If you love boating, fishing, swimming or any other water sport, then Voyageurs National Park needs to be on your bucket list. Voyageurs has more than 500 islands with 655 miles of shoreline and we barely scratched the surface here.

After a fun day exploring Duluth, Wednesday had us back on the road heading north to Voyageurs National Park. In short: ‘I love it here’. This area reminds me of a lodge in northeast Ontario where we used to spend time each summer with family. It smells like a ‘Fresh Pine’ air freshener and the lakes are clear, deep and cold. Steep rock ledges lead directly into the water and the land is covered with aspens and pine trees. I expected to see a bear or moose around every corner and the waters are teeming with lunker fish!

The air temperature was in the low 90s in International Falls, Minnesota. Because it was so warm, we spent Wednesday afternoon swimming in Kabetogama Lake and then camped in Woodenfrog State Park. As I sat in camp thinking about all of the things to do in the park (and how little time we had here), I heard sticks break in the woods and then a loud huffing noise. I looked up to see a doe staring at me from the nearby woods. It was a gentle reminder to look around, focus on the present and plan for a return trip at a later time. (Message received Ms. Deer! 😉)

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All of the 240 camping sites within Voyageurs National Park are accessed via water. The majority of the campsites are on islands that can be reached by boat; however, approximately 20 backcountry sites require a water taxi and hike in. We opted to camp in the Chain of Lakes area at War Club Lake which also requires the use of a canoe to reach camp! Our Thursday morning looked like this:

• Meet Larry, the water taxi guy, at 8:45 at the Woodenfrog boat ramp
• 20 minute boat ride across beautiful Kabetogama Lake
• 1 mile-ish hike on the Locator Lake Trail
• Reach Locator Lake, launch an NPS canoe and paddle 3.5 miles-ish to camp
• Scout for loons, bald eagles and other wildlife!

Our day was nothing short of amazing! We enjoyed the sounds of nature, canoed around War Club Lake, I took a delightful nap and Mark went for a swim. The evening was warm and we left the rain fly off of the tent to watch the stars at night. Because there was a full moon and the air was hazy from fires, we didn’t see Northern Lights or the Milky Way on this trip. However, we heard wolves howling in the distance and loons calling for most of the night! We will be back – this park is a true gem!

Friday was a slow and relaxed day. Our water taxi pick up time was 3:30. We ate breakfast while watching two loons, broke camp and leisurely retraced our path across War Club Lake, Locator Lake, and the Locator Lake Trail. Larry, the water taxi guy, recommended a dinner place and while it wasn’t featured on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives, it was totally worthy of such an honor! The restaurant was decorated with old fishing gear and our server wore fishing bobber earrings. Again, I thought about our family time in Ontario when four men sat at the next table in matching, custom-made, fishing vacation t-shirts!

(Click on any photo below to open the gallery and read the captions)

On Saturday, we left Voyageurs National Park and drove to Ely, Minnesota to see some friends who hiked a portion of the Superior Lake trail. We lunched in Ely and visited the International Wolf Center. If you find yourself in Ely, the wolf center is worth a stop! There were several interesting exhibits as well as an enclosure with wolves. A 4-month old wolf named Reika was on display during our visit. She was adorable! It was so great to see our friends and hear about their adventures too!

We spent the next few days sightseeing in Minneapolis before heading further west. We were surprised by the green spaces and National Park areas surrounding the greater Minneapolis / St. Paul area. When we spoke to a ranger, one of her ‘must see’ attractions is Minnehaha Falls. We used one of the many bike paths to ride along the Mississippi River on Sunday only to find the falls completely dry! On Monday night, we enjoyed watching some of our favorite bands from floor seats at Target Field. After the concert, Minneapolis experienced a torrential downpour and we decided to try our luck once more at Minnehaha Falls on our way out of town. You can see the difference in the falls in the pictures below. Apparently, this was the first time that the falls have been completely dry in over 10 years, which constitutes ‘must see’ attraction, for sure!

We had a great week in Minnesota and I have a running list of ‘to dos’ for our next visit! It is a beautiful state with kind people and awesome rock shows! Stay tuned as we head west and don’t forget to check out the updated ‘Let’s Play the Gas Game’ post to see how many miles we have traveled!

• Total states traveled to date: 5
• Total National Park Sites visited: 2
• Interesting wildlife spotted in Minnesota: loons, bald eagles, two small snakes, two species of frogs, swans, hummingbirds, and an all-knowing white tailed deer