Running Wild – Oh yes, let them loose and burn off all of that energy. We sure did, read on to find out why!
The Trail – The trail was a winding loop, with several ascents and descents but nothing that was difficult for either child. It was heavily wooded and beautiful, running near a lake and several swampy areas.
Trail Conditions – Some of the lower portions of the trail had small sections of mud that were easy to get around.
Bugs and Pests – Let’s just say that we were mere visitors in a land of mosquitoes!
Plants – We saw wildflowers and a few forms of fungus, but it was mostly trees and vegetation. It often felt like we were walking through a forested tunnel.
Bathrooms – One outhouse located at the trailhead. It served it purpose after a long drive:)
Cell Service – Getting to the trailhead we lost service sporadically but once on the trail we mostly held service throughout (T-Mobile). I was able to download the map of the park while there.
Highlights:
Joey – Getting back to the car!
William – FINISHING!!
Dad – Getting to the paved road where the bugs were not as bad.
Mom – We finally got the password!
Ok, so the highlights were not so great this time around. The park was absolutely beautiful and I can only imagine how beautiful it would be during the fall, with the changing colors of the many massive trees throughout the park. Unfortunately, this year has been the year of mosquitoes in Minnesota and this park was no different. We lucked out for the first portion of the trail but as we neared the lake and then several swampy areas, the little biters took over and had us running to save our skins…literally.
We made a quick stop at the outhouse as soon as we got to the park. Once running back to the car we loaded on the bug-spray because it looked like it could get bad. Honestly, we could have put even more on. We were bound and determined to make the best of it and snapped a quick photo before heading out.
We hit the trail with high spirits, taking a moment to appreciate a cool looking mushroom. Happily singing new renditions of old “classics” we were feeling good! Biff enjoyed checking the signs for Daddy Long Legs and took great pleasure in finding several.
Our first stop was the Dakota Village. We read the signs and learned about the wall the Native Americans built on three sides of their village and looked at the posts that marked where they once stood.
As we continued our stroll through the woods, Biff stopped dead in his tracks “Ah, there is a Daddy Long Legs on me! I want to keep him! He is crawling on me!” We also found berries and Combo found a really cool leaf that she tried to toss back into the woods but it somehow latched onto her hair.’
We caught our first glimpses of water and found a cool looking fungi that the kids thought looked like a seashell.
Biff was also really excited to find “a little ball that the trees dropped”. He first stopped abruptly on the trail and we had no idea why. Soon he popped up, proudly displaying his find.
Combo and I remained behind to examine “the little ball” a bit more. We looked ahead to Daddy and Biff continuing on the trek and decided that Biff blended in quite well.
As we headed towards the Landmark Site, Biff threw himself on the ground and refused to get up. We kept walking and he decided he should join us. Once he caught up to use I asked him to record his whining on our recorder and a little smile touched the edges of his lips – I guess it was not as big of a tragedy as he was making it out to be!
We soon came upon Ogechie Lake and stopped to take in the views.
At this point the bugs were starting to get a bit thicker but we were still strolling at a leisurely pace.
A favorite part of hiking as a family is all the little “treasures” that we find on the trail. We found a few wildflowers.
And continued onto Wilford Site.
But we especially enjoyed seeing the tree stump that we could see straight through!
William became our trail-leader at this point.
And we discovered a really cool caterpillar, several deer tracks in the soft ground, and a tiny toad!
At this point things started to get wet and increasingly more populated by the biters!
Before a complete swarm hit us, we noticed a tree that had split and wondered how on Earth that happened?
And we got a couple pictures of our faithful photographer for our adventures – my everything, Blaze!
This is where the biters picked up and we took off like bats out of you know what! Combo and Blaze rushed on ahead, while I tried to coax Biff into continuing on at the highest pace his little legs could take us (this was no easy endeavor – it took all of my PBS skills to make it happen). I let him say a naughty word or two, empathized with his pain, validated his frustrations, met him on his level and told crazy stories about how we would kill ALL of the biters in the world (think bug spray shot off by fireworks), and collaborated on how to celebrate when we reached the end. We ran hand in sweaty hand, spraying bug spray all over ourselves when the biters got especially bad. Photos became blurry at this point be cause we REALLY did not want to stop to make sure they came out nice – Sorry!
But the few landscape photos we did get were really beautiful and wonderful to look at once we reached the safety of our car!
We did find the Password and both Blaze and I took two quick photos of it so that we did not have to come back!
We continued our race for our lives through the woods – blood, sweat and tears!
When Biff and I finally hit the pavement we were so relieved, as the biters started to fade away. Soon we saw Blaze and Combo – they were quite surprised that I was able to keep Biff moving fast enough to not fall dreadfully far behind. All in all, we did the 3.2 miles in just over 1 hour (I forgot to turn the recording off until we were on the road again). We certainly got a workout in this day but WE DID IT! On the way home we talked about how awesome our bodies felt and why (endorphins).
Thanks for joining us on another adventure! Leave a comment and let us know what you think – we would love to hear from you! HAPPY TRAILS!!
Terrain – Flat with a few obstacles along the way. We did not encounter anything strenuous, total elevation gain of 50 feet.
Bugs or Pests – Lots and lots of bugs. Most of the time they were just the annoying sort that flew around your head but there we definitely felt the bite of a few a mosquitoes.
Plants – We saw many mushrooms along the way.
Bathrooms – The bathrooms were located at the trailhead and the camping ground, which was about 3/4 of the way through the trail.
Sibley State Park
Running Wild – Again, another go for it!
Terrain – Awesome! Mostly packed a packed dirt, narrow trail. Total elevation gain of 282 feet (definitely more fun). There were a few steeper climbs which made things fun.
Bugs or Pests – No bugs to really speak of! Thank you!!
Plants – We found wild strawberries and several flowers along the way.
Bathrooms – Located at the trailhead and the campground that we strolled through.
Weather & Trail Conditions: We knew we were in for some rain when we headed out today but the big question was when and how much? Luckily we were only rained on for a portion of our trek at Sibley, mostly skirting the storm line. The impending rain meant humidity but it was not anything to complain about.
Monson Lake State Park – The trail was a flat trail that wound it’s way around in a horseshoe shape.
Sibley State Park – This was a lollipop trail. It took us in a winding path to a loop, with lots of ups and downs along the way.
Trail Food: Cheese Balls! We also snacked on Trail Mix and Beef Sticks.
Highlights:
Joey – The Observation Tower and the Doe!
William – Seeing the caterpillar and running in the rain!
Dad – It was raining and it was not pouring so we did not get totally drenched but it was enough to keep us moving and keep the bugs away!
Mom – Catching up with my best friend!
Today we had our good friend Krista join us on our adventure – the extra help keeping the kids’ spirits up is always a good thing. Plus, we kinda like her company too. We did not want to travel too far today and Monson Lake State Park fit that bill (under 2 hours of driving). Since Monson Lake State Park does not have much of a trail system (1.2 miles I believe) we decided we would also make a trek to Sibley State Park, as it was on our way back to our house from Monson Lake.
On the way out we had to get gas and use the restroom and what did dad surprise us with?
Yep, that’s right Cheese Balls!!
Upon arriving to the park, Dad stamped our Passport Club book and we looked at the signs that told us about the Dakota War that had happened near the park’s office.
Monson Lake also had several signs dispersed along the trail which told us all about the plants and animals that were common in the area.
We headed out and were immediately attacked by the flying critters, time for bug spray!
