Registered And Ready

Snowmobiling

The late arrival of snow in the Inland Northwest at least has given procrastinators time to register their snowmobiles.

In Idaho, $12.75 of each $16.50 registration is returned to a county designated by the snowmobiler. The county uses the funds for grooming and associated services. The vendor keeps $1.50 and $2.25 goes to printing and administration.

The registration program helps Idaho groom more than 6,000 miles of snowmobile trails. Stickers are sold at most snowmobile shops and Idaho State Parks.

In Washington, snowmobile registration costs about $17 a sled. The fee can vary slightly depending on fees charged by licensing agents. The decals are available where vehicle registrations are sold.

Washington’s snowmobile registration fee includes a Sno-Park permit. The Sno-Park permit, required for parking in plowed snowmobile and ski access areas, costs $20 if purchased separately.

Some cross country skiers initially think it’s unfair that snowmobilers can register their machines and get a Sno-Park permit for less than the cost of the permit, said Colleen McGuire, parks spokeswoman in Olympia.

“But snowmobilers must register each machine,” she said, “while skiers can use one Sno-Park permit for up to two vehicles. The money from snowmobilers and skiers goes to two separate programs.”

Washington’s citizen-based snowmobile advisory committee reviews applications from federal, state and local agencies as well as snowmobile clubs and allots the money on a case by case basis.

, DataTimes