Forestry and Outdoor Recreation

Silent Sports Trails

In an effort to help offset the expenses associated with maintaining these trails, a trail pass system was implemented in 2006. The trail pass system requires individuals over the age of 18 to purchase a trail pass in order to use any of the silent sport trails that are maintained by the Oneida County Forestry Department.

A Daily Pass is $5 and is only valid for the day of purchase. The Annual Pass costs $30 and is valid January 1st through December 31st. These are intended to be individual passes, and therefore, only one person may be listed on each pass. Passes are available at all trail heads or from the Oneida County Forestry Office, the Rhinelander Chamber of Commerce and local businesses.

4/25/24 – Single track trails at Washburn are now open for hiking and biking. Please ride with caution as there are still a few sticks and leaves on many section of the trail.

Summer Trails:

Mountain Biking

There are approximately 11 miles of mountain bike trail located at the Washburn Trail System.

The Washburn Mountain Bike Trail offers approximately 5.0 miles of double-track trail for novice to intermediate skilled mountain bikers, and 6.0 miles of single-track trail designed to provide an extreme experience for mountain bikers possessing an advanced skill set.

In addition to designated and maintained silent sports trails described above, there are hundreds of miles of woodland logging roads and wild trails located throughout the County Forest that do not require a trail pass and are open to both silent sport and motorized sport enthusiasts alike.

Hiking

Oneida County Forestry maintains two hiking trails at Almon Park. These trails travel through a variety of habitats and together total approximately 2.25 miles in length. The Almon Park wetlands trail features three boardwalks totaling more than 1,100 feet in length.

Additionally, there are networks of approximately 40 total miles of trails for wildlife management and recreation. These networks are located on old logging roads throughout the county that have been seeded with clover and maintained to serve as wildlife migration paths as well as walking trails for hikers and hunters.

For Winter Trail Conditions Click Here

Winter Trails:

Cross-Country Skiing

The Washburn Trail, which is the largest and most popular of the 3 ski trails, is located adjacent to Perch Lake Park in the Town of Woodboro. The Washburn Ski Trail is 12.0-miles long, offering 4.0 miles of trail groomed for tracked skiing, and 8.0 miles of trail groomed for ski skating. As a result of the hilly topography found throughout the Washburn Lake Area, these trails are best suited for skiers possessing an intermediate to advanced skill set.

The Nose Lake Trail is also located in the Town of Woodboro and offers 7.0 miles of trail groomed for traditional tracked skiing. The gentle topography, upon which the Nose Lake Trail is located, makes this system very popular with skiers possessing either a beginner or intermediate skill set.  Another popular feature of the Nose Lake Trail is that dogs are permitted.

The Cassian Two-Way Trail is 9 miles in length in each direction, and as its name implies the trail is located in the Town of Cassian. The Cassian Trail is also located on gentle rolling terrain, and is designed to accommodate users with a wide range of skills. The Cassian Trail is groomed for traditional tracked skiing.

Trail Reports

Snowshoeing

Oneida County Forestry maintains two hiking and snowshoeing trails at Almon Park. These trails travel through a variety of habitats and together total approximately 2.25-miles in length. The Almon Park wetlands trail features 3-boardwalks totaling more than 1,100 feet in length. In addition there is a network of approximately 40 miles of trails for wildlife management and recreation. The network is located on old logging roads that have been seeded with clover and are maintained to serve as wildlife migration paths and as walking trails for hunters and hikers.

For snowshoe enthusiasts looking for a primitive experience, you may want to try the Enterprise Winter Silent Sports Trail, an 8-mile trail located in the southeast Oneida County Forest. Dogs are allowed on this trail, but must be kept under direct voice control at all times. For individuals seeking a more challenging silent sport experience, the Washburn Trail System provides 5.0 miles of snowshoe trail and 11.0 miles of hiking trails. Pets are not allowed if trails are snow covered.

Please stay on trails and obey all signs.
No snowshoes on ski trails.

Fat Tire Biking

The Oneida County Forestry Department is aware that recreational opportunities, activities and equipment change over time.  A new opportunity for winter recreation is now available to you… Fat Tire Biking. 

The Enterprise Winter Silent Sports Trail is located 8 miles south on Hwy G. Watch for Oneida County Signs. The trailhead is on Zimmer Road.  The trail is groomed for fat-tire biking, and has different ability levels.  The trail has both an 8 mile loop and a shorter cut off loop about 2-3 miles. Pick a distance that fits your ability & ride!

Dogs are permitted on this trail.  Remember, they must be under voice control at all times.