The bugs meant that we would need to keep a quicker pace to be able to enjoy ourselves and not be bombarded with blood sucking monsters. William took it upon himself to be our guide, pointing out all of the signs and making sure we were on the right path (there was only one trail and just one option to take a different path but he enjoyed being in charge).
Soon William discovered an obstacle on the trail and Joey exclaimed “It’s a POND in the middle of the trail! Cool!”. Joey carefully showed us the path to navigate around our obstacle and we were back to racing the bugs.
Each year we take a bigger trip to fun hiking destinations (Montana and Colorado for the past 3 years) and I make Scrapbooks complete with a trip journey for each vacation. Krista asked if I had finished my scrapbook from last summer and I was sad to say that I had not even STARTED it. We got to talking and Krista had recently done some research on scrapbooking and the activity can be traced all the way back to the 1400’s! Who would have thought! This idea entertained us and got us to wondering what scrapbooking looked like when it first started.
William soon informed us that a new obstacle in the trail awaited us and carefully showed us how to maneuver around it. Boom!
We soon found ourselves crossing a road and had to do a little looking to see where the trail picked up again. It looked like a small black hole as we entered into a tree covered tunnel.
One thing that we noticed at this park was that there were several trees that bared the mark of Woodpecker’s looking for their dinner.
I tell you, there is nothing more important than making sure your kids go to the bathroom before you hit the trail – even when they say they do not have to go. I am sure you can see where this is going. An emergency soon befell our merry group – William had to POOP!
We raced along to get to the bathroom, Joey laughing that for once it wasn’t her (remember Combo?).
Dad and William raced ahead and the girls hung back and chit chatted. This was OK until we realized we were not 100% sure where they headed to the bathroom. A quick scan of the campground bathroom and we found Dad’s shoes and knew he was waiting for Biff to finish his business. It was starting to drizzle a little at this point, so the rest of us waited under an eave for the bathroom, studying a strange little bug that Joey found on the bathroom wall. Interesting note – the bathrooms had entrance doors with screens on them. That’s a new one for us.
As the sky started changing from dark to darker, we decided we should get on the move. We picked up a quick pace and headed out.
The lake was really gorgeous here and we decided that if we ever return to this park, we would definitely do so with water sports in mind due to the lack of trails in the park.
William found a cool Mushroom growing on the trail as we found the campground and our car in sight.
The campground itself was small but the sites were nicely spaced apart with good tree cover.
We made it back to our car in just over 30 minutes and hit the road again. Bye Monson Lake!
As we headed out we were not sure if we would be able to make our second planned hike as the skies were getting pretty dark and we could literally see the rain falling in the distance. On our drive out, Dad yelled STOP! And I hit the brakes so hard we might have slid a bit. He raced out of the car and we all wondered what on earth had happened. He returned with a flower that he had picked from the side of the road. A perfect treasure.
We drove to Sibley just for the heck of it and decided we would figure out the gameplan once we stopped.
From previous experience we know that the trail to Mount Tom is VERY short and easily attained, so we figured why not? The views from the top of the observation tower never disappoint!
The clouds were foreboding but we really wanted to stretch our legs a bit more, so we decided to go for it. Dad hypothesized that we had about an hour to get our hike before the rain hit so we decided to do the short 2.3 mile Little Tom and Badger Hill Loop. The cool insect find from William as we headed out just reaffirmed our decision to keep going.
Little Tom was the first stop on the trail. It was a fairly steep incline to the top but we were soon rewarded with sweeping views of the area. We decided that we liked this much better than the observation tower on Mount Tom because we were the only one’s there. Mount Tom had several people glued to their cell phones walking along the paved path, while leaving their vehicles running at the bottom…
We were reminded of our timeline and decided we should get a move on. The kids ripped up the trail!
Dad inadvertently snapped a photo of himself in our haste and will probably give me a big old Wet Willie for posting this but he is always so lovingly taking pictures of our adventures so I thought he deserved a shout out. Sorry babe!
As we cruised along we talked about a little of this and a little of that. We sang parodies of songs and laughed at the new versions that we came up with.
Amber – 311: Amber is the color of your poop and pee. Or Joey/William is the color of your poop and pee.
Birds – Imagine Dragons – Poops fly in every direction!
Yes, we are very mature and I am sure that people around us on the trail stop to wonder but hey, we have FUN!
We also came across leaves that were bigger than my hands and our first strawberry sighting of the summer!
As Blaze (Dad) raced ahead we wondered where he was off to. We soon found out, as he jumped out of the woods and nearly scared the poop outta William. Hide and Seek scaring is the best on the trail, especially when you pull it off without anyone figuring out what you are up to.
Joey decided that we should sing the “Ants Go Marching” song and Krista and I realized quickly that we no longer remembered the words! What happened to us? With some thinking we remembered the general idea behind the song and were soon encouraging Joey to come up with her own rhymes for the number that the little ant would stop to. It was quite entertaining. Can you guess what the little ant did at the number three? Yep, they peed.
As we reached the lolli of the Lollipop trail we had a decision to make. Do we go left or do we go right…decisions decisions. We decided to go left and quickly found ourselves on top of Badger Hill and were treated to more great views and little did we know that the trail would wind itself around so we could see where we had just stood. We started to hear some thunder so we took in the views and scurried along our way. For a moment we contemplated turning back to make it before the rain came but what fun would that be? Let’s roll!
As the trail progressed we found ourselves knee deep in conversations about lifecycles. How odd is the parent/child relationship as you get older? You begin to realize that your parents are people to and they have their own struggles to overcome, despite the fact that you still see them as that infallible person that can right any wrong for you. The parks begin to show subtle differences each time you visit them, as well. I wonder what taking a the same photo, in the same spot, one time each year would show over a 20 year span of time? There is only one constant in life…change.
In the distance I heard a light “crack” and looked around. Badger Hill was visible behind us on the trail and a brown figure stood motionless and I almost missed it. But there was a Doe watching us carefully as we meandered through her home. It was a brilliantly amazing sight and one that the kids ate up!
We saw flashes of light soon followed by a crack in the sky and realized that maybe we did not have the full hour before the rain hit. As we searched for more lightening flashes, Joey yelled out that she felt a rain drop. Now the big question was, just how much rain would we experience?
We found ourselves strolling through a campground, well the camper cabin portion and thought that the cabins looked pretty nice – we might have to check them out if and when we do not feel like tenting it (this might be a hard sell for Mom and Dad but I am sure Joey and William would love it). We discussed the endless possibilities for future trips as we walked on and soon found ourselves entering the woods again.
As I said earlier one of my favorite parts of this adventure was getting to catch-up with my oldest friend. We have been close friends for 27 years, often spending weeks, months, and even years without seeing one another but somehow we always pick up right where we left off. But there is something to be said about the quality of time spent together while on the trail. It has a way of putting everything else in the background and allowing you to really talk and enjoy one another’s company. It was fantastic!
And then it happened…the rain hit us. It was certainly go time! We all took off running, while carefully traversing the rocks and slippery portion of the trail. This made Krista and recall fondly our 16 mile day-hike on the Superior Hiking Trail last year. It rained on us the entire time, we were caked with mud by the end, but our fun never ended. But back to the present as Blaze and Combo raced on ahead as Biff, Ripper and Krista (any ideas for a good trail name?) took up the rear.
And the race continued until the very end, Biff told us so. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners were destined for a prize but Biff never told us what the prize might be and we never did find out. Despite the rain we had an AMAZING time!
