- You can ride your ATV/UTV in the Lac Courte Oreilles Reservation (LCO)
- Use the Trail Treker app to navigate through LCO in Sawyer County
- County/town roads in LCO are not open to ATV/UTVs unless signed and on our Alliance map & Trail Treker
- Stay on designated ATV routes and trails if you are not a tribal member
- Read the rest of this page for a deeper dive!
All about ATV riding through the LCO Reservation in Sawyer County, Wisconsin.
You can ride your ATV or UTV within the LCO Reservation in Sawyer County- but you must stay on the designated and signed ATV routes and trails. Read more-
The Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians Reservation in Sawyer County covers over 76,000 acres in the central and west-central area of Sawyer County, Wisconsin.
Within the reservation, there are homes, clinics, schools, and all the other things you’d expect to see in any town or village. There are also properties owned by non-tribal folks, especially along the 10,000+ acres of lake and river waters within LCO.
Without going into a full-blown history lesson – the LCO band is a sovereign nation- meaning they are self-governed and with a few exceptions, they do not have to operate under or recognize state or local laws.
The Sawyer County Snowmobile & ATV Alliance chooses to respect their sovereignty and work with the Tribe to keep an active trail/route system through their reservation. We think of them as a large landowner, so we respect their opinions and wishes the same as we do for all our other landowners who permit us a trail/route over private land.
A few essential facts:
- Off-road snowmobile & ATV trails within the reservation are on LCO-owned private land
- Jurisdiction of the county roads and ‘town roads‘ within the reservation boundaries is a gray area.
Off-road trails and forests in LCO
There are many large tracts of raw, forested land with the LCO boundaries, some of these lands contain sacred sites, or are of historical value. The Tribe is very sensitive to trespassing in these areas – our LCO trail system passes through these forested areas, and it is critical that riders NEVER go off trail.
Road routes within the reservation and confusion galore
Road jurisdiction is a gray area in the reservation. All land in Sawyer County is divided into ‘towns’. The Reservation, even though a sovereign nation, is made up of portions of 6 different Sawyer County ‘towns’, and their town roads. Also, state highways and county roads traverse through the reservation boundaries.
This scenario leads to confusion as to who has jurisdiction over the town, county and state roads within LCO. We, as an Alliance, do not offer an opinion on this- we simply want to keep an active trail and route system within LCO.
The important stuff to know when riding through the LCO Reservation:
- Use the app TRAIL TREKER to navigate through LCO- we keep it up-to-date with all approved routes/trails and the program can show when you are inside the LCO boundaries. The LCO reservation land is pink on Trail Treker and our paper map.
- Apple Trail Treker app
- Android Trail Treker app
- County Roads (named with letters) are NOT approved for ATV use within LCO unless they on our Alliance map and signed with ATV route signs.
- Town Roads are NOT approved for ATV use within LCO unless they on our Alliance map and signed with the ATV route signs.
- LCO restricts ATV use to between 6 am and 11 pm
- Tribal members may ride anywhere in LCO. If you are not a tribal member- stay on the designated/marked routes and trails or you might be ticketed.
- The bottom line – use Trail Treker and stay on designated trails and routes.
- Lastly, please ride respectfully through the reservation- we are lucky to have what we have there and don’t want to lose it!
Commonly asked questions and answers:
Q. I see ‘All Town of Bass Lake Roads Are ATV Routes’ signs when in LCO- does that mean I can ride the Town of Bass Lake Roads that are in LCO? Nope, you can’t. Under agreements between various towns and the Tribe- the only town roads you may ride within LCO are those specifically signed as ATV routes. A town that opens all their roads to ATV use might post ‘all town roads open’ signs at the town borders- some of these town borders are within the LCO reservation. BUT the town roads within the reservation are not open to use like the town roads outside of the reservation boundaries. Only ride on ATV-signed roads in LCO.
Q. How do I know when I’m in LCO? Trail Treker can show you where you are at all times. If you are in a pink area on Trail Treker or on our newer paper map- you are riding within the reservation boundaries. Otherwise, the Tribe has signs announcing you are entering the reservation, but these are easily missed by ATVers since most signs are located on roads where ATVers can’t ride.
Q. How do I know what town I am in? When riding, look for Fire numbers – red address signs near the road in front of each property- the town/municipality name is shown on these with the address number. New in 2024- Trail Treker and our paper map also shows the town names and town boundaries (in green outline).
Q. When I ride in LCO, I’ve seen riders on roads not marked as routes, and I’ve seen kids on ATVs without helmets, and other things that I don’t think are legal – what laws am I supposed to follow when riding in LCO? Tribal police and wardens deal with Tribal members breaking Tribal laws. For the rest, it is simple – if you are not a Tribal member- stay on the designated trails and routes and follow all Wisconsin DNR laws in regard to operation of your machine. Remember, routes are open in LCO from 6 am to 11 pm- contact the Tribal Conservation office if you have questions (see below).
Q. Why are some county roads in LCO closed when all county roads in Sawyer County are supposed to be open to ATVs? The Tribe only allows ATV use on select segments of county roads within the reservation, and we have these approved routes on our map. This is the jurisdictional gray area I’ve mentioned. County road routes also ‘deadend’ at the reservation boundaries on the following County Roads; NN (south from Hwy B), H (north from Radisson), CC (north from Couderay), E (north from Hwy 27/70), and there is a closed segment of Hwy K from the LCO boundary near the LCO Conservation Dept., heading south, where it opens back up to ATV use at the Grindstone Creek Casino. During 2025, we will install signs alerting riders about these dead-end routes.
Contact LCO Conservation with any questions:
Latest articles about trails and routes in LCO:
