Hi Lazy Lightning Readers! I’m Suzi from Apple Valley, but you might recognize me as “sm” in the comments. I am an avid reader of Lazy Lightning and have been for years. I found Bill’s site after doing a Google search on the neighborhood we had decided to build in and found a bunch of posts from this weirdo named Bill about his disdain for a proposed Super Target that was to be built in our soon-to-be neighborhood. I couldn’t figure out who the heck this guy was and why he cared so much about my cute little neighborhood-and besides, who doesn’t love Target?! Ha. Well, little did I know that I would be reading his blog faithfully for the next four years and really admiring his doggedness and downright devotion to the South of the River area. He’s hysterical and I would be happy to have him as a neighbor any day of the week. What’s even funnier about this is that Bill and I are from the same area–sort of. I’m from Ohio (GO BUCKEYES!) and Bill’s from Pennsylvania. And, we are both bloggers. I have a blog called pinkvanillacupcakes.com, where I write about all sorts of weird things such as my never-ending work/parenting balance issues, struggles with getting fit, crazy pop culture addictions, my new gig as a Scentsy consultant, and other blog-worthy topics. Stop by and check out my blog sometime.
Last week, I asked Bill on Twitter (@suzi_MN) if I could guest post on his blog and he happily obliged. The reason I am hijacking Bill’s blog is this: I have a confession to make to all of you in high hopes that you can help me..
For Real.
I’ve never been “up north” or to Duluth or to Rochester or to (fill in the blank). Haven’t been on Lake Minnetonka and haven’t even been to Minnehaha Falls! Here’s why: we’ve been so consumed with work, weekend projects, hockey, soccer, dance and mostly travelling back east to see our families that any thoughts of traveling around Minnesota gets pushed aside. I am completely ashamed and have vowed to take this summer and explore my not-so-new home state. I wrote a post called my Summer Bucket List and on that list is a smattering of fun things I want to do this summer and a lot of the items include exploring more of Minnesota. So, here is where you all fit in.
If you had a weekend with no plans and a full tank of gas and plenty of Diet Coke (that’s a nod to you Mrs. Marcos! ha), where would YOU go? What would YOU do? I have travel companions to consider: my husband Jason and our two daughters-Kaitlyn (2nd grade) and Chloe (4). I want my girls to experience true Minnesota, so bring it on! What is a true Minnesotan summer? What do you do every year that makes your summer special?
I can’t wait to read your comments and I will be blogging about them on my blog too.I know you guys will provide me with a ton of ideas and I will be happily trying as many as I can. :) Ok, thanks Bill for this opportunity and I’ll jump back into the comments now…
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July 20th, 2010 at 7:48 am
Since you’ll get to the North Shore eventually, and everyone knows about that trip, I’d load up my bikes and head south to Lanesboro and ride the Root River trial. It’s really beautiful.
July 20th, 2010 at 7:58 am
I have always been a sucker for camping in the great outdoors. I try and get to a campground on either the St. Croix, Mississippi rivers, or up to the North Shore. Great opportunities for a little nature seeing, possibly snap a few photos, and of course sit around by a campfire with some hotdogs and s’mores.
July 20th, 2010 at 8:28 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by LazyLightning.org, Nicole Harrison, suzi, Jennifer Patterson, suzi and others. suzi said: I am guest blogging on @SouthMetroNews's awesome blog soliciting ideas for places to see in Minnesota! http://ow.ly/2dSWJ [...]
July 20th, 2010 at 8:33 am
It’s gotta involve a lake. For just a weekend, go to Walker or one of the bazillion options in the Brainerd area. For more adventure (rustic), I would check out Voyageurs National Park area. Camping on Rainy Lake is pretty awesome (but probably too far to drive for just a weekend).
July 20th, 2010 at 8:58 am
I’ll toss in a second vote for the Root River Trail in Lanesboro if you’re at all into riding bicycles (Tip: you can camp right in the Lanesboro City Park for <$10. It's cheap, convenient, and easy).
The wife and I also really like tubing down the Cannon River at Welch Mill. (Tip: check out the Apple River instead if you and your kids are interested in topless 19-year-old girls and drunk frat boys).
July 20th, 2010 at 9:19 am
A trip to Winona in the fall – travel down on the Minnesota side, with stops in Red Wing, Lake City and any number of small towns; and then return on the Wisconsin side; the great part about this trip is on the return, you seeing new towns and not backtracking through stuff you’ve already seen.
