The charming old town of Grand Marais, with its many unique Minnesota characteristics, makes a great base for exploring the North Shore of Lake Superior, the Gunflint Trail, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
The North Shore of Lake Superior is fed by dozens of Minnesota rivers, most of which have waterfalls you can easily reach on foot. It’s the best place to start your tour of Minnesota waterfalls.
The Winchell Trail along the Mississippi River in south Minneapolis is the oldest hiking trail in the Minneapolis Park System. It parallels the West River Parkway, but is a much more pleasant walk. And it gets you down all the way to the river bank.
The hike at Charles A. Lindbergh State Park will take you to a spot on the Lindbergh farm where Charles landed his first plane.
Created as one of two Indian agencies created by the Sioux treaty of 1851, the Upper Sioux Agency is now a state park with history exhibits and nice hikes.
Some of the most dramatic landscapes in Minnesota are along the St. Louis River in Jay Cooke State Park.
You can take a two-mile walk from Minnehaha Falls to the Mississippi River and hardly know you’re in a city.
The waterfall of the Cascade River State Park is a short hike from the North Shore’s Highway 61. A beautiful contrast to the black basalt stone of the gorge.
The Carleton College Arboretum provides miles of great hiking, as well as a chance to explore typical Minnesota woods and prairie ecosystems.
A walk around the Oberg Mountain Trail near Tofte will give you great views of the North Shore fall colors below.