Lawrence Vallier of Engadine sits on one of the antique snowmobiles he and his son, Charlie, brought to the Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club's 40th birthday celebration Saturday, October 13. The warmth and cheerful fall decorations inside the Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Clubhouse took the chill off a brisk fall day Saturday, October 13, when the club celebrated its 40th anniversary. Outside, a snowmobile and accessory swap meet took place across the road, while the smell of barbecue floated through the air. Indoors, groups of well-wishers enjoyed a birthday cake topped by a tiny winter scene with plastic snowmobile, trees, and miniature deer.

Bobbing for apples, a pumpkin pie-eating contest, pumpkin carving, and other activities celebrated the fall and a milestone in the club's 40-year history. Visitors were able to browse the club's scrapbook, read history articles, and chat with some of the club's original members, or their families.

A collection of antique snowmobiles helped visitors recall the early days of snowmobiling as they inspected machines with names like Fox-Track, Trail Maker, and Ski-Horse by Johnson. Charlie Vallier of Engadine and his father, Lawrence, brought half a dozen snowmobiles from the new Top of the Lake Snowmobile Museum in Naubinway. Machines they displayed included a 1964 Fox-Track, 1964 Ski-Doo, 1964 Trail Maker, 1966 Arctic Cat, 1967 Polaris Colt, and 1970 Ski- Horse by Johnson. Brian Mc- Adam of DeTour brought a 1962 Trailmaker to display. The machines all gave a glimpse at the predecessors of today's sophisticated snow machines, which can cost as much as a car.

Festive orange and brown decorations, pumpkins, and Halloween decorations commemorate autumn while Lawrence (left) and Charles Vallier (center) of Engadine chat with Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club member Robert "Dobby" Holland of Cedarville. The first snowmobile was made in Wisconsin in the 1920s, Charlie Vallier said, and there were several homemade versions before that. Mass production of snowmobiles didn't really start until the 1950s and 1960s, he said, when the Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club was forming.

Five-year-old Kimmie Papin of DeTour puts the finishing touches on her pumpkin at the carving and decorating table at Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club's 40th birthday celebration Saturday, October 13, in Cedarville. In the early days of snowmobiling around the Les Cheneaux Islands, the club's charter members started "Sunday snowmobile safaris," informal trips along the old lumber trails through the woods.

More than 20 riders would participate at a time. Club members also took responsibility for grooming and brushing, which was completed on Saturday "scouting" trips before a safari. Much the same as today, members enjoyed getting back into the woods when it is difficult to access through deep snow. Snowmobiles also provided easier access over the frozen channels to ice fishing haunts and the Les Cheneaux Islands.

The clubhouse on Blind Line Road in Cedarville intersects a portion of the more than 100 miles of trail that volunteers groom every winter, and some members enjoy grooming as much as riding.

The club was named Club of the Year in 1993 by the Michigan Snowmobile Association, and was instrumental in the construction of the Red Creek Bridge over I-75. The bridge was finished in 2004 and established a safer connection between the trail systems east and west of I- 75. Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club worked 20 years to build that connection, and received an award from the President's Commission for the Coalition for Recreational Trails for the accomplishment the following year.

The club has provided entertaining activities for the community, including its safaris on weekends and at Snowsfest. During the 1970s, the club hosted a Winter Sportswear Fashion Show to raise money for the club.

The backdrop, a cartoon-like map of Cedarville hand-painted by club members Jeri Griffin and Norine Rudd, still hangs in the clubhouse. Beside that hangs a sign that declares simply, "Pray for Snow."

The club hosts group outings, and upcoming rides include a trip to Baraga from January 13 to January 16, 2008, and another to Keewenaw from March 2 to March 6.

Contact a club member to join the club or a trip, by calling (906) 484-2210, or by visiting the club's Web site at www.lescheneauxsnowmobileclub. com.