Although many of the state’s ATV trails remain closed due to storm damage, the Sunrise Trail officially reopened earlier this month. Kate Cough/Maine Monitor The dike portion of the storm-damaged Down East Sunrise Trail in Machias was repaired this week, again allowing Maine’s ATV riders and recreational users to connect with the undamaged, farthest east parts of the trail. The news was confirmed Thursday by Brian Bronson, the state’s ATV program supervisor, who spoke to The Monitor hands-free from his vehicle even as another severe rainstorm pelted his windshield.

“These are exactly the kinds of storms that scare us,” said Bronson, who works for the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. “We get just stupid amounts of rain.” Catastrophic back-to-back storm surges in January flooded Machias and besieged the dike, ripping out portions of the foundation and the adjacent trail, rending the popular recreational path impassable.

The storms wreaked havoc across the coast, causing an estimated $70 million in damage to public infrastructure alone. Repairs are ongoing to washed-out culverts along Machias Bay, so recreational users will need to detour on Route 1 through East Machias to access eastern inland ATV trails. Meanwhile, a temporary span was constructed over the failing dike, with plans uncertain for a permanent replacement.

Although many of the state’s ATV trails remain closed due to storm damage, the Sunrise Trail officially reopened earl.