We will definitely visit Sibley State Park again but are unlikely to visit Monson Lake State Park.
As I sit writing about our adventures, my family is gracious enough to continue around me and help me add to our story. Tonight it seems that our adventures got the best of poor Biff, as he fell fast asleep on our couch while watching one of his favorite Super Hero movies – it was a good day!
As always, thank you for joining us on our adventure! Please comment below if there is a park or trail system that you are interested in learning more about. We would love to hit the road and check it out for you, reporting on all that we find.
Running Wild – Throughout our adventure in this park, we were never concerned with the safety of the kids while on the trail. The fire tower was a little different and we made sure they were close-by, never much more than an arm’s length away.
Terrain – We encountered hills, lakes, ponds, and even paved paths. The park was expansive and quite diverse.
Bugs or Pests – MOSQUITOES!! If you are venturing off the paved paths, be prepared for an attack of those terrible blood sucking creatures! We also found several deer ticks, dragonflies galore, toads and moths.
Plants – We did not see any Poison Ivy or Oak, so that was a plus. Itasca State Park did have some wildflowers but they were not nearly as plentiful as at La Salle Lake.
Bathrooms – Bathrooms were available throughout the park. The busier areas had nice, flushing bathrooms while the less traveled areas had vault toilets dispersed throughout.
Weather & Trail Conditions: It rained on us both days, but it was never anything too drastic. The Hiking Club trail had a decent amount of mud in the low areas, which of course made the mosquitoes that much worse. It stayed around 70 degrees, which was pleasant.
Trail Food: Jerky, Beef Sticks, homemade Trail Mix, Chicken Sandwiches, Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches, and Sour Patch Kids.
Highlights:
Joey – Playing in the headwaters of the Mississippi River – not the Fire Tower, that was creepy!
William – The Fire Tower!
Dad – Knowing that this was where the Mississippi River starts and all of the effort that was put into finding the headwaters.
Mom – It was fun to explore the different historical sites.
Friday June 21st, 2019
Once back to camp we decided that we would check out some of the historical sites throughout the park. Our first stop was Preacher’s Grove. Again, once we were off the paved trail the bugs were out in full force.
Next we explored the Peace Pipe Vista.
And our last stop for the day was the Pioneer Cemetery. It was a bit eerie walking around tombstones of people that had lived in the area over 100 years ago. We spent time talking about what life might have been like for the pioneers. Joey also discovered an unidentified bug carcass that we examined for several minutes.
My favorite part of our day was our peaceful stroll along Lake Itasca. We chatted about having a cabin and what would be our ideal piece of land and physical structure. North Shore here we come!
Of course we had a yummy camp dinner, complete with Baked Beans. We were able to convince Minnie to take more Benadryl by mixing in Baked Beans and were a little nervous about her potential for stinky toots the next day…
Saturday June 22nd, 2019
We headed out early for the Hiking Club trail because we had quite a bit we wanted to accomplish throughout the day. We found the Hiking Club trail easily enough and as we were making it to the trailhead, Minnie decided she should add some poo to the landscape…thanks bud. After a quick detour to throw the poo away, we were ready to get hiking! The trail was right next to the Douglas Lodge and we were surprised to see vegetation growing out of the roof of one of the buildings!
Right off the bat the mosquitoes attacked! We pushed ahead quickly, hoping we would find a portion of a trail where the bugs were not as bad. Dad pointed out some fun tracks in the mud, while Joey raced behind Minnie.
We crossed over the Wilderness Drive at Mary Lake, for a brief reprieve from the blood sucking – I think we donated quite a bit of blood on this hike! Once back into the woods Joey found a Dragon Fly and Toad. We did not stop to admire these creatures for long because we were really getting swarmed.
The trail really was gorgeous and I wish we would have been able to stop and smell the roses more but we were being eaten alive. We joked that this was the Mosquito Apocalypse. Spirits were getting pretty low and we decided the only thing we could do was push ahead as fast as we possibly could. The race was on, literally. It was a fast pace or slow death by mosquito bite – we had only one option. Let’s BLAZE!!
Both kids hauled butt and I may or may not have told them they were a couple of badass hikers – seriously it slipped out before I realized what I said. William was pumped and took every opportunity to bring up just how badass he was…Mom fail for sure! But it did motivate him to keep moving.
There were several places where the mud was thick. Usually we take our time to move around the mud with as much care as possible, but not today. We ran straight through and had the mud on our legs and shorts to prove it.
At this point we could see a trail of mosquitoes following us as we raced along. Poor Minnie was even attacked and we needed to spray her with spray too, lest she had another allergic reaction to all of the bites. We actually carried the spray in hand to squirt more juice on ourselves as we raced along, passing the spray back and forth between Mom and Dad.
We usually have a nice treat or stop to take a photo of ourselves at the password but today I snapped a photo of the password as I raced by. But it was really pretty and I think the experience would be quite pleasant in the early autumn months.
The trail decided to throw another patch of mud at us and we cruised right through!
Minnie is not used to this kind of a workout and was starting to slow down. William encouraged her along, nudging her as needed. We joked that Minnie was thinking “Is this seriously what you crazy people do when you leave me at home? No way, I am not in. I want my comfy dog bed in the comfort of my own home. I am too old for this. Leave me at home next time!”. William got a kick out of this and did Minnie impressions for a large majority of the rest of the trail. Joey of course had to go to the bathroom and I told her there was no way we were stopping, so we needed to move. Begrudgingly she picked up the pace.
Everyone was relieved when we made it back to the lodge. This was the fastest we had hiked in awhile – 3.55 miles in 1 hour and 14 minutes – BOOM! We checked out the Visitor’s Center and used the facilities. Dad surprised us with Ice Cream before we headed out to our next stop on our adventure.
Itasca State Park is home to the headwaters of the Mississippi River. We rocked out to Led Zeppelin on our way to the headwaters. The headwaters were crowded with people – people everywhere! The easy access to the natural wonder made for a busy visit.
We were quite warm and full of mud, so we relished in getting in the headwaters. Minnie even enjoyed hanging out on the shore, lapping up the water, and getting her paws wet.
The park also had many signs explaining the headwaters, very educational.
We probably would have spent more time here, but the people were getting to us so we headed back out. We enjoyed our sandwiches and beef sticks on the Wilderness Drive to our next hike – the Fire Tower. The Wilderness Drive is a one-way 7 mile road that travels through the park. We listened to music and sang our hearts out.
Joey and I checked out the Bison Kill site on the way to the Fire Tower, while Dad and William waited in the car. We also saw the 2nd largest Red Pine tree – Joey looked tiny in comparison!
The Fire Tower was only about a mile out and back, but it was a really cool adventure. The hike itself was on a wide dirt road (cars were not allowed). The kids found another caterpillar that they lovingly named “Misters”.
We love finding geological markers and were pleasantly surprised to find one here!
Now I am not afraid of heights but something about these fire towers really get to me – so much so that I did not make it to the top of the one in Saint Croix State Park last year. This year I was determined to get to the top of Aiton Heights Fire Tower.
As we got closer to the top we had to stop a few times to let people passed us – not going to lie, I almost talked myself into going back down several times. BUT eye on the prize – I was going to do it and I did!
The views were well worth it but Joey and I both agreed that it was a little nerve wracking at the top – especially when we could feel the tower swaying in the wind.
