Serving Jackson, Union & Williamson counties · based in Cobden, IL
Free Estimates (618) 697-5190
Blackburn Land Service logo
Our Services

Trail Cutting in Cobden, IL

Trail Cutting · Cobden, IL

We cut new trails and reopen old ones

Blackburn Land Service handles trail cutting around Cobden and across Southern Illinois. You have woods at the back of your place and no clean way in. Maybe there was a path once, and now it is a wall of brush and saplings. We run a tracked skid steer with a forestry mulching head. It grinds the growth where it stands and takes stumps down to grade level. What you get is a mulched trail you can walk or drive. We are owner operated and fully insured. Small jobs are welcome and estimates are free.

Most of our trail cutting is ATV and UTV trails through timber. We also cut walking paths and horse trails. A lot of jobs are access routes to the back of a property. Old farm lanes that grew shut get reopened on the track they always ran. If two fields sit on either side of a strip of woods, we can put a trail through. Low limbs over the trail come off with a limb saw. It cuts them clean, then we mulch them on the ground. Hunting access trails and shooting lanes are covered on our hunting property improvement page.

What We Handle

  • New ATV and UTV trail cutting
  • Walking paths through timber and brush
  • Horse trails through wooded ground
  • Old farm lanes reopened
  • Access routes to the back acres
  • Low limbs cleared with limb saw
  • Mulched chip surface, no burn piles
  • Tree shear for tight spots between trees

Free Trail Cutting Quote

Tell us about your land. We will get right back to you.

What a finished trail looks like

The mulcher grinds brush and saplings into wood chips and drops them where they stood. Stumps in the trail come down to grade level, so nothing sticks up to catch a tire. The chips settle into a firm surface you can walk or drive. There is no pile to haul off and nothing to burn later. The tracked machine spreads its weight and keeps soil disturbance low.

This is mulching work, so the finished trail is chips over the original ground. We do not shape dirt or haul in gravel, and we are not a stump grinding service. Stumps come down to grade in the trail and stay in the ground. The machine handles brush and small trees, and we work around the timber you keep. If you want the method in detail, read about our forestry mulching work.

How does a trail cutting job work?

We start with where you want the trail to run and how the machine gets in there. You can flag the route or point it out on the ground. Trail clearing on an old lane follows the track that is already there. Then we make a pass with the mulching head at machine width. Wider trails take more passes. On thick growth we go slower and take smaller bites. The trail opens up behind the machine as we work.

Low limbs get taken off with the limb saw, which cuts instead of tearing. A sapling in a tight spot between trees you keep gets snipped off with the tree shear. When you want the material stacked instead of spread, we can put the grapple on. The attachments come off and on, so we match the tool to the ground. Say what you want done with the limbs and brush along the trail.

Where we cut trails in Southern Illinois

We are based in Cobden and cut trails across Jackson, Union and Williamson counties. That takes in Carbondale, Murphysboro, Anna, Marion, Herrin and Carterville. We also cut trails around Jonesboro, Vienna, Goreville and Harrisburg. Nearby Southern Illinois ground outside those counties is worth asking about. The full town list is on our service areas page. Call (618) 697-5190 and tell us where the property sits.

Estimates are free. We come out, look at the route and check how the machine gets in. Then you get a price for the work before anything starts. Short trails and small jobs are fine, and so are longer runs to the back of a farm. Pricing stays simple and fair. Call or send a message and we will set a time to come look.

Freshly cut access trail through Southern Illinois timber with a mulched surface Cleared woods with a firm mulched floor after trail and understory work

Ready to get started?

Free, no-obligation estimates across Jackson, Union & Williamson counties.

(618) 697-5190
How We Work

How a Job With Blackburn Runs

From the first phone call to the finished ground, here is how it goes.

1

Tell Us About Your Land

Call, text or send the form. We talk through what is growing, how much ground it covers, and what you want it to become, then set a time to come see it.

2

Free Estimate

We look at the property with you, flag the trees and spots that stay, and give you a clear price. You know exactly what gets cleared and what it costs before anything starts.

3

We Clear

The machine shows up when we said it would. Brush, saplings and small trees get ground into mulch in place, with no burn piles, no haul-off and no torn-up topsoil.

4

You Take It Back

Look over the finished ground with us. Open, walkable, usable land, ready to mow, fence, hunt or plant. From trails to tracts, it is yours again.

FAQ

Trail Cutting Questions, Answered

Common questions about trail cutting across Jackson, Union & Williamson counties. If yours is not here, call or text and ask.

Call (618) 697-5190

How wide can you cut a trail?
One pass runs about the width of the machine, which suits an ATV or a walking path. For a wider trail we make more passes side by side. Tell us what you plan to drive on it and we will cut it to fit that use.
What is left on the ground after the trail is cut?
The brush and saplings get ground into wood chips, and the chips stay on the trail. Stumps in the path come down to grade level. What you have is a mulched surface you can walk or drive on right away. There is no burning and no pile to haul off.
Can you cut trails on slopes or along a creek?
The tracked skid steer handles most rural ground in Southern Illinois. Slopes and creek edges depend on the ground itself and on how we get the machine to it. We look at that during the free estimate and tell you what we can reach. If a spot is out, we say so.
Do you take off low limbs hanging over the trail?
Yes. We use a limb saw for that. It cuts low and overhanging limbs clean at the branch. A mulcher head alone tears them and leaves a frayed break. Once the limbs are on the ground, we run the mulching head over them. That keeps the trail open overhead for a UTV or a horse and rider.
What does trail cutting cost?
It depends on the length of the trail and how thick the growth is. Access matters too, since the machine has to reach the start. A short path through light brush is quicker than a long run through heavy timber. Estimates are free, so call (618) 697-5190 and we will come look and price it.
More From Blackburn Land Service

Explore Our Other Services

Forestry Mulching in Cobden, IL

Forestry Mulching

Forestry mulching turns brush, saplings and small trees into a layer of wood chip mulch on site. We cover Jackson, Union and Williamson counties from our base in Cobden.

Learn More
Brush Clearing in Cobden, IL

Brush Clearing

Brush clearing for overgrown fields, fence lines, old lots and invasive thickets across Southern Illinois. Our tracked skid steer grinds the brush into mulch on the spot, so the ground is usable the same day.

Learn More
Hunting Property in Cobden, IL

Hunting Property

We clear shooting lanes and quiet access trails on hunting property across Southern Illinois. Selective mulching opens the ground you want open and leaves the cover that holds deer.

Learn More
Why Choose Blackburn Land Service

From Trails to Tracts.

Locally Owned in Cobden

Blackburn Land Service is owner operated out of Cobden. The person who looks at your ground is the person who runs the machine, and the plan gets set with you before any work starts.

The Right Machine

A tracked skid steer with a forestry mulching head, backed by a limb saw, grapple and tree shear. Brush gets ground into mulch where it stands, not piled and burned.

Free On-Site Estimates

We come look at the ground, talk through what opens up and what stays, and give you a clear price before the machine moves. Small jobs are welcome, down to a single lane.

Fully Insured

Blackburn Land Service LLC is fully insured. Careful, selective work around the trees, fences and buildings you keep, with minimal soil disturbance and nothing left smoldering.

Take Back Your Land

Get In Touch With Blackburn Land Service

Overgrown field, a fence line you cannot find, a trail that grew shut, or hunting ground that needs lanes? Call or text, or send the form. We will come look at the ground and give you a free estimate.

Get a Free Quote

Tell us about your land. We will get right back to you.