BENOIT -- Doug and Judy Mauler of rural Benoit have begun the process for filing an appeal with the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Wisconsin in an effort to overturn Federal Judge Barbara Crabb's ruling in December that Bayfield County held ownership rights to the railroad grade that runs adjacent to their property near County Road F.

On Monday Judy Mauler said she and her husband have until late March to get their paperwork in order for an appeal effort. The Bayfield County Tourism & Recreation Committee may meet in closed session on Friday to confer with legal council regarding the issue.

The Maulers and Bayfield County have been locked in what has become a lengthy and somewhat bitter legal battle over the grade. Used in the winter as a snowmobile trail linking the northern and southern halves of the county, the Maulers said in recent years that users of the grade were becoming more and more intrusive. Because a title search conducted about seven years ago revealed no outstanding claims to the property, the Maulers believed they owned the grade, and attempted to make some changes along the trail. That's when the struggle began.

The Mauler's argue that the railroad grade had become part of their property after Union Pacific Railroad abandoned the property in 1978. Crabb's Dec. 5 decision ruled that the railroad had properly conveyed the right of way for development as a public highway and Bayfield County had done so. She said the land belongs to the county.

According to Crabb, federal law gave the railroad the right to convey the corridor for use as a public highway. As a result of the decision Bayfield County will likely continue to use the grade as part of the area's snowmobile trail system.

The Maulers and Bayfield County became embroiled in legal proceedings in 1998 when the Maulers erected a wooden barrier to prevent snowmobilers from crossing the grade near their property. The Maulers agreed to remove the barrier in November of that year after the county filed a lawsuit against them. The county also sued the Maulers in October of 1998 and won a judgement that it had a legally valid interest in the right of way, keeping the Maulers from blocking the trail. On appeal, the state court of appeals affirmed the judgement.