Arrowhead ACMU - In the News

Hutch has been adopted by ACMU!

Sun, 02 Mar 2008 12:38:37 UT

Hutch is from the Black Magic Kennel, operated by Mark & Mary Black of Hovland. Read about how you can adopt your own dog. http://blackmagickennels.com/blacklub.htm

Multiple Use Groups Endorse Trail Closure

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:47:01 UT

Just before Memorial Day weekend 2006, representatives of two groups promoting multiple use of public lands erected a sign announcing the closure of a trail in the Hovland area. Why would the Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU) and the Cook County ATV Club endorse a trail closure? According to representatives of these groups, it is part of the effort by these groups to work with other forest users and to demonstrate their commitment to protection of our natural resources. The "trail closed" signs were erected at the entrance to a historically used snowmobile trail called the Royal River Trail by the US Forest Service and the Tilbury Trail by local users. The trail, sometimes called the South Fowl Lake snowmobile access, was closed in 2002 because it had been found to be encroaching on the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW).

Arrowhead Coalition Announces Officers and Issues

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:44:14 UT

The Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU), a group formed in December 2005 which states that its mission is to promote multiple use of forest lands in the Arrowhead Region of Minnesota has elected board members and identified several issues that it is concerned about, such as US Forest Service land sales and an all-terrain vehicle trail system.

Environmental lawsuits sap U.S.F.S. wilderness maintenance budgets

Marshall Helmberger — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:42:34 UT

Fowl Lakes lawsuit continues

Rhonda Silence — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:36:33 UT

Another hearing was held in Minneapolis District Court on Friday, January 19, 2007, to hear further arguments in the lawsuit regarding a snowmobile trail reroute in the Hovland area. The lawsuit has become as much about Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) boundaries as it is about the proposed construction of a snowmobile trail.

With BWCAW lawsuits, paddlers are the losers

Shawn Perich — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:34:11 UT

A recent story in the Ely Timberjay may greatly interest anyone who enjoys the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, but it is unlikely most paddlers will ever see the story or be aware of the issues it raised. However, on their next visit to the wilderness, paddlers may notice dirty latrines, eroded portages, and other evidence of cutbacks in on-the-ground maintenance and management.

Fowl Lakes Arguments Heard in Court

Tom Spitznagle — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:29:37 UT

ACMU Applauds Court Decision on Fowl Lakes

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:25:43 UT

The Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU) was pleased to hear the long-awaited decision by Judge John R. Tunheim regarding the North and South Fowl Lakes in Cook County. On August 31, 2007, Judge Tunheim found that the Fowl lakes are outside of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). However, the decision answers only a portion of the legal questions surrounding the Hovland lakes and a proposed US Forest Service snowmobile trail reroute. Tunheim did not yet issue a ruling on the other facets of the lawsuit-whether or not the Forest Service performed due diligence in assessing potential adverse impacts on the BWCAW associated with the trail reroute and whether visual and auditory impacts associated with the trail justify a protective buffer around this portion of the BWCAW.

Another decision on South Fowl Lakes

Rhonda Silence — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:23:49 UT

United States District Judge John R. Tunheim issued a second opinion on September 28 regarding a proposed 2.2 mile snowmobile trail intended to connect McFarland and South Fowl lakes in Hovland. Judge Tunheim denied and granted claims and counter-claims brought by both the plaintiffs and defendendents and sent the US Forest Service back for further study of how the sound of snowmobiles on the trail would affect the adjacent Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW).

ACMU Snowmobilers Participate in ‘Never Surrender’ Ride

Rhonda Silence — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:21:28 UT

Four ACMU snowmobilers hit the trails on February 6 – 9 as part of the Black Woods Blizzard "Never Surrender" snowmobile tour. Tom and Kathy Bernier of Grand Marais, Tad McDonnell of Grand Marais, and Ron “Carbine” Carlson of Hovland, rode 372 miles, from the Black Woods restaurant in Proctor to Fortune Bay Resort in Tower, to Two Harbors and back to Proctor. The three-day ride is a fundraiser for the fight against Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. All of the riders know of someone affected by this devastating disease.

In the News

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:18:14 UT

Multi-Use advocates join Forest Service lawsuit

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:17:24 UT

In a classic David versus Goliath tale, two grassroots organizations have joined forces to battle powerful environmental groups that hope to use the courts to expand the boundaries of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) beyond the lines designated by the 1978 BWCAW Act. The Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU) of Cook County and the Conservationists with Common Sense (CWCS) of Ely have hired Attorney David Oberstar of the law firm Fryberger, Buchanan, Smith, & Frederick, PA. to help the groups intervene with the US Forest Service on a lawsuit it is involved in, initiated by the Izaak Walton League, the Sierra Club North Star Chapter, Wilderness Watch, and the Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness.

Grass Roots Effort Fights for Multiple Forest Use

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 15:15:04 UT

A controversial snowmobile trail reroute in Hovland, a rural township in northeastern Minnesota, is the catalyst for the formation of a group whose mission is to promote multiple use of forest lands in the Arrowhead Region. On Thursday, December 8, the Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU) was formed at a meeting in Grand Marais, attended by approximately 30 representatives from area snowmobile and sports clubs. "Our goal is to fight the negativism that surrounds use of lands in the Arrowhead Region," said one organizer, Curtis Gagnon of Grand Portage. "We plan to be a positive group. We are not opposed to anything. We believe the forest should be open for all—hikers, bikers, skiers, snow-shoers, snowmobilers, ATVers, anglers, motor boaters, canoeists, kayakers, and horseback riders. There is a place for all."