A quick stop to check out the lake and have a sip of water and we were off to our next adventure – swimming! There was a swimming beach across the lake from the headwaters. The kids were excited to swim until they figured out the water was COLD! Joey was brave enough to swim but William and I were satisfied with putting our feet in and looking for snail shells. We found several!
After a busy day we were hungry and made our way to Douglas Lodge for dinner. The food was great, the service was wonderful and the company was even better! We even had a cheese curd that was in the shape of Minnesota!
On our way back to the campsite we made our last stop, the Burial Mounds. The kids were fascinated with the mounds and Dad and I enjoyed learning more about the people that came before us.
We did get some rain once back at the campsite but made the best of it playing cards and eating treats. We all had a good chuckle when Joey exploded her Bubble Gum all over her face:)
Sunday June 23rd, 2019
Our last order of business before heading home was “turning in” our Hiking Club miles and Passport Stamps. We made it passed the 100 hundred mile mark and earned 2 free nights of camping in a MN State Park!
Thank you for joining us on another adventure! We had a great time and hope that some of this has been useful to you in planning a fun adventure for your family. Until next time, happy trails!
Running Wild – No concerns on this one folks! There were several times that we could not see either Joey or William but we were not worried in the least.
Terrain – The Hiking Club trail wound through dense forest with thick shrubbery and trees enclosing the trail. We did not encounter any steep inclines or even hills really. The trail was packed and mostly flat but the numerous twists and turns kept it interesting.
Bugs or Pests – We saw several moths, found a tick and had our first taste of the Park Rapids city bird – the Mosquito! You definitely want to make sure you have bug spray for this trail.
Plants – Gorgeous flowers around each turn! This was my favorite part of the trail.
Bathrooms – None, so make sure you use the facilities prior to heading to the trailhead.
Weather & Trail Conditions: It was around 68 degrees and overcast for the majority of our hike. Being that we were surrounded by shrubbery for the majority of the trail we were not treated to many bouts of wind, which made the slightly humid weather a bit more sweaty. The trail itself was great – no mud to speak of and well-maintained.
Distance: 2.9 miles
Trail Food: We brought our usual snacks but this was a quick one so we did not stop for treats along the way.
Highlights:
Joey – Finding the caterpillars!
William – Mom walking into spider webs.
Dad – The overlook at then end.
Mom – Being able to get two passport stamps and passwords in one camping trip:)
In our hunt to hit each state park in Minnesota, we found ourselves camping at Itasca State Park for the weekend. La Salle Lake State Recreation Area was a quick 15 minute drive from our campsite, so we threw up our tent and headed out.
We love reading all about the parks that we visit and we were excited to learn that La Salle Lake is actually the deepest lake (213 feet) that is entirely within Minnesota – cool right? The first portion of the trail was through the scientific and natural area, with cools doors meant to let us through, while keeping the deer out to preserve and help rebuild the area. The kids especially enjoyed the weight that was attached to the door, to help keep it closed.
This park had absolutely gorgeous flowers throughout! William is vigilant in making sure that we all know that you cannot pick flowers or take rocks from the parks, because we need to make sure that we save them for others to enjoy their beauty and today was no different. This of course did not stop him from pointing his favorites out along the way.
Once out of the scientific area, we were treated to our first real views of the trail. I did appreciate the way the shrubbery and trees made us feel like we were walking through a forested tunnel but the few open areas felt like a real treat.
Back into the tree tunnel we went. What made our trip different this time was that we brought our dog Minnie with. We usually leave her with family when we go camping because she has really bad hips and worse, has AWFUL allergic reactions to biting bugs. We were not able to find someone to watch her this time, so we gave her plenty of Benadryl before hitting the trail – note this did not slow her down AT ALL.
William raced on ahead of us for this portion of the trail and we had to keep calling out to him to wait up, just to make sure we stayed somewhat together. Quickly, we came to the end of the trail and the password. Boom!
On our return trip, Joey was quite pleased to find two different caterpillars!
We definitely needed our bug-spray for the mosquitoes and deer flies but we had no idea just how much we would need it the next day. The kids were excited to get back to camp and nearly ran all the way back to our car.
The overcast sky was a nice contrast to the lush greenery around us. Back to Itasca State Park for the rest of our journey! This was a quick and easy hike with a nice, scenic overlook at the end.
Running Wild – Nothing of concern on this trail! It was a gentle trail that ran next to the lake.
Terrain – The trail was gentle with minimal elevation. We mostly encountered mowed grass and then dirt when we entered the wooded area.
Bugs or Pests – The bugs did not start to bother us until we entered the wooded area. We did see several moths, butterflies, and dragonflies!
Plants – The flowers were few and in between but I think that made them even more special! We did not encounter anything that was cause for concern.
Bathrooms – They had bathrooms within the campground but we did not see anything else.
Weather & Trail Conditions: Today was overcast and in the mid to upper 60’s – a much needed reprieve from the heat yesterday! The trail was great until we entered the wooded area when it soon became mud, mud, and more mud! The majority of the park was flooded and we took the only trail that was currently open.
Trail Food: We brought the usual supplies but the hike was so short that we didn’t end up eating any of it – nobody was hungry after our yummy breakfast.
Highlights:
Joey – The same as Mom’s!
William – Stepping in the mud!
Mom – Having the Pelicans fly overhead!
Tearing down camp was a piece of cake today and we were able to hit the road by 8:30 am. We went to Prairie’s Edge Casino & Resort for breakfast. I did not want to mess around with making breakfast (and a mess) before heading out so I decided we would get breakfast out. I’ve learned that the kids do much better with breakfast out when it is buffet style and Prairie’s Edge had a brunch breakfast not far from the park. Score! The kids enjoyed nibbling on a wide variety of goodies and we enjoyed sipping soda for breakfast!
We began our trek and were scheduled to arrive at our destination just before 10:30 am which had us right on schedule. WELL…I ran into more road closures and detours and did not make it until about 11:00 am – just more to add to our adventure list!
Upon arrival, we entered the Visitor Center and were pleasantly surprised with an array of preserved birds! Seriously, they had everything! We saw Eagles, Pelicans (they were HUGE), Geese, Ducks – you name it! We spent at least 15 minutes checking everything out and would have spent longer if we did not have people coming over for dinner in the evening. Once we managed to pull ourselves away from the display we had our Passport stamped and asked about the trail conditions on the Hiking Club trail. AND it was closed. The majority of the park was actually closed due to flooding and there was only one trail open in the upper campground. We debated for several minutes (go home or give the short trail a shot) and in the end decided to go for the short trail – why not?
I again used the helpful Avenza Maps to find the trailhead (seriously I LOVE this app) and headed out. Joey was in charge of our voice recorder for the beginning of the trip and happily recorded the sights and our interesting conversations.
William took the lead and zoomed off ahead of us because Joey was busy recording our adventure. William was excited to find his first poop on the trail! Joey thought it was important to mention that it was BIG!
Joey described the weather as “it’s not too hot and it’s not too cold and it is nicer than Upper Sioux Agency, the one we camped at”. We encountered several wild flowers and William stopped to point each one out to Joey and I, wishing that he could make a beautiful bouquet for us. He decided that he would be happy picking out flowers from a florist on a different day.
Next William was quite excited to discover and airplane flying directly overhead and squealed with joy!
Next we encountered a new kind of poop and thought it looked suspiciously like Minnie’s (our dog) barf.
