TUPPER LAKE - Local snowmobilers are upset because a frequently used trail in the Mount Matumbla area has been essentially taken out of commission.

The trail crosses land that was formerly owned by International Paper Company, but the state recently bought a conservation easement on the land, giving it public recreation rights there.

Previously, IP allowed the town of Tupper Lake to use the land, but since the state gained control of it, the town was required to apply to the DEC for a temporary permit to groom it for snowmobile trails.

The DEC rejected the application because the trail leads to a part of the Raquette River that is lined on both sides by state lands classified as primitive, said DEC Region 5 spokesman Dave Winchell.

Not only is it illegal for snowmobilers to ride on primitive lands, but it is also illegal and unsafe to cross the river in that area, Winchell said, which is something snowmobilers have been known to do there.

DEC staff and town representatives plan to meet later this week to sort out the issue.

In the meantime, many local snowmobilers have been upset about the closure, which they see as fuel to the fire of the local debate about keeping the town snowmobile-friendly versus stopping some sledders from riding through villagers' yards.

The village board and Mayor Mickey Desmarais have been outspoken against trespassing snowmobilers but have been careful to note that it is only a select few who are breaking laws. At January's board meeting, Desmarais and trustees discussed options for curbing the practice, including stepping up fines significantly and banning snowmobiles from the village entirely, something they said they would only do as a last resort.

The discussion has raised the ire of local snowmobilers and, Saturday night, one of them tore down an orange plastic fence erected to keep snowmobiles out and dropped it off outside the mayor's house nearby.

Snowmobiler Alex Logie said the Matumbla trail closed down last week, when people were worked up about Desmarais's comments, and since the trail is the only way out of town in that direction, some snowmobilers felt trapped.

"The timing of the closure was extremely unfortunate," Logie said.

Logie created a group on Facebook last week called "Tupper Lake Snowmobiling" with the goal of figuring out what was behind the trail closure. He said he tried to contact DEC several times but got no response.

The Matumbla trail is one of the few state-designated snowmobile trails that doesn't have railroad tracks on it, which require an extra 6 to 8 inches of snow to ride on, so it's one of the first that snowmobilers access at the beginning of the season. It's probably the most-used one throughout the year, Logie said.

"It's one of the favorite trails of the entire community," Logie said.

People who have hunting camps that are only accessible by those trails in the winter are also concerned about being blocked from their property, Logie said.

Logie said he thinks snowmobilers are getting frustrated about being seen in a bad light because of the few riders who break laws.

"I think they would like to hear things framed in a positive manner," Logie said. "A few people are giving us all a bad name."