If you are a garage sale hound, mark your calendar for the 100 mile garage sale, May 6-8, 2011, for garage sales from from Red Wing to Pickwick, MN along Hwy. 61 and from Prescott to Holton, WI along Hwy 35 – I did this as a gal’s weekend one year and had a blast.
A bike ride from Red Wing to Cannon Falls or vice versa – a great way to see some huge eagle’s nests, and with kids in carriers or tandem bikes, its a lot of fun. Pack a picnic and have the kids keep track of all the different animals they see.
The Spam Festival In Austin – or any number of other small town festivals.
When your girls get older, travel to the various Laura Ingalls Wilder sites in the state if they get into reading her books.
July 20th, 2010 at 10:21 am
I’ve done all 6 state parks along the North Shore between Duluth and Canada and highly recommend all of them (of course, some more than others…). I’ve done all 6 in a single weekend, though you probably want more time than that to actually enjoy them.
Canal Park in Duluth was a favorite for my wife’s family. It’s worth doing at least once. Personally, I prefer the outdoors to shops along the lake but my wife loves it.
When you do Minnehaha Falls, walk the trail all the way down to the Mississippi River and back. Most people don’t and it’s a really nice, more secluded environment than the waterfall, which stays much busier.
I totally agree on doing a weekend on a lake in the Brainerd area. It’s quintessential Minnesota!
You can’t go wrong on the Mississippi River drive either.
Oh, and Interstate State Park on the St. Croix River is easy to do on a Saturday and is really pretty, especially in the fall.
I really like Como Park in St. Paul, but I’m partial since the conservatory there is where my parents were married and my brother got engaged.
Ok, I’ll stop!
July 20th, 2010 at 10:24 am
I can relate. I moved here from the DC area to go to college in 1990 and for a few years, I really didn’t get the appeal of Minnesota. It wasn’t until I was introduced to the areas beyond the Twin Cities that I discovered what’s great.
Warning in advance: As I love bicycling, a lot of my favorite recommendations involve that. You can bring or rent a bike and discover a lot that way.
The North Shore is definitely worth the trek. I would try and make more than a weekend though. Stop in Duluth for lunch and continue up to Two Harbors area to stay. There are some nice resorts up there from mainstream to smaller rustic cottages. Continue up to Grand Marais, stopping in at Gooseberry Falls, Split Rock Lighthouse, Temperance River, or any number of the beautiful State Parks there. When you get to Grand Marais, hang a left up to Ely. Rent a canoe and get a taste for the Boundary Waters (this is something I recommend for an entirely separate trip…camping in the Boundary Waters). Next, head west to the Iron Range, touring or viewing a working iron mine. The Mesabi Trail is a 50+ mile long bike trail that runs between many of the towns up there and has some great views of mines and Iron Range scenery. Loop back to Duluth and you’re on your way home. ** If you can score a weekend without the kids, the North Shore is an ideal getaway. I recommend a place called Sweetgrass Cove up towards Grand Portage.
On a side note, Ely and the North Shore are spectacular in the winter. Snowshoeing is a fun adventure that almost anyone can do. Lutsen is a surprisingly good downhill ski area. Again, there are a number of neat resorts with small cottages, or you can pick the standard bigger resorts. We stayed at Cobblestone Cabins (cobblestonecabins.biz) in Tofte one year to ski at Lutsen. Really neat, rustic cabins. In the winter, the wood burning stove is your heat source.
With or without kids, camping is the best way to enjoy the North Shore in my opinion.
The Walker area is another great recommendation. Leech Lake offers a lot of lake recreation. You can camp at Stony Point, stay in standard hotels, or choose from a gazillion resorts, cabins, etc. Again, a bike is a great option and there are places in Walker and the surrounding towns to rent. The Heartland Trail heading towards Akeley, Nevis and Park Rapids is pancake flat and a nice ride, usually with many families. After Walker, it’s about a 30 minute ride over to Lake Itasca State Park. Not only is it a scenic park, it’s also the headwaters of the Mississippi River. Kids love it — mine thought it was novel to drop a stick in there and imagine it traveling all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. There’s great camping there, and Park Rapids is a neat town for a day or two.
Not Minnesota, but fairly close to MSP is Sparta, Wisconsin which, again, offers bike trails, but also a large nearby Amish community. You can grab a map and tour the countryside checking out furniture makers’ shops, bakers, crafters, and a bunch of other neat Amish stuff. That can easily be combined with a trip through Winona, Lake Pepin, etc. (others have recommended).
