Off-Road Exploring

How Traverse City and Cadillac are harnessing the rise of off-road vehicles

By Ellen Miller | Aug. 17, 2024

Getting out on the trails is almost a requirement in northern Michigan, whether that’s hiking and biking in the summer or snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in the winter. Each year, our outdoor recreation options seem to draw more people to the area. If you hear a rumble or a roar while you’re out, that’s because motorized recreation—including e-bikes, snowmobiles, and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) or off-road vehicles (ORVs)—is also on the rise.

(A little terminology lesson: ATVs have low-pressure tires for rough terrain and are a type of ORV, which also include utility-task vehicles, certain motorcycles, and side-by-sides, to name a few. Basically, if they can safely get over a northern Michigan pothole in the woods, they count!)

According to Consumer Affairs, 2023 saw the third-highest sales of ATVs ever with 682,000 units sold (2020 holds the all-time record with more than 700,000 units). We checked in with powersports enthusiasts and business owners in the region to see if northern Michigan is also seeing a spike and how it’s affecting our economies and trails.

Family Fun on the Trails

ORVs aren’t allowed everywhere, but the state has over 4,000 miles of designated trails and forests. When Cara and Jason Eule were exploring starting a business near Traverse City, they realized that the local network of trails had untapped potential.

“We moved here because of the four-season adventure. We loved the scenery and being outside, and every season offers something different,” says Cara Eule, a runner and paddler. “This is an unbelievable natural resource. Whether people come to visit or live here, we want to give them an experience that you can’t see from the side of the road.”

She and Jason are now co-owners of TC Trailsports, an ATV rental business. “On an ATV, you can get further than you can by foot, and the trails you travel are amazing,” Eule tells us. “You can see the Boardman [River] from up above!”

Rentals are available to riders 18+ who have a valid driver’s license. TC Trailsports provides safety gear and orientation, and often sends riders south from the Supply Road ORV trailhead first, since that’s an easier route; riders can find their own path after getting comfortable.

Most customers so far tend to be couples, but Eule says ATV-ing is a great family adventure. She and Jason, along with their two sons, have all completed the Department of Natural Resources’ ORV safety training.

“For me, everyone is a rider,” says Eule. “Everybody comes back with a smile on their face, whether they’re into powersports or not … you can just putter along and enjoy the ride.”

Old Trails, New Perspective

While the Eules are tapping into under-used trails in TC for their ATVs, a project on a county-wide scope has been happening in Cadillac.

In 2009, Wexford County (home to Cadillac area and Manistee National Forest) made an ordinance to open county roads for ORV use. In October 2021, the U.S. Forest Service opened forest service roads to ORV users, and the two regulations combined created an opportunity to hit the trail closer to home. However, the connectivity was confusing, and trails weren’t being utilized to their full potential.

Cadillac Area Visitors Bureau Executive Director Kathy Morin spearheaded an effort to tie together the existing network into something manageable, drawing on partnerships with the U.S. Forest Service and Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources.

The Cadillac Scenic Ride (CSR) officially launched in May this year. CSR isn’t a new trail, but rather helps riders connect existing trails that are open to ORV users. It includes both Wexford County roads and federal forest service roads.

“We had these available open roads for users but some people didn’t really know the connectivity or where they could go,” reflects Morin. “There were several types of maps or apps, which were all wonderful resources, but it was a little confusing, especially if someone is a new user.”

The Cadillac Scenic Ride offers riders easy-access information about different points of interest, where fuel is, places to stay, where to eat. “It’s an easy-to-navigate map and ride for somebody that might be a newer user or an experienced user that hasn’t been out riding in our area,” explains Morin.

“As a business owner I can’t express how much I think it has benefitted the area,” says Pete Finch, the owner of Coyote Crossing Resort and a Cadillac Area Visitors Bureau board member. Coyote Crossing Resort has direct access to the trail system for snowmobiles and ORVs. In addition to promoting the ride to visitors who are staying on-site, it has a restaurant that is a popular stop for groups out on the trails.

“This has allowed us to tie into some areas that were already an ORV hotbed to the south of us. People are excited to see the signage that we have put at several key stops and intersections,” Finch says. He estimates they have distributed hundreds of trifold paper maps over the last several months in addition to directing riders to the electronic map.

Rising Popularity, Changing Environment

All signs point to more folks enjoying the trails in new ways. “We know that the number of ORV users has increased significantly, especially since COVID. It’s a great family-friendly activity,” says Morin.

While other areas in Michigan have more established ORV routes, this is new territory for Cadillac, and it offers new opportunities in a shifting climate.

“We do have challenges with winter at times, and with having enough snow for snowmobiling,” Morin reflects, adding that the sport that once brought thousands to Cadillac in the winter is not “always a viable activity.”

Indeed, in 2023, Lake Cadillac Resort closed for the winter season posting on Facebook that “The lack of winter tourism, coupled with the historically low amount of snowfall, makes it difficult to operate at full capacity in the winter months.” They specifically noted that “Snowmobilers used to be a large part of winter business in Cadillac West, now we are lucky to get a handful of weekends where there is even enough snow to ride on.”

Attracting ORV users can help fill in those tourism gaps for local businesses, and Cara Eule sees opportunity for growth.

“We are very sensitive to climate change and the conditions in which we exist,” she says. “With the way winters are heading here, that opens up more time for [ATV] riding. It’s not as cold, not as snowy. There is potential that [ATV] riding will be accessible more months of the year than in the past.”

On the flip side of the coin—from both a tourism and an environmental perspective—is the shared understanding among these ORV advocates that users are responsible for taking care of the trail while they are out having fun.

“We knew there were a lot of people coming to the area to ride anyway, and it is nice to be able to do additional outreach and share stewardship, safety, and responsible recreation practice along with the ride,” says Morin. “We want people to come enjoy our area, but also to be safe, responsible, and respectful.”

“We feel you can have fun, be safe, and preserve the natural resources,” Eule agrees. “It’s important to us to teach people to share the trails and prevent the spread of invasive species. We have to be stewards of the natural resource, to not destroy trails, and to keep them safe for future generations of riders.”

Both Eule and Finch note that at times ORV culture can get a bad rap.

“My one emphasis is that people try to abide by route designation and rules and be respectful of this U.S. Forest resource that we have here. We need to be good stewards of the property and abide and ride safely,” says Finch. He pointed out that just as trails can be designated for ORV use, if they aren’t treated respectfully, that designation could go away in the future.

“Businesses like us, and other rider groups, should work in partnership with the DNR and not have an oppositional relationship,” Eule says. “There’s room for everyone on the trails. There are some trails that are and should be non-vehicular and some where we can share the road.”

For more information about the Cadillac Scenic Ride, visit ridecadillac.com. For more information on ATV rentals, visit TCTrailsports.com.