Willow River State Park

Wetland along the trail

Got out and hit the trails earlier this week! For the first time in awhile I had a day off where the weather cooperated and I did not have prior plans. Drove up to Willow River State Park to explore. I ended up hiking a good distance through several habitats and even found a beautiful waterfall to cool off at! I would definitely recommend stopping by this park your next trip through the Hudson area!

Worth the hike!

Close-up of the falls

Perrot State Park - Take 2

Last time I ventured to this park, the trails were so iced over I couldn't get very far. This time the weather was amazing and the wild flowers were starting to bloom. I hiked my butt up the bluff (even though I thought for sure I was going to get bitten by a rattlesnake) and was treated to some fantastic views.

Trail up the bluff

Shooting Star

Treated to some nice views!

Rib Mountain State Park

On my last time home to Wausau, I had some time to go up to Rib Mountain. This happens to be one of the highest points in the state - 1940 feet.  Its changed a little over the years but I was able to climb the tower and some of the rocks just like I did when I was younger.

Top of the tower overlooking Wausau

Tower and Queens Chair

Great River Bluffs State Park

Enjoying the view

I went to one other state park yesterday - Great River Bluffs State Park in Minnesota. It looked quite a bit different than when I hiked it this summer. Sadly, the trails were sheer ice and after falling on my bum once, I gave up exploring any other parks.

Another overlook

The view was worth the hike :)

Perrot State Park

Hit the trails for a little state park hopping today. First stop was Perrot State Park in Wisconsin.

Unfortunately, we have had a warm temperatures during the day and cold nights so some of the trails I wanted to hike were sheer ice. I did a couple short loops but will have to go back and explore when the weather warms up.

Whitewater State Park

I love fall. The cool crisp air. Beautiful leaves. Sweatshirts. Lots of blankets. Hot beverages. Whats not to love?

Today was an amazing fall day so I took advantage and headed over to Whitewater State Park for a hike. I hiked to Inspiration Point and it was fantastic.

Bald Eagle - one of the many raptors I saw today

Stopped to enjoy the view on my way up the bluff

Its fall and Whitewater was just about at its peak for leaf color

Inspiration Point - totally worth the hike. AMAZING views!

State Park Hopping

Hey Folks!

I know its been awhile since I last updated but I have been busy settling into my new surroundings. On many of my days off, I have gone exploring. So far, I have hit up six of the state parks in south-eastern Minnesota. Frontenac, Latch, Great River Bluffs, Carley, Whitewater and Forestville/Mystery Cave. My favorite views come from Great River Bluffs and Mystery Cave is the most unique. Anyways, here are a few pictures from my adventures!

Latsch State Park - Only attempt this if you're ready for an extreme leg workout!

Great River Bluffs - Fantastic views and a nice flat hike!

Mystery Cave!

One of my favorite spots in the cave - this picture doesn't even show you how awesome the reflection pool was!

 

Forestville

Frontenac

Saw-whet!

View of the St Croix River on the trail

I went hiking in Interstate State Park yesterday. This park gets its name because both Wisconsin and Minnesota have parks on either side of the St. Croix River. I walked the trail along the river to the potholes - which is what the park is most known for.

Pothole

The potholes were fun to see but certainly not the highlight of my day. That goes to the little fellow I found along the trail. When you are hiking along the trail and see a pile of bird poop and pellets, look up. Someone is probably using the tree as a roost.

Can you see the owl?

 

 

Northern Saw-whet Owls are the smallest owl in Minnesota. They are about 7 inches tall and weigh in at about 3 ounces. When they call, they sound a bit like a truck backing up to me.

The owl stayed in the tree the whole time I was snapping pictures, completely confident in its own camouflage. I sat on a rock and took a bunch of pictures, then went on my way. This is the first time I have come across a raptor in the wild that sat and let me get some good pictures. 