Part of the trail was flooded so we had to “try to get around all these big puddles”. The tragedy! Actually the kids loved the water, as usual.
Recently I had a coworker ask me to take more pictures of the birds that we encountered along the trail, so this one is for you Dayne! We spotted a pair of Gold Finches perched on a nearby tree. They are tiny, can you spot them?
Our next bird sighting was immeasurably more impressive. In the distance I could see a “flying V” (think Mighty Ducks) and we stopped to watch them closer. The closer they came to us we realized that the tiny birds we could see in the sky directly over us were actually the massive Pelicans that we had just studied in the Visitor Center! It was truly a sight to behold!
At this point William decided that we needed to rev our engines, as he told us all about the race cars that we would be racing with. And for those of you that do not know this tradition, William will describe to us the type of car or motorcycle that we will use to race and then we take off running down the trail like a pack of wild dogs. It’s pretty fun and a good way to keep the kids motivated. Anyway, here is William’s description of our race cars: “Mommy’s race car is pink and it is a motorcycle and it has a picture of Captain Marvel on it so everybody knows that she is Captain Marvel and Joey’s is red and it has a picture of Loki on it [Joey was not pleased] and then there was William’s car. He was a motorcycle and there was red on it and he was Iron Man. And then there came a Badger who was riding one of my motorcycles and then the Badger [William] found a big hole and then he drove over it and did a huge jump that launched him to outer-space. And then we went over it and Captain Underpants came and pooped on the Badger’s mouth and then the Badger ate it. The End. Then the race started.” And we were off!
William, the Moth Master caught a bug and was super excited! We soon entered the wooded area and the bugs found us! They were especially awful. BUT Joey and I did find a massive tree that she was quite impressed.
The trail became wetter and muddier as we moved along. Of course the kids had to throw something in the water when we had a small stream crossing!
We continued on until we heard a screech from William. In his joy, his hiking shoe got stuck in the mud and he ran clear out of it, taking several additional steps in his sock. Mom and Joey to the rescue! We brought him his shoe and carefully placed it back on his mud soaked liner socks. At this point we decided the trail was far too squishy and there were far too many bugs, so we decided to turn around and raced out of the woods!
Once back out in the open, we walked along the lake, snapping photos along the way. Joey actually requested a photo of just the two of us which warmed my heart.
As we hiked back to the car we discussed cutting down our Rhubarb plant and what we were going to make with it. Joey wanted to look at pie recipes and bread recipes.
At this time William decided that it would be a good idea to Moon Joey and I – Joey and I…not so much. But he did redeem himself by dancing for us.
Joey then told me that in some parts of the world, women like to place snails on their faces to help with wrinkles. Apparently, the slime from the snails helps to prevent wrinkles. I decided I would take the wrinkle path but Joey wanted to take the snail path, just for the experience, hmm…
William then became the super fast Snail-Turtle which was faster than any animal in the world and zoomed on ahead. Joey and I then spotted a pretty pink flower and William stopped his race to check it out with us.
William then just had to have a picture of just mommy and him – the kids were sure earning their ice cream this trip!
Once we made it back to our car we examined our mud soaked shoes – yep we did a good job!
As we drove out of the park, I snapped a couple pictures of the flooding and boy oh boy they were not kidding!
On the way home we enjoyed homemade Lunchables (except I forgot the Triscuits…oops). And of course we needed to stop for ice cream before we got home. The kids were thrilled when I said we were going to What’s the Scoop in town, as this is their FAVORITE place for ice cream (I highly recommend this place)!
We really enjoyed our mini trip and cannot wait to take another impromptu excursion! Getting away from it all was just what we needed to regather ourselves and find our center (that sounds way to corny even for me but…). I truly cherish our adventures and this weekend just goes to show you do not need to plan a fancy or extensive trip to enjoy our beautiful surroundings and get back to just being a group of goofballs that love one another’s company.
As always, thank you for joining us on another adventure and I hope you enjoyed experiencing this park with us! If you have any feedback, please let me know. Until next time!
Running Wild – No worries on this trail, let ’em loose!
Terrain – We started our trek on a mowed grass trail and soon entered a covered forest trail. This portion was mostly packed dirt with some overgrown portions. We headed back up out of the valley to the prairie and more mowed grass.
Bugs or Pests – Bugs, bugs, and more bugs at this park. There were several areas where we really picked up the pace to outrun the bugs, despite our copious layers of bug spray. The worst of the bugs were in the forest section of the trail. Luckily the bugs were mostly annoying gnats and black flies, so we did not deal with many biting bugs (thankfully, that would have been ROUGH).
Plants – The kids enjoyed pointing out the different flowers on the trail and the fungus.
Bathrooms – Bathrooms were sparse and located only at the campground. More to come on this.
Weather & Trail Conditions: It was HOT (92 degrees when we made it to our campsite). Luckily when we found our way above the treeline the breeze saved us. The trail was well maintained and easy to navigate.
Trail Food: We did not do much snacking this trip but came prepared with the usual sugary goodness and jerky. We did drink TONS of water due to the heat.
Highlights:
Joey – Learning about the Upper Sioux or Yellow Medicine Indian Agency!
William – Finding the caterpillar!
Mom – Spending quality time with my kids.
This trip was a little different, as I took the kids out hiking and camping solo. Dad was at an event with a friend and I decided to make a last minute fun trip of it and randomly picked this park. I picked this park because it was more than 2 hours from home and we had yet to get our passport stamp and hiking club password. I wanted to spend the night so we could visit another park in the morning and was excited to find that we could stay in a Tipi! Game on!
The major road running through the park was actually closed just past the visitor center and through to just before the campground entrance. This made for some fun reroutes. The park ranger was extremely helpful and gave us a highlighted map of the specific roads we needed to take to find our campsite.
We hit the road around 1:45 pm. Along the way William told us that we should never trust a fart because he trusted a fart with Dad and ended up pooping his pants! Honestly, I do not know where the kid gets this stuff from.
We made it to the campsite around 5:00 pm due to the reroute and Mom getting a little turned around. Once we made it to the campsite we took a moment to check out the Tipi and then hit the trail because we wanted to make sure we were back in time to make dinner.
When we started the trail we were HOT! Joey noted “When the wind comes it keeps the bugs away and keeps us cool, it’s a win – win!” She was not wrong! William then informed us that he was “Superman, Superman to the rescue” and did a funny dance. We also encountered some pretty flowers.
The first part of the trail was a somewhat mowed trail with tall grass surrounding us. Pictured above, William took a piece of tall grass and deemed himself “Farmer William”. The kids spotted Blue Dragon Flies but they were quite elusive and we were unable to catch a picture of them. We also saw a tree that was half dead and half alive, pretty cool!
We found the hiking club password within 15 minutes of starting the trail but continued on. We also decided that there needed to be more creativity put into naming a password:)
We could see several areas that were flooded while we were on the trail (actually we had to do a reroute due to flooding on the hiking club trail). Joey found a hole and she thought it might be a snake hole and William thought it was probably from a mouse.
William loved the flowers at the park but continued to inform us that we could not pick them because we were in a state park and had to leave them for the other people that came to visit. Up next we had our first (of many) horse poop sighting and Joey spotted a frog that of course we had to investigate.
The birds were quite loud as we hiked and chatted along the trail. We soon entered the forest and as William said “Bugs, bugs, bugs. bugs are everywhere, bugs come everywhere, I keep slapping myself but I keep slapping bugs”. Next William found a teeny mushroom but we did not have much time to check it out because the bugs were swarming us.
