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The county with the most ORV trail miles in the state now welcomes ORV riders to use the far right maintained portion of county roads to move throughout the county and access our many trails. You may now ride from your home or cottage to ORV trails and back. You may also travel to gas stations, restaurants, and hundreds of other businesses within the county. Roscommon County includes the communities of Houghton Lake, Higgins Lake, St. Helen, and Roscommon.

This is great news!

Phillip Spicer presented a detailed case for ORV access at the May 13th meeting of the Roscommon County Board of Commissioners. He presented facts that opening our roads to allow users to move throughout the county and to and from trails will bring tourism dollars to the county. Spicer also explained that the counties that opened up their roads did not have enforcement issues.

Spicer’s General Sales Manager Bill Kerns also served on the ORV Task Force and laid much of the ground work for opening our roads. The Commissioners responded to the request and effective immediately opened all county roads.

You may ride at no more than 25 MPH on the far right maintained portion of a road within the county. You may not ride along any state or federal road. This means all “M” roads and “US” roads are off limits. (M-55, M-18, etc). You may cross the state roads, but not ride along them. You may not ride along bicycle paths or sidewalks. Therefore, to access a business on M-55, such as Spicer’s, you would have to approach from an intersecting side street, not riding along the highway.

Wear your helmet and ride responsibly. Do not exceed 25 MPH.

AREAS OPEN TO ORVs:

AREAS CLOSED TO ORVs:

STATE FOREST ACCESS:

Access to the state forest is significant, as there are many county roads into and throughout the state forest. Also there are more miles of ORV Routes and Trails in Roscommon County than any other. However, state forest trails, which are often two-tracks, are off-limits to ORVs. You can often identify a county road by a sign stating it is a “Seasonal Road”. However, keep in mind if a road isn’t a county road or a designated ORV Trail or Route, it is closed to ORVs.

QUICK FACTS:

• Roscommon County roads are open.
• You must maintain a speed of 25 MPH or less.
• You must ride in single-file on the far right maintained portion of the roadway.
• Golf carts are not ORVs, and are not legal to operate on county roads.
• You must wear a helmet to operate an ORV.

Ride responsibly! Our ability to keep these roads open relies upon responsible use by ORV operators.

VEHICLE FACTS:

ATVs produced by Polaris, Can Am, and Arctic Cat are legal ORVs. They can be used on Roscommon County roads and also DNR ORV Routes and Trails. The industry leading Polaris Ranger side-by-side vehicles are also legal ORVs. They may be used on county roads and DNR ORV Routes.

The Polaris RZR is the only side-by-side in the industry that is also legal for DNR ORV Trails. This is because of its 50” width.

No other side-by-side by any other manufacturer is legal for ORV Trails.

Note there is a distinction between Routes and Trails. See this link for DNR maps and explanations. {HERE}

The information in this newsletter is as best we understand it. We make no guarantees over its contents. Also, it is possible a township may in the future restrict riding on a particular road or many roads. For further information regarding Public Act 240 or the Roscommon County ORV ordinance check the links below.

OTHER RESOURCES:

This link provides access to Public Act 240 of 2008. Select Public Act once you are on the page.

This link is the Roscommon County government website. NOTE: The original ORV ordinance was passed in October, 2008. The ordinance changes made May 13 and the “New ORV Map” posted there as of this printing are not current. They were posted before the commission opened the roads. Check back there often. We hope to have a new county map reflecting the fact the county roads are open and showing areas closed to ORVs.

NOTE: The ‘New’ ORV Map as of 5/18/09 did not reflect the opening of the roads. ORVs are designed primarily for off road use. Their handling characteristics are much different on paved surfaces. Excercise extreme caution when operating an ORV on a paved surface.