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Road rallies, trails, and old cars

Also Beaver Island road rallies · South-end road and trail history

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Summary

The held record connects three parts of Beaver Island history: community road rallies, the Blue Trail, and the long problem of abandoned cars. By 1978, rallies sent teams through the island landscape with timed starts and puzzle clues. Reports from 1989 and 1991 place routes as far south as the point or the south end, while the 1993 rally added island-history clues and scavenger tasks.

The Blue Trail supplies a separate south-end story. A local account says that early snowmobile routes crossed the wetland in the island’s lower third and that the Blue Trail ran from Oil Well #1 to Beaver Head Light; a September 1995 Beacon item instead describes it as “a multiple-path, eight-mile trail from King’s Highway and Hanigan’s Road to the South End Lighthouse,” and a formal township Trail Committee cleared, gated and extended it through the mid-to-late 1990s. The newspaper record also shows old vehicles in woods, dumps, and back trails, followed by a 1977 barge operation that removed about 170 cars.

Two September 2020 forum posts add resident memory and contemporary road concern without changing that documented chronology. One participant recalled Roy Ellsworth’s push-button Plymouth Valiant as probably a 1963 model and a late-night island drive in the early 1980s; another reposted an editorial that described dead animals, dust, and the small time savings of speeding on island roads. Both are useful context, but neither is a vehicle record, traffic study, or official road-safety finding.1

History

The March 1978 Beaver Beacon describes a road rally led by Diane Wojan. Cars left at measured intervals after receiving puzzle clues that described the next location. The Civic Association made the rally an annual fixture of its Fourth of July fundraising through the mid-1980s alongside the harbor-beautification project and beach cleanups: a June 1984 report discusses a road rally planned for the Fourth of July celebration to help fund a beach cleanup, and an April 1986 recap of the previous year’s Civic projects states plainly, “In spring last year the Civic sponsored a road rally.” In 1985, roughly ten vehicles followed clues in the northern part of the island for about two hours after a blizzard postponed the event.

The 1989 rally made the south-end connection explicit. Ten cars and 58 people followed 13 clues through the point, Barney’s Lake, the airport, and as far as a location near the south end. The 1991 “3rd Annual Road Rally” likewise described 18 clues scattered from town to the south end. The 1993 event, held on February 14, sent 14 cars through 23 clues based on island history and geography. Teams also wrote a song and gathered an Irish tea bag, a swimsuit, a Polaroid photograph, a size 13 boot, and a metal nail file; proceeds went to the Harriet Fund. By 1996 the format had spread beyond organized fundraisers into private island tradition: a September 1996 report on the Green family’s 40th-anniversary gathering describes a family road rally held the same weekend, “with clues scattered around the Island,” contested by five five-person teams of Green and McDonough relatives.

The PABI series continued in 2003. A March announcement scheduled a rally for May 11, while the October retrospective reported that the event had been held May 4. The dedicated PABI record preserves that date conflict rather than choosing between the two notices. The Civic Association’s own rally continued alongside it rather than being replaced by it: in 2005 a blizzard forced a postponement, and after rescheduling ten crews took part, with Mark LaFreniere’s crew winning and donating its purse to the Fireworks Fund. PABI’s series is independently attested as a continuing annual event through at least its “6th annual Road Rally” in May 2008 and “Road Rally #7” in May 2009, both starting at the Shamrock; a June 2004 results column, signed by writer Beth Anne Lucas, names a second-place team of four young islanders and credits the rally’s difficulty to her own clue-writing. A one-off charitable rally in June 2004 raised funds for a different purpose entirely – cleaning up an alewife die-off that had made island beaches unusable – with proceeds paying for the removal and burial of dead fish at Iron Ore Bay.

Blue Trail

The Blue Trail’s modern form is the product of a township Trail Committee active from at least 1995. That September the committee reported the Kuebler Trail cleaned and the Blue Trail “started,” with Jim Stambaugh appointed co-chairman; that October, an eight-mile section from King’s Highway and Hanigan’s Road to the South End Lighthouse figured in the Beacon’s report of an underground forest fire discovered on the trail, which Volunteer Assistant Fire Chief Jim Wojan responded to after a runner, Doug Tilly, raised the alarm. Island scouts had already spent a day clearing and marking the trail as a service project earlier that year. By December 1995, Fred Haubold had resigned as Trail Committee Chairman and Jim Stambaugh replaced him; the board installed gates on both the Kuebler and Blue Trails and listed a right-of-way on the Blue Trail among its 1996 road-improvement requests. The Trails, Parks, and Campgrounds Committee’s work continued into 1997, when it undertook a wooden walkway through a swamp obstructing the trail at “Johnny Martin’s Trail,” intended to make the system continuous from Hanigan’s Road to Lake Geneserath for foot and ski travel.

The car record has a different shape. In 1960, Alvin LaFreniere planned an island touring service using a 1961 Volkswagen Bus. In 1966, the Beacon described abandoned cars around the airport, woods, and private yards. In 1977, a crusher and handling equipment arrived by Gillespie barge and tug American Girl; about 170 vehicles were collected from woods, the dump, and back trails, crushed, and loaded out. The problem recurred rather than closing with that one operation: an April 1990 St. James Township meeting recorded Deputy Bill Welke asking “what to do about all the junk cars,” with a Manistique hauler quoted at $200 per car, and by June 1994 the joint Peaine–St. James Waste Management Committee was researching a $20,000 car crusher of its own for the transfer station.

Evidence and limits

These sources make the south-end route and the Blue Trail history plausible subjects for a connected narrative, but they do not identify a particular vehicle at the lighthouse or on the trail. No held source currently confirms that an old Volkswagen Beetle stood at the southern end of Beaver Island. The best next evidence would be a dated photograph, caption, property memory, or oral-history interview that names the vehicle and its location.

The 1977 salvage report proves that old cars were present on back trails, not that any specific car survived there or was a Beetle. The 1960 Volkswagen record concerns a Bus and a proposed touring service, not the later vehicle in the recollection. A separate 2002 notice about a blue 1973 Beetle places that car in a mainland raffle context, so it should not be treated as island evidence.

Open questions

  • Who made the Buffalo Camp trail signs praised in a 2007 forum post? The thread asks the question and it is never answered in held sources.
  • Does a dated photograph, caption, or oral-history account exist that identifies a Volkswagen Beetle at the south end of the island, as visitor memory suggests but no held source yet confirms?
  • Is there any documented link between the 1977 car-salvage operation (about 170 vehicles) and the abandoned-car problems reported again in 1990 and 1994, or were these unconnected recurrences?

If you can answer any of these, or correct anything above, the archive wants to hear it — see Corrections.

See also

Footnotes

  1. Beaver Island Forum topics 15638 and 15679, September 11 and 22, 2020; see the individual source records above. ↩

Read the document

36 pages, rendered from the held scan.

Road rallies, trails, and old cars — p. 1
Page 1 of 36friend, "Who made the new trail signs?", Beaver Island Forum, August 2007, topic 942.Open the page image · Download this page
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Sources