We also found a picnic table with a beautiful overlook but I am not sure that I would want to stop to eat there due to all of the bugs.
More poop and William informed us that every time we came close to poop we should do a poop check on our shoes. This part of the trail was covered completely with trees and was really pretty!
William soon needed more bug spray because “the bugs were coming for me!”
William was excited to see a white butterfly and tried to chase it down unsuccessfully. William definitely wants to be the moth hunter when he grows up because he spent a great amount of time chasing them down and trying to catch them. Joey then told us about a moth that has see-through wings and she hoped to find it along the trail. While walking through the forest we encountered a fallen tree that was perched precariously over the trail. What was even cooler was that it’s bark had fallen off and was on the trail directly below it.
In his travels to catch that elusive moth, William found a red fungus and we stopped for a moment to marvel at it.
Next we saw a hanging caterpillar and Joey was sure that he was making his chrysalis. We stopped for several minutes to watch it work it’s way along it’s silky trail.
The bugs continued to plague William so he said he was just going to “run, run, run” to get away from them. Works for us, go get it buddy!
William ran ahead and helped us navigate around a hole and was quite proud to tell us which side of the trail to stay on.
Soon Joey spotted lots of wild rhubarb along the trail and we talked about the different things that we could make with it (we have a plant at home).
William enjoyed pointing out “wild” horse poop (I guess our family really likes poop!).
We discussed our dinner options tonight and William told us that he was going to eat his hot dog out of his throat, which apparently means that he is going to eat “the heck out of it”. We were all starting to get REALLY hungry for dinner.
Next we took a trail up and out of the forest (and bugs). In the distance we a structure that of course we needed to take a quick detour to check out. It turned out to be an old employee duplex and Joey read the informational signs to us to help us understand what we were looking at. Very cool, so much history at this park!
We soon headed back out into the prairie with a new mission to hurry to camp for dinner! We decided we should try to set a world record for hiking and we were off! As we attempted to take pictures William continued to sneeze and sneeze – is he allergic to pictures all of a sudden?
Eventually we got a good view of the closed portion of the road and we were hoping that we could see where the road collapsed but no luck.
We continued along our enjoying the views and commenting on how happy we were that the bugs had subsided some (William was still pretty irritated and we needed another application of bug spray for him) and the breeze was very welcome. My backpack was definitely sweaty! The sun was setting and our shadows were growing longer and I found the perfect opportunity to capture our shadow forms. Joey said “You can tell whose shadows is whose because mom is the biggest, mine is the second biggest, and William is the third biggest…well he is the smallest.
I’ve recently started using a new app on my phone – Avenza Maps. I am able to download maps ahead of time and then use it to track where we are at on the trail. Some maps are free and some you need to pay for but I will tell you this, the maps function SO MUCH better than other apps that I have used. Well, I showed the kids the map and they were super excited to see that we were getting close to the Tipi and food, so we raced on ahead!
William was delighted to find a feather on the trail! Joey hypothesized that it was from a Goose’s butt and William said that was OK because Hansitizer (his version of hand sanitizer).
We could hear the river on the last portion of our hike and were anxious to get close enough to see it. Once we made it to the river the bugs came out in full force so we had to make it quick. We snapped a quick photo (William obviously in pain from the bugs) and headed out. We also checked out the Walk-In campsites and determined that Walk-In site number 4 was by far the best. It also looked like the bugs were somewhat better at the Walk-In sites.
We finished up the hike and hit the restroom quickly before heading to our Tipi. I asked Joey if she flushed the toilet after she went and William said “Um, no Mom she can’t”.
We made it back to the campsite and worked quickly to have everything setup. I am not going to lie but there were several nearby campers that were watching us closely and I am thinking it is because they thought Mom could not hack it – I proved them wrong!
We then had dinner and the kids loved cooking their own hotdogs! We actually had chicken hotdogs and I swear they were just as good as regular hotdogs. The kids also made ice cream cone treats over the fire, which were pretty awesome! Side Note – I started the fire faster than Dad usually does…BOOM!
Our nighttime activities were especially fun and we cannot wait to have another mini adventure again!!
Running Wild – For the most part the kids were able to let loose and explore the trail in whatever they desired. When we took the side trails to the bluffs we had to exercise more caution as we encountered several steep drop-offs.
Terrain – This park had paved paths and dirt trails. Of course we enjoyed the dirt trails far more than the paved paths but we kept an open mind. The dirt trails were packed with some exposed roots and evidence of trail washout in areas. Overall, the trails were well maintained.
Bugs or Pests – We did not encounter any biting bugs but in some areas the gnats were atrocious. The kids enjoyed finding slugs and looking at their slime trails.
Plants – Green, green, and more green! We found several flowers along the way and interesting looking pods/seeds from the trees.
Bathrooms – There were a few different restrooms near the picnic area and the Visitor’s Center had a bathroom that actually labeled the batteries in the automatic flushers on the toilets. The one we used had been going strong for 3 years! It made me laugh because I have never seen a label on the toilet that marked when the batteries were last replaced.
Weather & Trail Conditions: Today was another gorgeous day! When we got to the park it was 64 degrees and sunny. No complaints here! The trails were in great shape, no mud or major obstacles to speak of.
Trail Food: We packed Jerky, Beef Sticks, Combos, Suckers, Candy Blocks and a lunch (PB&J half sandwiches for the kids and Roast Beef and Salami sandwiches for Mom and Dad – and of course Reese’s Pieces as a treat!). Honestly, we did not eat many of our snacks today but we had them just in case.
Highlights:
Joey – Seeing the views…dahdahdah (in a scary voice)!
William – Seeing Joey poop! And I saw her poop under butt and it was a brownish color. **His words not ours! We packed the poop out.
Dad – The bluffs, the honeysuckles and sitting down by the river when it was all peaceful.
Mom – I love our car picnics! I also enjoyed using our new voice recorder – the kids had a blast with it!
We had a bit of time crunch today because we were expecting an old friend for dinner tonight so we chose a shorter trail that did not require as much driving. When we got to the park we had a little trouble finding which trail to take and the All Trails map was not cooperating. We ended up getting a little turned around at first and Dad took over the navigation and blazed on ahead.
Along the way we saw a cool bridge that the kids wanted to check out and we told them that we would loop back around if we had time. The first portion of our journey was through the visitor center area and picnic area. Not going to lie, we were all itching to get away from the crowds and the paved path. We saw many planes fly overhead and discussed how awesome it would be to own a plane. We could fly to Montana any time we wanted! Joey also informed us that the bigger the gum, the bigger the bubbles (we bought a new pack of Tropical gum the day before and they were testing it out – many bubbles blown on this trek!).
Soon we were off to telling silly stories and making one another laugh. A little history – I used to really like Sir-Mix-Alot and I may or may not have introduced the kids to “Baby Got Back” at one point in time. Well the song is about butts (don’t judge, I was a not smart kid at one point too) and of course the kids loved it. Our deal is that they cannot repeat anything from the song when they are not on the trail. Joey took the trail opportunity today to regal us with her rendition of Baby Got Back. It was pretty awesome.
Finally we reached a dirt path that took us away from civilization. YES! We were off!
Along the way we realized that it was National Donut Day. Our dinner guest for the evening had offered to bring desert and we quickly decided that we should hint at Donuts – BOOM! Of course then we had to talk about our favorite Donuts. Joey told us that she wanted an Apple Fritter for dinner and William wanted a Sprinkle Donut for dinner. We also joked that it would be pretty crazy to have an Apple Fritter Donut in the shape of Miss Fritter (Cars 3).
