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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel | of | Share this photo

    Ernest Rice uncovers the snowmobile he uses to maintain trails through Belgrade and the surrounding area. Rice, seen at his Belgrade home on Monday, says substandard snow has kept snowmobilers off the trail this season. Rice, 80, has maintained snowmobile trails since the early 1970s.

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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel | of | Share this photo

    Ernest Rice walks Monday near his home to a snowmobile he uses to maintain trails through Belgrade and the surrounding area. Rice, 80, who has maintained snowmobile trails in Kennebec County since the early 1970s, says central Maine has not gotten enough snow the past several years to make the trails usable. He doesn't see it changing anytime soon. "Down here in Kennebec County, I'm afraid our years are probably up."

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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel | of | Share this photo

    Ernest Rice, longtime president of the Belgrade snowmobile club, discusses the lack of snow that has kept many riders off the trails the past few winters. Rice, seen Monday at his home in Belgrade, has been grooming snowmobile trails since the 1970s.

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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel | of | Share this photo

    Ernest Rice runs his snow across a thin layer of snow adjacent to a dormant snowmobile trail that runs near his home in Belgrade in mid-January. Insufficient snow has kept snowmobilers off the trail this season. Rice, 80, has maintained 44 miles of snowmobile trails since the early 1970’s. The trails go through Belgrade North Augusta, Readfield and Mt. Vernon, said Rice.

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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel | of | Share this photo

    Ernest Rice stands Monday near a dormant snowmobile trail that runs by his home in Belgrade. Substandard snow has kept snowmobilers off the trail this season. It's becoming the new normal, Rice says. "I used to go out on rides for 500 miles and come back," says the longtime leader of the local snowmobile club. "Just unbelievable, fantastic riding, all over. And now you can't even go a mile."

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    Snowmobiling in Kennebec County - Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal | of | Share this photo

    Gov. Janet Mills speaks Jan. 23, 2024, during a special meeting of the Maine Climate Council at the University of Maine at Augusta. A report from the council says the climate in central Maine could resemble that of present-day New Jersey by 2085, the result of climate change caused by man-made carbon emissions.

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