We often take day trips to Red Wing. (Beating dead horse). We start in the tiny village of Welch, bike to Red Wing on the very flat, easy Cannon Valley trail to have lunch, then bike back. There is a tiny ice cream shop in Welch as a reward for just biking that far. You also pass through Miesville on the way, which is home to a fun town ball baseball team, the Mudhens, and Kings which is an outstanding burger joint.
Bill does a great job of highlighting them, but there are a lot of treasures right here in the metro area that people will often overlook. If you want a fairly good camping experience without any hassle, go over to Lebanon Hills. The campgrounds are pristine, have great facilities, and are nicely wooded. You can bike, hike, swim at a beach, or just lounge around to your heart’s content. Walk or bike over to the zoo.
Take advantage of the downtowns. A little known secret is that at the library, you can check out passes to things like the Children’s Museum and other things like that (my wife knows the drill better than me). The sculpture garden at the Walker is neat for kids and adults alike. My kids love biking around the River Road, stopping in at Sea Salt Eatery in Minnehaha Park for ice cream or up at Izzy’s Ice Cream in St. Paul.
We’ll park at Big Rivers Trail in Eagan (Highway 13), ride across the Mendota Bridge to Historic Fort Snelling and check that out. Then we’ll snake through the State Park up to watch planes landing right over your heads. You can, of course, drive all of that.
Whit hit the nail on the head with festivals. There are a million of them in the summer. County Fairs are a must as well.
Finally, hotels with big water parks seem to be getting really popular. The Arrowwood Lodge in Alexandria is a good overnight trip with an indoor water park and a lot of other fun kid activities and nearby attractions.
Hopefully that’s a start.
July 20th, 2010 at 10:30 am
One edit — from Walker to Lake Itasca State Park is a 30-minute CAR ride. I just re-read and I sort of bled right into that from biking.
I’ve done the ride by bike and it’s more like 2 hours. Each way.
July 20th, 2010 at 10:57 am
Itasca State Park is amazing, but go later in the fall, it is way too busy in the summer. I’ve been to A LOT of the state parks, actually, and I’ve never been to a bad one. Some are better than others, but none are bad.
How about some Minneapolis and St. Paul places? Minnesota Institute of Art is amazing, and free. You have kids, so the Childrens Muesum and Childrens Theater are great, as is the Science Museum. Tuesdays there is free music at the History Museum, which is really fun. Fort Snelling State Park/National Fort are in the city limits and very cool. I highly recommend the fort. There is free music every night at the Lake Harriet Bandshell. Come into town, walk around the lake, get ice cream and listen to music.
July 20th, 2010 at 11:03 am
Wow! Thanks for all of the awesome ideas everyone! Keep em coming!
July 20th, 2010 at 11:51 am
you might want to rethink welch and the cannon for camping and tubing. at least on the weekends. my son just spent friday-saturday at the camp ground and came home sunday. he said it was horrible. booze, weed and other stuff being used. way too much likker being consumed by too young of a crowd. his friend and wife pulled out at 3am sunday because there was too much going on. a lot of injuries. he thought sure someone might buy it. bare boobs and drunk boobs. he’s never going back.
i’m with the root river folks. the old barn resort is very family oriented. don’t forget the pie shop in whalan is closed tuesday and wednesday:)
aaaaaannnnd, lacrosse is only 30 or so miles from lanesboro albeit in cheesehead land. a fun city.
bb
July 20th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
If going up-nort’ during the fall peak colors, don’t want to miss Lutsen Mountains– Alpine Slide & the Mountain Tram
In the Brainerd area; there lots of resorts. I would give Ruttger’s (Bay Lake) the most small town family friendly. Best indoor water park & golf access would be Grand View Lodge (Gull Lake). Maddens & Cragun’s both on Gull Lake are nice. I wouldn’t want to leave out where Elvis can be spotted on Big Pelican Lake – Breezy Point.
July 20th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
If you head up to the Brainerd Lakes Area.
There are trails (Paul Bunyan Trail) for biking/walking as well. For the kids be sure to hit up This Old Farm/Bunyan Land (the new location of defunct Paul Bunyan Land) has plenty of rides/attractions. The resorts themselves have plenty for a family to stay occupied throughout the stay. Take a small trip up to Nisswa as well to visit the fun little shops in downtown, as there are also many activities there throughout the summer (bean hole days, turtle races) to name a few.
I also agree with the Iron Range/North shore. The fall colors up there are fabulous. Just remember the leaves start changing alot sooner up there than down here. Lake Vermillion is also a great lake and boasts a great golf course in The Wilderness on the location of Fortune Bay Resort Casino.