If you know me, you know I think owls are overrated. But considering that the falcons have all moved south for the winter, this was a great sighting. It was also my first wild saw-whet! It was a fantastic find to end the past couple weeks of crazy awesome bird things. In the past 10 days I have seen a Northern Shrike hunting, got bit by a raven in the face, saw a white-phase gyrfalcon and harris hawk (both falconry birds) and now the little owl. Hopefully the trend continues into the new year!

A Walk in the Park

I must say, fall is my favorite time of year - the trees are gorgeous, the weather is awesome and there are very few bugs. Perfect. This morning I went for a small hike in St Croix State Park. It was the first time I went to the park since a storm earlier this year knocked down many trees! Seeing so many trees all snapped off at the same level was really bizarre. I also climbed the fire tower - in a week or so when the oak in the area turn it will be a phenomenal view. That said, the view today was very nice :)

Trees along the road leading into the park

Close up of the destruction

view from the fire tower

Weekend on the North Shore

This past weekend I finally visited the North Shore of Minnesota. In fact, we hit up 7 state parks in 2 days. My favorite state park thus far in Minnesota is Cascade River - the lookout point was absolutely amazing. My least favorite was Gooseberry Falls just because there were so many people (I didn't even take any pictures). The water was crazy high which made all the water falls we hiked to a little more AMAZING! My trip was a quick tour of the highlights and my legs are still feeling a bit like jello from all the terrain but it was great to get out and about without leading 20 kids around! :)

Devils Kettle.

 Judge C.R. Magney state park is home to Devil's Kettle. Usually this is a really neat place because the waterfall splits into 2. Half continues on where its visible, the other half disappears. The water was so high that they turned into one fall. We could kinda make out the kettle but this is the one fall where the high water was a bit of  a let down.

Me at Cascade River

Lookout point from Cascade River state Park - probably the highlight of the trip for me.

 Cascade River was by far my favorite (although the waves crashing along the shore on Tettegouche came in a close second). The park had falls and amazing lookouts without many people. Defiantly would go back and explore this park more!

Waves on Lake Superior in Tettegouche.

High falls in Tettegouche State Park

Falls in Crosby Manitou

Split Rock State Park

Belated July 4th Weekend

Slightly late, but had a nice July 4th weekend even though I had to work Saturday and Monday.

The fun part was my parents came to watch me dive at the aquarium. Then we went to Canal Park and a state park just outside of Superior.

Mutti and I

The Parentals

On Monday, I had to work. We did a program in Moose Lake - we had a vehicle malfunction but once we got there it was smooth sailing. Afterwards, I went to fireworks in Finlayson which was a really good show considering its a town of 300! All in all, a successful weekend :)

Banning

Today, I went out to Banning State Park and hiked. I had the trails to myself and luckily the rain held off until I made it back to my car. It was a nice walk and it was fun to see the rapids in full force!

Wolf Creek Falls

Hanging out above some of the rapids

Jay Cooke State Park

Yesterday, I volunteered up in Duluth at the Great Lakes Aquarium. After a few errands, I headed down to Jay Cooke State Park. It was only a slight detour and a lovely day to be out. I walked a couple of the trails and found the swinging bridge. I think I may be stopping here more often on my drives from Duluth. Sitting on the rocks along the river with a book would be a perfect afternoon.

view from the swinging bridge

view from an overlook

St. Croix State Park

I finally bought a Minnesota state park sticker for my car. I have lived in Minnesota for nearly 2 years and have not explored any of the parks properly so that I what I am working on this summer. First up, St. Croix State Park. Its near the Wisconsin border and about 20 miles from my house. This park is HUGE - it is the largest state park in Minnesota and I barely saw any of it. The weather was beautiful today so I got out to hit the highlights of the park.

The view from the top of the fire tower

Me at the top of the fire tower. If you look close, you can see the bruise on my left arm. That is my eagle bite...

The Kettle River - it is high from all the rain. I love watching the quacking aspen along the river!