Timberland Hills Foundation Newsletter – October 2026
Welcome to the Fall 2026 newsletter for Timberland Hills Foundation (formerly CASTA). We hope you enjoy our updates and we’ll see you out on the trails soon!
Ski Trail Work Day: Saturday, October 24 - 8:00 AM - Lunch Provided
Fall Board Meeting: Sunday, October 25 - 1:00 PM - Timberland Hills Trailhead
2026-2027 Timberland Hills Memberships
$50 Family Membership
$40 Single Membership
$10 Daily Donation
$100 Business Sponsor
Additional Donations appreciated!
www.timberlandhills.com/#donate
Memberships are due! We operate on memberships and donations, so we greatly appreciate those who round those numbers up. Memberships and donations may be conveniently done using our website: www.timberlandhills.com/#donate. As in the past, you may also mail a check to: Timberland Hills Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 1046, Cumberland, WI 54829. Please contact us if you are interested in making a large contribution. We are now a 501(c)(3) public charity, so donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Destination of the Year Nominee
Timberland Hills is fast becoming a mountain biking destination, powered by our partner One Track Mind (OTM). In recognition of our growth as a mountain biking destination in addition to Nordic skiing, Timberland Hills was nominated for the 2026 Wisconsin Governor’s Outdoor Industry Award in the Destination of the Year category. Hosted by the Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation, these awards honor the leaders, innovators, and collaborators shaping Wisconsin’s outdoor recreation industry by recognizing outstanding efforts that strengthen communities, support economic vitality, and elevate outdoor recreation across the state. While we did not win this year, it was a genuine honor to be included among the 16 nominees for the best recreational destination in the entire state. We thank our many supporters and volunteers who have made Timberland Hills the recreational destination it is becoming today.
Mountain Bike Trail Updates
2025 Trail Construction: While our trail system started in 2023 and 2024 with all-abilities and intermediate trails that flow through the woods, our 2025 trail construction season delivered more intermediate and expert trails, bringing the total system to around 25 miles. Pathfinder Trail Building connected Timber Beast, our iconic intermediate cross country loop trail around Timberland Hills, to the main trail system. They also built three expert trails—a 3.3-mile cross country trail (Drop Line) with 5 wood features including drops and ramps, a wall ride, and an elevated off-camber bridge, as well as two “gravity” lines (Widowmaker and Bullwhacker) where riders start at a high point and use gravity to ride down steeper hillsides, turning on berms, jumping over gaps or picking a line through rock features. Zenith Trail Contracting built a 2.3-mile expert cross-country trail (Swing Hammer) with a narrower hand-cut feel, along with a blue/black gravity line (Windy Lindy) with something for everyone—berms, jumps, roots, wood features and more. We have drawn many new riders to Timberland Hills to experience our high-quality, progressive trail system in a beautiful area—from local families and regional mountain bike teams to riders from larger metro areas in Wisconsin and Minnesota (Eau Claire, Lacrosse, the Twin Cities, and Duluth) to bikers from more than a dozen other states and Canada.
2026 Trail Construction: Our 2026 construction season—our fourth and final phase, funded by OTM—is currently underway. There are 4 builders this year—Dirt Candy (an early trail designer and builder at Timberland Hills), Pathfinder, Zenith and Fine Line (a new builder to Timberland Hills)—each bringing their own unique flavor to add approximately 5.5 miles of mostly intermediate “connector” trails, bringing our total trail system to around 30 miles. These trails will create mid-sized loops within the system that will make it more rideable and accessible to riders of all abilities. In 2027, we hope to have a re-grand opening of the entire system, so look for an announcement by email and social media. For the latest trail information, visit our website at Timberland Hills Foundation or our Facebook Page.
Winter Biking Plans: We have learned a lot about maintaining our trails for winter fat biking and have the equipment for reliable grooming. We again plan to groom a variety of singletrack trails for winter use. Winter biking is also allowed on the multi-use Alternative Trail. Watch for updates as the seasons change.
Mountain Bike Trail reminders: Mountain bike trails, especially new trails, are sensitive to damage when wet. Do not ride on the trails when the gates are closed. Save the drive and check conditions before you come. We recommend following Timberland Hills on the Trailbot app. Trail conditions are also updated on www.timberlandhills.com and our Facebook page.
Our great volunteers have been busy maintaining the trails; please send an email to [email protected] if you are interested in joining our trail maintenance team. Fall is the busiest time for bike trail maintenance.
Ski Trails Updates
The Winter of 2025-2026 was a huge improvement in the snowfall department after a couple of low-snow winters. Like any ski season, it had its ups and downs, but we had reliable skiing from December through early March, which is all we really ask for from mother nature.
