RASTA (Rhinelander Area Silent Trails Association)

08/31/2026

IT IS A GO.....SEE YOU AT 530 TONIGHT.
We are planning a group ride/gathering to celebrate the birthday of our friend Brian Hegge, who passed away last year. The date is Friday September 4th, ride starting at 5:30, with potluck snacks and a fire after. BYOB. Planning on Heal Creek but if the weather is looking bad we may move to Washburn Perch Lake shelter.

08/29/2026

Help celebrate 50 years of CAVOC! CAVOC and the School District are an integral part of our local silent sports community. It is at CAVOC where our area youth nordic teams spend most of their days training. And the School District graciously partners with RASTA hosting a portion of our Mud Lake Trails. We're all in it together! Let's celebrate this amazing anniversary.

🎉 Celebrating 50 Years of CAVOC! 🌲

The School District of Rhinelander invites the community to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Cedric A. Vig Outdoor Classroom (CAVOC) on Saturday, September 26, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at CAVOC, 4321 S. Shore Drive.

CAVOC's story began in 1976 when the School District of Rhinelander and the Samoset Council of the Boy Scouts of America exchanged 80 acres of land, giving the District a total of 160 acres at what is now CAVOC. Over the past 50 years, countless students, staff, volunteers, and community members have helped make CAVOC an outstanding environmental education and recreation center. 🌿

The anniversary celebration will offer fun for all ages, including facility and grounds tours, nature walks, scavenger hunts, acorn collecting, art projects, wood cookie activities, a chili contest, photos with Smokey Bear and the Hodag, a playscape, and a campfire with s'mores. CAVOC merchandise will also be available. Food and beverages will be provided free of charge.

The celebration will be held in conjunction with the 3rd Annual Run for Our Heroes 5K Run/Walk, presented by the Rhinelander High School FBLA/DECA Club.

After visiting CAVOC, attendees are also encouraged to check out the Food Pantry Harvest Hoedown at the Pioneer Park Historical Complex from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Harvest Hoedown is a separate community event and is not part of the CAVOC anniversary celebration, but it offers another fun way to enjoy the day.

The CAVOC anniversary celebration is free and open to everyone. Come celebrate 50 years of learning, exploring, and making memories at CAVOC! We hope to see you there! 🌲🎉

For more information, contact School Forest Manager Mike Cheslock at (715) 365-9745 or email at
[email protected].

08/26/2026

Our friends and neighbors are forming a Bike Patrol at Heal Creek. They are looking for volunteers. If you are interested in learning more, there will be an informational meeting on Sunday Sept 20th, 2:00pm at the Northwood golf course bar. Please get the word out.

08/13/2026

WE GOT MORE TREAD LINES

Thanks to Chris for responding to a good recommendation. The tread line from the Cassian Trail now extends to Trout Creek Rd.

What does that mean? It means you can ride from Perch Lake up Trout Creek Rd and then take the ski trail with the new tread line north to the Cassian Trail.

Of course you can ride any ski trail at Washburn and connect to the Cassian Trail. Most of the Washburn ski trails have been mowed and the deck is in good shape.

08/08/2026

About 1/2 of Lee's Loop (the most offensive sections) at Washburn Trails have been w**d whacked. It's a great time to ride/hike! You may just find a few berries along the way.

08/03/2026

The w**d whacking at Mud Lake is almost completed we only have the south side of Mud Lake left to do. The trails are in good shape so get out and ride!!

07/29/2026

HERRING BONE HILL IS CLOSED FOR THE SUMMER AND FALL.

The County is working on some preventative maintenance on Herring Bone Hill. The majority of work will be completed in the next few days. However it is very important to stay off the trail to protect the large seeding project and cover material.

I know it's not a big destination in summer, but any type of traffic could do real damage.

Let's all hope for a bunch of gentle rain.

07/14/2026

RASTA VOLUNTEERS 👍💪

RASTA just completed some maintenance work at the Perch Lk Trailhead. We resurfaced the area between post #1 & #18 for a better year round surface.

If not for the outstanding help from Bruce, Mark, Jake, Shannon and Ken, this would not have been possible. The gang made quick work out of a big project and we all had some fun getting it done.

07/12/2026

Upcoming CPR/First Aid Training opportunity for RASTA volunteers/members! CPR training gives you the confidence and skills to act quickly during an emergency, potentially saving a young athlete, family member, friend, or even a stranger on the trail. By participating in this training, you're becoming a stronger, more prepared volunteer and helping build a safer community.

The training will be held on Monday, July 20 and Wednesday, July 22 from 6pm to 9:30pm. You must attend both sessions. The training costs $87.11 per person. There are limited spots available! If you are interested in participating, please message us!

07/09/2026

VOLUNTEERS

Hello RASTA members. We're casting a broad net to see if we can find a couple of volunteers that would be available to help with a project next Tuesday July 14th at 10:00, located right at the Perch Lake trailhead.

We're placing some new material on top of the ground to improve the year round surface. It will involve a minimal amount of shovel work, some raking and using our power compactor to push the new material into the existing surface. It's an opportunity to learn how to compact a trail, which is a valuable skill in the trail building world.

It'd be fun to have a couple of newer volunteers to work beside our experienced trail builders.

If you would be interested in helping us out you can send a pm to RASTA or contact Scott Watson.

Volunteers make the trails go round so join us and enjoy the tremendous satisfaction of participation.