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HANCOCK - Craig Winters was working on his snowmobile outside the Ramada Inn in Hancock Saturday trying to figure out why the machine cut out on him at one point while he was riding at 50 miles an hour Friday.

Winters, who is from McHenry, Ill. said his snowmobile stopped dead on a trail, and soon after someone riding behind him almost ran into him. That person gave him a tow and got him off the trail, however.

In the last 12 years or so, Winters said he's come to the Houghton and Hancock area to ride the recreational trails four times. He also occasionally rides the trails in Eagle River, Wis., but he thinks those trails are too narrow and have too many curves.

"It's nicer here," he said. "The trails are better here."

Because of that, Winters said the rides he gets are worth the time it takes to drive up from Illinois.

The snowfall total for December in the Houghton/Hancock area was about 20 inches above normal, which means snowmobile riders have a good base to ride on, and Winters said the results are very positive.

"The trails are awesome," he said.

Although he rides the trails north and south of the Portage Lake Shipping Canal, Winters said he particularly enjoys the area around Twin Lakes, and especially a loop trail there.

"That's the best trail I've ever ridden," he said.

Across the canal, Pat Schollmeyer of Fort Atkinson, Wis., who was checking the oil on his snowmobile at the Travelodge in Houghton, said this trip was his second to the area to ride the trails.

Although he often rides in Wisconsin, Schollmeyer said he came back to the Houghton area this year partly because there's no snow back home.

"We had 18 to 20 inches for about a week then the warm temperatures and rain came," he said.

Schollmeyer said he and his friend, Brandon Ehrke of Eau Claire, Wis., rode to the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula Friday. The two rode from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and travelled about 150 miles.

Schollmeyer said he and Ehrke stopped at restaurants and bars along the way during their ride, but they stayed away from alcohol.

"We don't drink (alcohol) and ride," he said. "We just drank a soda."

Ehrke said he's been riding snowmobiles since 1995, and he echoes Winters' sentiment about the riding conditions in the Keweenaw.

"These trails are awesome," he said.

Kurt Hauglie can be reached at khauglie@mininggazette.com.