We have been giving our ski trails extra attention to improve the skiing experience and grooming. Much of the trail system was leveled in the fall of 2025 which led to a much smoother trail that was easier to groom. We will continue to monitor the trail system for sections that need some work to complete this goal. This year, we recently widened several intersections on the trail system so that the groomer can make the corners without damaging the trail surface.
The Outer Loop bridge on the north end of the property was getting in rough shape. This trail is used for skiing and is part of the Ice Age Trail. We recently teamed up with the Superior Lobe Chapter of the Ice Age Trail and Burnett County to put new decking on the bridge. The bridge turned out great and it is now ready for safe use by the groomer, skiers, and hikers.
Ski trails are currently mowed full width and we will evaluate further mowing if it is needed before it snows. Think Snow, we hope to open the trails as early as possible and we hope that predictions of a poor snow winter prove to be false. Ski trails will be open when conditions allow, December through March. Check www.timberlandhills.com for trail conditions; conditions are also updated on skinnyski.com and our Facebook page.
Campsites
This spring, we also completed 5 new primitive campsites in Timberland Hills for hikers, bikers and other non-motorized users of the forest. Each with a scenic view on a lake or river, the sites offer flat tent pads, a fire ring with a cooking grate, an aluminum picnic table and a pit toilet. These backcountry sites are a perfect escape for nature enthusiasts looking to immerse themselves in the great outdoors, whether as a base camp for bike packers, a pit stop for Ice Age trail through hikers, or a weekend experience for families and friends to enjoy iconic settings in Timberland Hills. With grant application support from Burnett County and the Ice Age Trail Alliance, we won a 50/50 matching grant to build these sites from the Wisconsin Stewardship Program, a longstanding state grant program that supports recreational infrastructure on public properties. To reserve a campsite, visit Burnett County’s website: Cabin and Campsite Reservation Portal | Burnett County, WI - Official Website. For pictures and more info on the sites, visit Timberland Hills Foundation - Stay.
Trail Events
We’ve hosted several events at Timberland Hills this year. In late June, we hosted young mountain bikers from high school teams across Wisconsin at an event sponsored by the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA), the organizing and governing body for 33 high school mountain bike leagues with 25,000 student riders across the U.S. including teams from MN and WI. The event featured 3 of our trail building companies teaching the students about trail design, construction and maintenance. From late September to early October, with support from OTM, we hosted a crew from Wisconsin Conservation Corps to perform trail maintenance in Timberland Hills. Our trail boss, Doug Thompson, graciously volunteered 2 weeks of his time to plan and supervise all of their maintenance work to keep our trails in excellent riding shape.
Highlighting that we offer more than skiing and biking, the Cumberland School District again hosted Middle School and High School Cross Country meets at the trails on September 28-29 drawing about 300 middle school runners and 290 high school runners. The event was a success despite rain and mud causing some interesting conditions for the High School event.
Discussions are in the works for upcoming winter events and 2027 bike events. Watch for updates!
Other Activities
Timberland Hills is a multi-use area for a wide range of non-motorized activities. Our trails are located on Burnett County (main trail) and Barron County (lighted trail) county forest land. We are gracious for the continued opportunity to maintain our trails on public property.
Hiking and trail running are allowed year-round, and we are fortunate to be a partner with the Ice Age Trail. Watch for the new Ice Age Trail kiosk that is being installed at the trailhead this fall and includes benches for all trail users. Ski Trails are open for hiking year-round; please respect our ski trails when groomed by hiking or snowshoeing on the edge of the groomed trail, opposite of the set tracks. We keep the ski trails mowed as necessary during the summer and fall months to provide good hiking conditions. Hiking and trail running are also allowed on the singletrack bike trails; please yield to bikes.
Horseback riding has long been an activity at Timberland Hills, and we welcome horses on the ski trails whenever they aren’t groomed for skiing - please be mindful to avoid trail damage when it is wet or soft. We ask that horses stay off of the singletrack bike trails for safety and trail protection.
Timberland Hills is open to public hunting, with seasons open throughout the fall. Trail users are encouraged to wear bright colors during hunting seasons. Trails remain open throughout the fall with the exception of the November rifle deer season. Bike trails will be closed, and ski trails won’t be groomed if we are fortunate enough to have snow, during the regular 9-day rifle deer season (November 21-29). Refer to the Wisconsin DNR website to see a full list of season dates: https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/hunt/dates
Fundraising Update
We are a volunteer-led organization and we are constantly working to make improvements while being good stewards of our financial resources. We are thankful for your contributions and memberships. We also do some outside fundraising - thank you to everybody who supported us at our Rutabaga Festival food stand which had a successful year. Our board will be looking at our long-term needs to keep our ski trails and bike trails in tip-top shape and make improvements for the future.
See you out on the trails!
Email: [email protected]