Keweenaw Report Your Source for Local News and Sports
The Keweenaw ATV Club will join the excitement at Giving Tuesday later this month for the first time. Keweenaw ATV operates as a non-profit group working to maintain the peninsula’s hundreds of miles of trails. Annually the Keweenaw sees a great number of visitors taking the adventure of a lifetime exploring the Upper Peninsula’s wilderness. Around the region, ATV traffic brings both visitors and locals to past picturesque views of Lake Superior and its historic location only accessible by terrain vehicle. It also brings people through many small towns where they can eat at local restaurants or stop in at small businesses.
“We’ve never been a part of Giving Tuesday and we are excited to be a part of it. We wanted to get our name out there and let people know what we do as a club to keep the trails safe. It’d be great to get our name out there a bit more. Because letting people know what we do is important. A lot of people think that the DNR maintains trails but it’s the club sponsors. When we maintain it means brushing, and signing and repairing trails, and the more we educate the public the better.” – Kitty Beleck, Vice President, Keweenaw ATV Club
Throughout the year the Keweenaw ATV club holds a monthly meeting in Hubbell at the VFW 4624 Copper Ingot Post. They also host annual trail ride events in the spring and fall, a club barbecue, and take part in community parades. A lot of the work the club does for the communities of the Copper Country goes unseen and unnoticed because a lot of their work deals with areas of the peninsula not many can easily access and their projects maintain infrastructure in the back country.. Trail maintenance projects however require a lot of people and a lot of collaboration with the ATV club’s partners like the Michigan DNR and private land owners who permit easements for trail access.
“There is a lot of maintenance that goes into the trails up here. And that’s what a lot of this money will go toward. We also have two rides a year. A spring and a fall trail ride. And then there is a membership drive picnic that takes place once a year. We have just under 170 miles worth of trails and we work on most of them throughout the summer. Sometimes there are special projects but most of the trails get a little bit of grading and graveling and upkeep throughout the whole summer.” – Kitty Beleck, Vice President, Keweenaw ATV Club
Giving Tuesday with the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation last year raised over 650,000 dollars from individuals in the community and from friends of the Keweenaw Peninsula. Annually the foundation has provided a match sum to add to the day of giving’s total. Adding up to over 2.7 million dollars spread throughout the copper country over the past six years. Find more information about Giving Tuesday with the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation here and more about the Keweenaw ATV Club here.