Whatever you choose, I am sure you will find something outside the Twin Cities Metro that will whet your palate.
July 21st, 2010 at 10:29 am
I think most people have given great advice that I would have here, meantime in case i missed it these are a few other suggestions:
Ice fishing on a Lake up north, particularly go to the Eelpout Festival in Walker.
check out Hibbing or some other Iron Range town, a part of Minnesota that is unique in the state for 19th century ethnic diversity.
Take a float trip smallmouth fishing or just floating down the Upper Mississippi River anywhere between Becker and Dayton… its a beautiful river and can remind you of Western big rivers like the upper Missouri… completely different than the soup of mud and fertilizer it becomes below Lacrosse.
visit New Ulm during Oktoberfest or during anytime, go to Schells brewery.
Go to Alexis Bailly winery , bring a picnic lunch and buy a bottle of wine and sit on their lawn, they have music some weekends, or go during harvest and see wine being made. Talk to the winemakers and owners. Its not the Napa Valley, but check out their motto.
Whitewater State Park near Elba in the Southeast. Beautiful country, bluffs, and no mosquitoes. there are rattlesnakes.
cross the Bridge in Red Wing and drive the Wisconsin side to Lacrosse… funky artsy river towns, good restaurants, watch out for motorcylists on the weekend.
Go to a high school hockey game in Duluth or the iron range, or if you can take the time in Warroad or Roseau. (if you dont have the time, just go to a game here in the cities, you will get the flavor of it), go to the state hockey tournament, still for my money the best high school sports event in the USA.
Boundary Waters, Grand Marais, North Shore as noted.
Dont get sick , but if you do, try the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.
spend a week at an old fashioned summer lake cabin resort, the ones without the high tech stuff and trendy restaurant with sous chefs. Just the lake, a fishing boat and bingo in the main lodge on Tuesdays.
check out one of the historical Native American sites in Southwest MN, spend a few bucks in one of the Native American casinos, we are all illegal immigrants to them.
even though it isnt Minnesota you are close so definitely check out the Apostle Islands, Bayfield Wisconsin, Porcupine Mountain State wilderness in Michigan, and the driftless area of Wisconsin from River Falls to Lacrosse to Sparta…
If i repeated anyones comments, i apologize.
July 21st, 2010 at 10:33 am
River towns: Hastings, Stillwater, Hudson WI, Red Wing, Prescott WI, Winona, Lacrosse WI, Osceola WI, Stockholm WI, and Guttenberg Iowa.
July 21st, 2010 at 10:38 am
“Dont get sick , but if you do, try the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.”
My favorite comment yet. :)
July 21st, 2010 at 11:17 am
Just know that the Eelpout Festival in Walker really isn’t a great family-oriented occasion.
July 23rd, 2010 at 1:46 pm
Well, as expected, everyone laid out some excellent ideas. I will add a couple quick day trip ideas in our neighboring state that I don’t think were mentioned. I love to wander around the country roads of Wisconsin on a weekend enjoying time with the family. I would recommend Willow River State Park just north of Hudson. There is a really neat waterfall and some decent hiking. I like food, so Bass Lake Cheese Factory isn’t too far from there. Then you can dip down to Stillwater or head deeper into Wisconsin. Glenna Farms near Balsam Lake makes real maple syrup. The kids might like Crystal Cave in Spring Valley. The parents might like Dave’s Brewfarm when the tap room is open (brewfarm.com). There are some other little cheese shops around Western Wisconsin that you can easily find, but I have not been to them…yet. You can’t go wrong driving down the river as has been suggested already. I’ve heard Trempealeau, WI is worth spending some time in.
And like everyone else, I love the North Shore, Lanesboro, Nisswa, etc…but I really get a kick out of finding the more obscure places too.
July 24th, 2010 at 1:54 pm
If you enjoy flowers, gardening and beautiful scenery, the Clemens Munsinger Gardens in St. Cloud are amazing.
July 24th, 2010 at 7:34 pm
We enjoy the Duluth area It’s beautiful there ..lots of walking /biking etc…..We just got back from Gooseberry Falls….Went to Splitrock lighthouse..and Canal…Ate at Duluth Dinner ,Rustic Inn,Bettys Pies nom nom….There’s a Tall Ships show coming up that sounds like fun ..you can get on the ships etc…but… I won’t go back for a while! The traffic & road construction was horrid! We waited almost an hour to get from one side of town to the other! Duluth was tore up wherever we went!Lots of waiting!