Bon Echo Area Trails - Merrill Lake

September 13, 2020

Fellow forum member @rino joined me recently for a true test of the bikes offroad capabilities. Long story short, my crash bars got a solid workout and will need a trip to the vise to get sorted out.

The trail into the beach on the east side of the lake is a doosie. A few boggy areas, with lots of loose hill scrambles and tight areas. I would not venture down there during the wet season, I do not think you'd be making it out. If you are looking to get your feet wet slamming and banging around your Tenere, this is the spot.

Access can be gained from either the Hwy 62 or 41 corridors. From Hwy 41 the route looks like this and takes you down Hughes Landing road towards the hydro cut, where you begin heading north towards Merrill. Alternatively you can take the Hydro cut directly from Hwy 41 to this point, beginning at Massanoga, and old ghost town dating from the 30's.

From Hwy 62, the route looks like this and links up with the Hydro Line at the same point as coming from Hughes Landing Road.

[I will edit this part once I get my hands on a more detailed map.]

Once you reach the final ping from either direction, you should be able to head north towards Killdeer Camp, located on google maps. At the point you reach the camp, there will be two trails heading off to the right. The first right takes you down into the Merrill Lake beach site. The second right takes you 50m in to their camp and ends.

There you will find an excellent Trout lake, and some beauty sites.