Soon William discovered a seed/pod on the trail from what we guessed was a tree. He swiped it up and handed it to me. Joey then found one that was open and we decided that the inside looked like brain particles – weird! We also came across our first of many slug sightings.
We then began to talk about our upcoming camping trip. The kids and I are going to do a solo camping trip while Dad is out with his friends. I told the kids that we were going to stay in a Tipi (pretty cool right?) and William keeps calling it a SeePee…I can only imagine what he tells the kids at school about our adventures!
Shortly after our Tipi discussion William lived up to his Biff name and did a complete face plant onto the trail. He actually sailed through the air like superman! But he was a trooper and laughed it off and continued along his way.
Spiderwebs were a plenty at this park and it felt like we were constantly walking straight into them. We were walking into Spiderwebs and it lead us down the No Doubt Trail. Of course we had to sing the song for the kids.
Today Joey had decided to wear her hair in a side pony tail and we told her that she looked like she was ready for the Roller Derby. She then told us that she wanted to be a professional roller skater when she grows up…and a vet…well maybe a vet and a roller skater on the weekends. She’s a goofy girl:)
William found a boulder and took the opportunity to climb atop and proclaim himself the king of the world!
I pointed out the adjustments they had made to the trails to prevent out to Joey and Dad found another bird’s egg. We ooh’d and ahh’d at the lush greenery along the way. Dad found a pretty cool rock next that had a stripe down the center and we got to wondering just how do these rocks form? The kids also were treated to SUCKERS! We laughed when we saw a “Caution” sign for the cliffs because the trail did not run that close to the cliffs and we were still letting the kids run wild and free – it is funny how perspectives can be so different.
We left the woods too soon and encountered another paved path. According to our GPS we would be on this portion for a couple of miles…hmmm. We did find several slugs along the way, again seeing the shining slime path. Joey decided she should count the slugs!
The path would have been awesome for a bike ride but for hiking it was not really fitting the bill. We were also swarmed by gnats – they were thick as thieves!
Soon we decided we were not feeling the paved path and the gnats so we decided to turn around and head back into the woods. We thought that it would be fun to take random trails on the way back to our car. Game on! Note: You always have to be flexible when out and about, ready to change plans at a moments notice to make sure everyone is having a good time. At the time we turned around Joey had counted 42 slugs on the trail!
On the way back we noticed a dead frog and a dead bird on the path that we had missed when looking for slugs. It might be a bit morose but we carefully examined each carcass. I also took this time to show Joey and William pictures of the Tipi that we would be staying in next weekend and they became quite excited about our adventure!
The tree that you see featured above actually distracted Dad enough to almost miss our re-entry into the woods and the bug free zone! The kids and I got a good chuckle out of that. We also found it odd that the bugs were better in the woods (when they should be worse) than on the paved trail. William was again walking to the beat of his own drum and informed us that Imagine Dragons is the “best and famousest band in the world” (I might really like Imagine Dragons and rock out to them frequently in the car with the kids).
We talked about ancestry while we found new trails to traverse. Joey was quite confused as to how Mom could be Swiss and German, while Dad was Italian and Danish. We talked about how people did not travel as far back in the day and how Italians often married Italians and Germans married Germans. But then as people began to travel more and move to new places, lines began to mix and BOOM we have a more diverse lineage! I am still not sure that Joey gets it but we tried.
Next we came upon the bluffs and took every side trail that we could find to check out the views. This is what we had been waiting for – exploring and finding new routes! We found honeysuckle to taste and cool boulders for the kids to explore.
Next Joey and I heard rustling in the leaves and stopped to figure out what the sound was. It took us a moment or two to figure out the where the sound came from and realized it was a bird walking through the woods. Much less sinister that we were thinking, lol!
Dad bought Mom a handheld voice recorder as a birthday present to be used on our adventures to capture every moment and today was our first day testing it out. The kids LOVED it! They relished every moment to record their voices and I have to admit I loved it too. It will be awesome to listen to these when they are older and relive our experience.
At this point William had dropped his sucker for the second time and it was a true tragedy because his sucker was now covered with dirt. We have a neighbor kid that tells William to “be a man” in a joking and fun voice when he starts to have a tantrum so we began chanting “be a man”. I can only imagine what people would have thought of us if they heard us but it worked! He cheered up and moved right along. We continued along our journey and checked out more bluffs and cliffs – now was the time to take a little more caution.
Next we encounter trees that looked like the Ents from Lord of the Rings and talked about how we thought they might be sleeping right now and were going to wake up and walk the park soon.
William decided he was the Superman of the World and Joey was the Captain of the World that has to poop.
Soon the trail started in a downward trend and we were excited to get to the water.
Well William dropped his sucker again it was much harder to convince him to cheer up – think monumental tantrum. But we moved past it. Then Joey had a poop that she could not hold and we had to do some creative arranging and packing out to make it happen for her. I tell you, every single time that kid has to poop on the trail!
At this point we decided that we had all lived up to our trail names – Biff had biffed, Combo had Combo’d, Ripper had ripped (yes I toot a lot, I will admit it) and Blaze had blazed on ahead.
We headed back up to the trail and William enjoyed pointing out the spiderwebs along the way.
We continued to take new paths and really enjoyed route finding and chatting.
William soon stopped Joey and I to point out something that was flying. It turned out to be a piece of a tree seed that was caught in a spiderweb. It took Joey and I several moments to spot it but William was determined to help us find his discovery.
We enjoyed the scenery on our way back and laughed that “you do not touch your gum and you do not touch your bum” or as William put it “you do not touch your butt hole”. OK, so we were talking about not touching the gum in your mouth and somehow the kids said it was not good to touch your gum when you might touch your butt – I do not get it either but they laughed and were energized by the bum talk.
Not sure how he did it but William spotted a tiny Red Bug that he insisted I take a picture of.
We made it back to the picnic area and decided that this would be an awesome place to have a family gathering. The one shelter had several grills and picnic tables, with awesome views.
We have this joke where we say to one another “hey [insert family member name]” and then when they respond we say “nothing” just to mess with them. Well we overheard the following conversation from the kids next:
Joey: Hey William
William: Hey Joey
William: No you have to answer me but I am not going to answer you.
William: Hey Joey
Joey: What?
William: Nothin…
Not sure why, but this really cracked us up! At this point we had made it back to the car but wanted to continue on for just a bit longer. We went to the bridge that we had promised to return to if there was enough time. We traveled the paved path along the way and saw a few bikers stopping to rest at the visitor’s center. William informed us that he would bike here if he could ride on the tag-along bike behind Mom and go REALLY fast.
We decided to keep trekking just a bit longer because we were not quite ready to trade in our hiking shoes for sandals. William said “yeah we are already done with our hike on the other trail so we are just coming here to check this out so it is not a hike”. Goofy kid! We Hodor’d a few people across the way and enjoyed the views.
Last we hit the visitor’s center for a potty break and quick soda purchase.
We did 3.6 miles today in under 2 hours, which puts us on pace to hit our goal for the Superior Hiking Trail later this summer! We are PUMPED!
Thank you for joining us on another journey! Like and comment if there is something you want us to change, explore or whatever. We hope to make this as useful as possible for folks looking to get out and explore nature with their little people.
