TOWNSEND, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – After a long winter, the signs of spring are rolling once again in parts of the Northwoods.
On a section of the Nicolet State Recreational Trail near Townsend, ATVs are on the move. Gary Wagner and this crew from the Red Arrow Snowmobile-ATV Club are checking out the conditions.
“It’s kind of chilly out right now. You can see I got my snowmobile coat on, but the trails are beautiful.”
ATV trails across Oconto County and the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest opened on Friday.
Waitress Jill Schmitzer tells FOX 11 that’s good news for those at the Old Town Hall in Townsend. The restaurant is typically open year-round, but the COVID-19 Pandemic has slowed business there to a crawl.
“We’ve lost a lot. On a Saturday or Sunday, we can do 150 for breakfast, 150 for dinner. We’re not even close to that.”
The bar is dark and empty, and so is the dining room. Chairs are stacked on the tables, and business comes from a take-out window on the porch.
“It’s bad for everybody. All the way around. Workers, and businesses. But hopefully one day, we’ll get back to where it was,” said Schmitzer.
Wagner tells FOX 11 opening the trails is bittersweet, because of the coronavirus and the concern it brings.
“If it were to hit our community hard, I know I’d probably be losing some friends, and we don’t need that. Come and have fun, but do things safely, and consider others. Other people, not yourselves just.”
There are about 450 miles of ATV trails in Oconto County.
