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Minnesota's Backyard: A look at Minnesota state parks


With the unofficial start of Minnesota summer upon us, we've gathered a list of nine of our favorite historic and quirky community festivals that will have revelers eating, dancing and parading.
While Gov. Tim Walz and some legislators are talking flood relief, for some resort owners on Minnesota's northern border, 2023 might be the first "normal" summer season they have had since 2019
Located not far from the more popular parks along Lake Superior, George H. Crosby Manitou State Park is home to wilderness, challenging terrain and real solitude on the wooded trails that reach cascades and waterfalls along the Manitou River.
At 500 square miles, Minnesota is home to the largest peat bog in the lower 48 states, and a mile-long boardwalk at Big Bog State Recreation Area allows visitors to explore this unique and vital ecosystem.

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Just a short drive east of one of western Minnesota's regional centers, visitors will find stop No. 9 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks. The shallow, rocky and scenic Buffalo River winds through the state park that bears its name, and features some native prairie grass so vital to the plants and animals of the Red River Valley.
Just a short drive east of one of western Minnesota's regional centers, visitors will find stop No. 9 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks. The shallow, rocky and scenic Buffalo River winds through the state park that bears its name, and features some native prairie grass so vital to the plants and animals of the Red River Valley.
You will be excused if you are unfamiliar with destination No. 8 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks. Carley is a true hidden gem, less popular than its neighbors with a pretty campground that is only open in the summer months. But if you are seeking solitude along with fishing, hiking and stunning spring wildflowers, it is worth the effort to find.
Destination No. 7 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks offers history and hiking at the extreme northeast edge of the state. Grand Portage State Park is relatively new, but this site has drawn visitors for literally centuries, at the place where Minnesota and Canada meet, and native cultures met European explorers for the first time.
Destination No. 6 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks brings back a flood of memories for the author, as the beach at Zippel Bay State Park was a family place to find free air conditioning some 40 years ago. Today the park is both a beach destination and an important public access point to Lake of the Woods.
Too often, people drive right past destination No. 5 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks on their way to see the wonders of the North Shore. But an hour south of Duluth, Banning State Park offers many of the wonders that ring Lake Superior, like waterfalls and rapid river gorges carved out of rock, in addition to a historic quarry hike.
Destination No. 4 on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks is an idyllic spot in west-central Minnesota that was once a private outdoors playground for the rich and famous. Now it is open for all to enjoy. At Glendalough State Park, visitors find a scenic spot to enjoy "silent sports" like biking, paddling and old-school fishing.
The third stop on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks brings us to the center of Minnesota, where two rivers meet and people gathered, traded, battled and passed through, both long before and some time after European settlers came to the region. Crow Wing State Park is a perfectly preserved slice of nature and history.
The second stop on our 20-site tour of Minnesota's state parks brings us to the Driftless region in the southeast corner of the state, where on a clear day you can see a wide swath of the Mississippi River valley from hundreds of feet above, and well into Wisconsin from the many viewpoints of Great River Bluffs State Park.
Our 20-park visit to Minnesota's Backyard begins in the southwest corner of the state, where the stereotypical pines and lakes are replaced by rolling tallgrass prairie, a dramatic quartzite cliff and a massive herd of bison. Blue Mounds State Park offers much of the magic of South Dakota's Black Hills, just five hours closer to home.
Over the course of 20 weeks in May, June and July, we will be introducing readers to a Minnesota state park each week. It is our look at the unique adventures available right here, in Minnesota's Backyard.

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