  1. A visitor praised marked trails and distinctions between machine and hiking routes and asked who made the Buffalo Camp signs, linking an external account. This documents visitor observation and an unanswered attribution question, not a complete trail inventory or official management record.
    forum · www.beaverislandforum.com · 00 · t000942
  2. A classified listing described a used electric car as an island vehicle; it documents a private offer and self-reported range/cost claims, not an energy or transportation study.
    forum · www.beaverislandforum.com · 06 · t006099
  3. A participant corrected conflicting event times and gave the start procedure; it documents event logistics, not a complete rally result.
    forum · www.beaverislandforum.com · 06 · t006167
  4. A forum discussion tentatively identified Roy Ellsworth's push-button Plymouth Valiant as a 1963 model, with a participant recalling borrowing it around the island in the early 1980s. This is community memory, not a title, photograph, or independently verified vehicle identification.
    forum · www.beaverislandforum.com · 15 · t015638
  5. An editorial repost criticized speeding, dust, animal deaths, and rough-road conditions, using approximate travel-time comparisons for King's Highway, Sloptown Road, and a route around the island. It is a resident opinion and observation, not a traffic count, crash study, or engineering survey.
    forum · www.beaverislandforum.com · 15 · t015679
  6. Documents a Saturday road rally using cars, puzzle clues, and timed departures. It is the earliest rally account currently held in this cluster. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1978-03_Beaver-Beacon
  7. The held nine-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1978-03_Beaver-Beacon
  8. Reports a blizzard-postponed Civic road rally with approximately 10 vehicles, clues in the northern part of the island, and a roughly two-hour duration. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1985-05_Beaver-Beacon
  9. The held nineteen-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1985-05_Beaver-Beacon
  10. Documents a route reaching the point, Barney’s Lake, the airport, and a location near the south end. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1989-03_Beaver-Beacon
  11. The held sixteen-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1989-03_Beaver-Beacon
  12. Documents 18 clues scattered from town to the south end, plus team projects and a charitable destination for proceeds. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1991-02_Beaver-Beacon
  13. The held eighteen-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1991-02_Beaver-Beacon
  14. Documents the 14-car rally, 23 history and geography clues, scavenger tasks, and the Harriet Fund donation. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1993-02_Beaver-Beacon
  15. The held twelve-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1993-02_Beaver-Beacon
  16. A later local account connects the Blue Trail with early snowmobile routes, Oil Well #1, Beaver Head Light, bridge building, and later trail maintenance.
    websites · www.beaverisland.net · Places · the_Blue_Trail · the_blue_trail
  17. Reports approximately 170 old cars removed from the woods, dump, and back trails. It does not identify makes or exact locations. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1977-10_Beaver-Beacon
  18. The held eleven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1977-10_Beaver-Beacon
  19. Reports a 1961 Volkswagen Bus and a planned island touring service. It does not identify a Beetle or a south-end route.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1960-11_Beaver-Beacon
  20. The held three-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1960-11_Beaver-Beacon
  21. Announces a PABI road rally for May 11, 2003, and identifies the Preservation Association of Beaver Island as the beneficiary.
    websites · www.beaverbeacon.com · 2003-03-March · Road_Rally_Planned
  22. Reports that the PABI road rally was held May 4, 2003, and thanks the Shamrock and Nina’s for providing the starting and ending place.
    websites · www.beaverbeacon.com · raw · PDF · 2003-10-October-Beacon-lg
  23. Reports the Civic Association discussed a road rally as a possible Fourth of July celebration event, and that a road rally would be held to help fund a beach cleanup that summer. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1984-07_Beaver-Beacon
  24. States "In spring last year the Civic sponsored a road rally," confirming the event recurred in spring 1985 as a Civic Association project alongside harbor beautification. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1986-04_Beaver-Beacon
  25. Describes a private family road rally "with clues scattered around the Island," held as part of the Green family's 40th-anniversary weekend, contested by five five-person teams of Green and McDonough relatives; distinct from the Civic Association/PABI fundraising rallies. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-11_Beaver-Beacon
  26. Records Bill Welke asking "what to do about all the junk cars," and that Bud Martin found a Manistique hauler willing to take them for $200 a car, showing the abandoned-car problem persisted after the 1977 salvage operation. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1990-04_Beaver-Beacon
  27. Reports the Waste Management Committee's agenda included the "junk car problem" and researching a $20,000 car crusher for the transfer station. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1994-07_Beaver-Beacon
  28. Reports island scouts spent a day clearing and marking the Blue Trail as a community-service project. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-03_Beaver-Beacon
  29. Township Trail Committee report: "Keebler Trail cleaned. Blue Trail started. Signs to be made. Jim Stambaugh appointed co-chairman." The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-09_Beaver-Beacon
  30. Describes the Blue Trail as "a multiple-path, eight-mile trail from King's Highway and Hanigan's Road to the South End Lighthouse," and reports an underground fire discovered on it 10 September 1995 by Doug Tilly, with Volunteer Assistant Fire Chief Jim Wojan responding. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-10_Beaver-Beacon
  31. Records Fred Haubold's resignation as Trail Committee Chairman and Jim Stambaugh's appointment to replace him, gates installed on the Kuebler and Blue Trails, and a right-of-way on the Blue Trail among the township's 1996 road-improvement requests. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-12_Beaver-Beacon
  32. Reports the committee's undertaking of a wooden walkway through the swamp obstructing the Blue Trail at Johnny Martin's Trail, intended to make the trail system continuous from Hannigan's Road to Lake Geneserath for foot and ski travel. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1997-08_Beaver-Beacon
  33. Beaver Beacon, June 2004, "PABI Road Rally" results column, by Beth Anne Lucas.
    Names the second-place PABI rally team (MaryKay McPherson, Robert Cole, Stryder Crosswhite, Corey Palmer) and identifies Beth Anne Lucas as the rally's writer, confirming the PABI series continued in 2004. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2004-06_Beaver-Beacon
  34. Beaver Beacon, July 2004, community column.
    Reports a road rally organized to raise funds for cleaning up an alewife die-off, held 23 June, with proceeds funding the removal and burial of dead fish at Iron Ore Bay -- a one-off charitable rally distinct from the annual Civic Association and PABI series. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2004-07_Beaver-Beacon
  35. Beaver Beacon, May 2005, community column.
    Reports a blizzard forced postponement of the Civic Association's Road Rally that year; after rescheduling, ten crews took part, Mark LaFreniere's crew won, and the winners donated their purse to the Fireworks Fund -- evidence the Civic Association's own rally, distinct from PABI's, still ran in 2005. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2005-05_Beaver-Beacon
  36. Beaver Beacon, May 2008, "Road Rally" announcement.
    Announces PABI's "6th annual Road Rally," 4 May, starting at the Shamrock with a $15 entry fee, confirming the series' continuous annual run from its 2003 start. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2008-05_Beaver-Beacon
  37. "Road Rally #7," Beaver Beacon, April 2009.
    Announces PABI's 7th annual Road Rally for 3 May, starting at the Shamrock, with clues written by Lisa, Liz, and Joan. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2009-04_Beaver-Beacon

Added 2 August 2026 · revised 5 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “Road rallies, trails, and old cars”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/themes/road-rallies-trails-and-old-cars/, accessed [date], citing friend, "Who made the new trail signs?", Beaver Island Forum, August 2007, topic 942. (and 36 further sources listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-05. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

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