thank you Andrew and students for hosting!

Hello winter trail users! We were recently asked by the Alpena Golf Course to share an important update: the course will be closed for winter use for the remainder of the season due to damage from the 2026 ice storm. At this time, the DNR is assessing conditions at Chippewa Hills and Norway. As a result, we will be holding off on any future trail grooming until further notice. Despite the challenges brought on by the ice storm, it has truly been a great winter for outdoor rec

Alpena Golf Course has good tracks and firm skate deck. Chippewa Hills has loops A, B, C groomed. Loop D to South parking lot is not groomed due to mechanical issues with groomer. Hoping to get the machine back online before more snow comes. Norway Ridge was groomed on Monday and is in good shape.

Meet Eric and Patti. These two skiers stay active in winter by Cross Country skiing almost every day at the Alpena Golf Course ski trails. As the frequent groomer of the Golf Course trails, I have seen them for many winters using the trails. Both Eric and Patti met while cross country skiing, raised their family with a love of the sport and now their older children and grandchildren love the winter sport as well. Eric is originally from Norway, so cross country skiing and lov

Norway Ridge Pathway and the Alpena Golf Course Ski trails were groomed this afternoon. Conditions are excellent with much fresh snow. More snow is forecast for the next couple days. Get out and enjoy the snowiest winter we’ve experienced in many years.

The Alpena Golf Course winter trails were groomed this morning. The trail is groomed for skate and classic skiing. The daytime high temperatures for the next several days will be above freezing. Please no walkers on the ski trails as this creates divots and holes in the trail surface that are dangerous for XC skiers.

The Alpena Golf Course winter trails have been groomed for skating and classic skiing. The open areas may be windblown. Otherwise, the trail is in good shape for skiing.

Norway Ridge Pathway was groomed this morning for classic. Hikers please do not walk in the ski track. Chippewa Hills pathway was groomed for classic this afternoon. The trail is open and in pretty good shape. Be careful on some downhills as there are some hidden rocks and debris. The Alpena Golf Course trails will be groomed on Saturday if the winds die down. Chippewa Hills Pathway

The Alpena Golf Course trails have been freshened up for classic and skate skiing. The conditions remain excellent. Norway Ridge Pathway needs more snow to groom. However, there is still a well skied in track.

The Alpena Golf Course has been groomed for skating and classic. There may still be some windblown sections of the trail as the wind and snow continued while grooming. The conditions remain excellent.

Chippewa Hills Pathway has been reopened for winter activities. Logging operations have ceased for the winter. Our groomers investigated the trail conditions, cleared brush and trees from the trail, packed and set a track. The snow pack is not as deep as in Alpena. Ski at your own risk and watch out for debris under the snow base.

Both the Alpena Golf Course Trail and Norway Ridge were groomed today. Groomer Jeff reports that both trail systems are in good shape. Sections 1-9 at Norway Ridge are fairly compacted from multi use and track setting was difficult.

The Alpena Golf course has been groomed and is reported to be in amazing shape for skate and classic skiing.

Norway Ridge Pathway, Alpena Golf Course winter trails and the Sportsman Club Biathlon course have all been groomed. Norway Ridge Pathway has ice under the snow in places. The trail is hard packed and has an intermittent ski track.

Our awesome volunteer Matt put in 7 hours today to get the golf course and Norway into usable shape! The Golf Course is groomed for classic and skate and Norway Ride was groomed for classic. There is a pretty serious underlay of ice at Norway Rodge so use caution.

The Alpena Golf Course has been groomed this morning and our volunteer groomers are out at Norway Ridge right now to pack and set a track. Both trails are pretty soft from the new snow. We will be waiting till after the warm up to groom again.

Norway Ridge Pathway and the Alpena Golf Course ski trails have been groomed. Norway Ridge Pathway is hard packed until trail marker #9. Hikers please do not walk in the ski track. Please no dogs or walkers at the Alpena Golf Course trails. Enjoy the winter trails!

We’re often asked where the best places are to enjoy non-motorized winter activities near Alpena, MI—like cross-country skiing, fat-tire biking, and snowshoeing. Well, guess no more! Below is a list of nature trails managed by Thunder Bay Trails Association’s volunteer groomers during the snow season to make winter fun possible for everyone. Alpena Golf Course Cross Country Ski Trail The Alpena Golf Course XC ski trail is our best-groomed cross-country ski trail in Alpena, MI

Attempted to groom at the Alpena Golf Course . Places out of the wind had enough snow to set a track. Open areas of the trail (which is quite a bit) were very wind blown and icy. Much of the trail was getting blown in with snow as we groomed. Norway Ridge’s snow is pretty slim under the pine trees and it’s icy. It would help greatly if we got a couple more inches of snow.

Due to extensive logging operations at the Chippewa Hills Pathway this winter, the TBTA winter trail grooming operations will be suspended. Please be advised when using the trail system this winter you may encounter trail closures and active logging operations. For more information on the logging operations, please refer to the DNR's July 21, 2025 news release Timber harvests, thinning planned for Chippewa Hills Pathway . Jeff B. TBTA President