Marquette County boasts a vibrant network of recreational trails, thanks to the dedication of several local organizations. From hand-crafted singletrack to the iconic North Country Trail, these groups work tirelessly to create and maintain the paths we love to explore. Here’s a look at the incredible organizations behind our trails and how you can support their efforts.
RAMBA
“RAMBA, a.k.a. Range Area Mountain Bike Association, is a non-profit volunteer organization dedicated to inspiring people to realize the benefits of mountain biking and living a healthy outdoor lifestyle. Our trails are located on the westend of Marquette County, in and around the Ishpeming/Negaunee area and are open to mountain bikers, hikers, trail runners and any non-motorized trail users.” - Danny Hill, Executive Director
What key projects is your organization working on this year?
RAMBA has been quite busy this summer adding a three-looped progressive beginner trail in the Jackson Park area of Negaunee. One of our goals is to introduce the sport of mountain biking to all who may be interested in the sport and provide a trail system that will accommodate all abilities.
Also, new this year, the 24 Hours of Shenanigans! RAMBA will be hosting a “grassroots” 24-hour mountain bike race at Ishpeming’s new Brasswire Campground on August 24th. Racers, solo or team, will get to enjoy approximately 14 miles per lap of the best RAMBA has to offer! Registration is still open, go to BikeReg.com to enter, and there you will find a link to reserve a campsite.
How can someone best support your mission?
RAMBA is a non-profit and does not charge a membership fee to be a member, we rely solely on donations from trail users and races. If you would like to support RAMBA, go to our website or scan one of our QR codes at one of our trailheads. See you on the trails!
North Country Trail
“The North Country Trail is the longest National Scenic Trail in America: 4,800 miles across eight states. Michigan hosts the most North Country National Scenic Trail miles of all eight states with 1,180 miles of trail traversing both peninsulas. The North Country Trail is maintained and built predominantly by volunteers. The Marquette Area Chapter maintains over 110 miles of trail.” - Lynn Meister Thomas, Marquette Area Chapter President
What key projects is your organization working on this year?
Our chapter’s biggest project this year is the elimination of part of the road walk on the Red Road west of CR 510. Our trail crew scouted and flagged a new route for the trail that bypasses 4.1 miles of road walk. The new trail is located primarily on Lyme Timber property and Michigan DNR State Forest land, along with a 40-acre parcel of private property. The access granted by the private landowner makes the entire reroute possible. Work on the new trail segment should begin late this summer or early fall.
How can someone best support your mission?
The mission of the Marquette Area Chapter is to develop, maintain, protect and promote the North Country National Scenic Trail as a premier hiking path across some of the most beautiful areas in Marquette and neighboring counties. This is accomplished by a trail-wide coalition of volunteers and partners. People can support our mission by becoming a member of the Marquette Area Chapter of the North Country Trail, or by volunteering to help on a trail crew. For more information, visit our website or email us at mac@northcountrytrail.org
Iron Ore Heritage Trail
“With the opening of the first section of the Iron Ore Heritage Trail in 2008 between Ishpeming and Negaunee, the Iron Ore Heritage Recreation Authority set out to achieve its vision of connecting Marquette County with a linear multi-use trail for residents and visitors alike. The IOHT serves as a linear museum showcasing the history of the Marquette Iron Range with over 50 interpretive panels placed along the way stretching 47 miles from the town of Republic to Kawbawgam Road in Chocolay Township. It also serves as a recreation and transportation corridor for many of the residents of the communities it passes through.” - Bob Hendrickson, Trail Administrator
What key projects is your organization working on this year?
Plans include a 5-mile extension to Lakenenland Sculpture Park east of Kawbawgam Road. This will be engineered in the summer of 2024 with a projected completion date of August 31, 2025. In addition, a new marshland boardwalk and motorized re-route is being constructed east of Negaunee along with ORV route improvements west of Negaunee. The transition of administrative leadership took place in 2023 with the retirement of Carol Fulsher who served the authority for 15 years. Her replacement, Bob Hendrickson, has many years of trail work in Marquette County with the Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic and Noquemanon Ski Marathon. With the increased popularity of trail use across the county, the IOHT is the backbone of trail infrastructure in Marquette County.
How can someone best support your mission?
Since the IOHT is supported by a public millage the best way to help support the trail is to use common etiquette. Be polite, smile, and say "hi" to fellow trail users. Ride or walk on the right side of the trail and yield to those in front of you and use an audible sound when passing. There are also opportunities to help with basic trail maintenance. For more information go to the IOHT website.
Noquemanon Trail Network
"NTN is a 501C-3 nonprofit that maintains over 150 miles of non-motorized trail across 8 trail systems in the greater Marquette County region from Munising's Valley Spur Ski Trails to the Big Bay Pathway. Trails we are involved with include: North Trails, South Trails, Fit Strip, Forestville Ski Trails, Saux Head, Powell Township Recreation Area, Big Bay Pathway, and Valley Spur. We work with over 40 landowners that generously allow access to their lands for trails.
NTN is an all-season organization with both dirt and snow trails. While summer is focused on mountain biking, hiking, and trail running, winter is nordic skiing as well as groomed singletrack for fat biking and compatible uses. NTN's work is funded by supporting memberships, donations, business partnerships, and NTN fundraising events (Noquemanon Ski Marathon, Eh Winter Enduro, Honey Bear Classic, Marquette Trails Festival, Big Bay Relay, Marquette Trail 50, and Marquette Fall Enduro). We have a small staff of 3 full-time, 2 part-time year-round employees, and seasonal hires supported by volunteers." - Lori Hauswirth, Executive Director
What key projects is your organization working on this year?
This summer, we completed the NTN South Trailhead improvement project that included expanded parking, vault toilets, and a bike park.
Carp River Falls and NTN Raging River Trail builds providing an additional 3.5 miles of new trail.
Two miles of new singletrack at the Forestville Trailhead with the support of the Marquette County Interscholastic Cycling Team.
Trail maintenance and clearing of lots and lots of down trees.
This fall, we're working on building the Porky Pass "Bypass" to replace a trail impacted by new commercial development.
New trailhead on west end of South Trails is under development at the Wellhead Road in partnership with Marquette Township and NMU Construction Management class. Hoping to complete the pavilion this fall with work continuing in the spring.
Emergency Re-route of Noquemanon Ski Marathon Trail is underway due to access issues.
Every project we do fits into one of two categories, planned and unplanned. With ongoing development pressures, increasing trail use, and extreme weather events, we have had to pivot often to respond to system needs. While new trail is exciting, ongoing maintenance and improvement is vital to the trail experience.
How can someone best support your mission?
All users have the ability to support the trails where they play. While many of our local trail systems including NTN's are no charge to use, the funding and support needs are great. We encourage all users to learn about the organizations behind the trails they visit and to donate, sponsor, join, and give time as they are able. While dollars are vital, ask about other ways to help.