Running Wild – The marked Hiking Club trail was easy to let the kids run wild on (and boy did they). We did do one spur trail (Plateau Rock Trail) that I would not recommend letting the kids run wild.
Terrain – The terrain certainly varied quite a bit at this park. We steep inclines and declines, narrow dirt paths, wide grassy paths, single track dirt paths and switchbacks, rickety bridges, sturdy bridges, and even a small “cave”.
Bugs or Pests – There were a few mosquitos but nothing that required bug spray. And NO TICKS! Rattlesnakes have been reported in the park.
Plants – This park did have Wild Parsnip, which a sign warned us of but we did not have any issues. We did see the plant and told the kids to steer clear. Again, more mushrooms!
Bathrooms – There were two outhouses near the cart-in campsites, vault toilets near the Big Springs and picnic area. The trail spanned most of the park so the facilities were never TOO far off.
Weather & Trail Conditions: Another gorgeous day filled with sunshine! There were a few areas with mud but nothing compared to a day on the Superior Hiking Trail (SHT).
Trail Food: Homemade Lunchables (thick Salami, Cheese, and Triscuit’s) Juice Boxes, Reese’s Pieces, M&M Cookies, Oreo Power Bar, Combos, Jerky, Sour Patch Kids, and Gummy Bunnies.
Highlights:
Joey – Being the leader!
William – The water and bridges!
Dad – It was just this oasis in the corn fields and you do not know something like this exists down there, unless you have been there.
Mom – Spending time with my family away from cell service. No interruptions!
Well today was the day that I became a year older and a year wiser…maybe not wiser but certainly older. We started off the day with a Mountain House Scrambler, Mountain House Granola and Pineapple. We have been trying out various types of dehydrated food in preparation for our backpacking trip in August. We really like the Scrambler and decided that next time we try the Granola we will add hot water instead of room temperature water, as instructed. The Granola was just too cold when prepared per instructions.
We did not have to travel far to get going on this hike. The trailhead was literally steps from our campsite. You cannot beat that! We started off with a creek crossing and a fairly steep incline. We saw another slug, too.
We took some time to climb a rock at the top of the hill and enjoyed the views. This was where we first caught a bit of cell service…the buzzing from my hip startled me.
After the climb William took a break at the offered bench, posing like a “Big Man”. He also found a couple more spots to test his skills.
Traversing the rim we found that we were eventually above the drive-in and electric campsites so of course we had to give them a good “Hodor!” We have this tradition/joke where we yell “Hodor!” at unsuspecting victims. Trust me when I tell you that we have gotten some strange looks. The rim was really pretty and we had a lot of fun talking about the “Old Man who was snoring” and making up new things to happen to the Old Man. For example, he ate his boogers and had poop coming out of his ears. Yes we are mature, but it keeps things fun!
Completing the rim portion of the trail, we were taken down to our unsuspecting victims at the campground for a walk along the road until we met back up with the trail. As you can see from above, this particular hike really did cover most of the park. We took a quick detour to check out the Big Springs and talked about all of the fishing fun that could be had there. Unfortunately, we did not have time to do any fishing this trip – next time! At this time, we were also warned of Rattlesnakes in the area but were fortunate enough not to encounter any.
This park is the park of bridges. Bridges EVERYWHERE! We encountered our first two bridges while on the road to further trails. Later we saw people fishing from the bridge but to the best of our knowledge they did not catch anything. The park does boast that there is great Trout fishing during the spring.
Joey stopped for water (despite that we had plenty of water in our packs) before we hit the trail again. I am not sure she was thirsty as much as she wanted to play in the water. Just adding to the fun.
The next portion of the trail was flat and grassy, winding along the creek. We saw several folks out walking here and worked hard to choose paths to avoid too much contact. It might seem weird but most of the time we enjoy being by ourselves and would prefer to hike on our own. I mean, can we really make fart and poop jokes with people nearby? We might actually have to censor ourselves…I digress. This portion of the trail was surrounded by bluffs on either side and reminded us of a mini Montana and the Bitterroot Valley – our favorite place on earth!
Joey found the remnants of a Robin’s egg and we stopped to inspect and wonder where the little bird flew off to.
Next William designed motorcycles for all of us and we raced along the creek, revving our engines! William was even kind enough to install boosters on our motorcycles to give a us a little extra speed.
And again, more mushrooms! We really need to invest in an identification book because the kids have so many questions about the mushrooms that we just cannot answer. Luckily we know a couple of gals that could help us out here!
And what hike could be complete without a little dance? William entertained us with his sweet moves!
I cannot begin to tell you how many sticks were thrown off the various bridges at this park. We have to throw them off of one side and quickly turn to the other side to watch it race down the creek. Hiking really is all about the small pleasures for our family. Taking the time for these activities helps keep the kids interested and makes for a more memorable experience. I guess that is what I like best about hiking…taking the time to smell the roses, everyone’s roses no matter how simple or silly.
At one point we were not able to avoid another group – we slowed down, they slowed down; we sped up, they sped up. So we embraced it and started chatting…see we are not completely anti-social. They told us that there was this spot where we should be able to see many fish in the water so we all stopped to take a look. Unfortunately, we were not able to spot anything but we stopped for several minutes straining to see a glimpse. Our “Where’s Waldo” hunt was not successful.
We really appreciated the views in this section and started talking about just what we would want out of a vacation property. We decided that we need hiking trails nearby (obvious) and a creek, stream, river, lake, etc. We even envisioned a future spot within the park.
When we reached the password we did our little celebration. The bridge was closed to another portion of trail but we had prepared for this and brought our sandals for stream crossings. We debated whether or not we wanted to cross the creek for several moments before deciding to continue along our planned hike. The stream itself did not look bad (we’ve crossed worse) but the trail on the other side did not look well-kept and in the end we decided it was not for us. Maybe next time.
Dad found a Morel next! The kids were surprised that you could actually eat a “wild” mushroom.
Soon a lively debate started as to whom should get the Hiking Medal for the day. Of course, Joey raced ahead and William had a tantrum because he was not in the lead. We had a long talk about how the best hiker was the hiker that had the best attitude (thinking of others, having fun, never giving up, etc.). This helped to turn things around.
We decided to take a quick detour to Plateau Rock in search of a good place to have lunch. We were pleasantly surprised that this portion of the trail was challenging, with a steep incline and narrow path. We walked single file and climbed around debris. We did see a woman with a dog on a leash and a dog in her hiking pack. She commented that she was surprised our kids could handle the hike…hmmm. Once at the top, we were rewarded with solitude and a yummy lunch. On the way down, I definitely found it necessary to hold William’s hand as the footing was not stable and the fall could be painful if he were to fall down the hill.
Shortly after lunch both kids informed us that they needed to poop. Something about hiking gets their systems rolling! So once again, the race to the bathroom was ON! I wish we could have spent more time taking in the trail but when you have to go, you have to get moving.
On the way to the Hole in Rock trail (post pooping) Joey decided to make a mud ball which she carried with her for a good rest of the hike. Her hands were covered in dried mud, but she was happy. William spent time looking for the perfect mud but soon lost interest. This last portion of the trail was definitely my favorite.
At this point, the kids were getting tired and hot. We decided to whip out the water fans and the kids had a surge in energy, chasing and squirting our legs.
Next we found a bridge that was quite shaky and a little scary. It was sturdy enough but felt like it could give out anytime. It just added to the fun!
Another cool mushroom that we could not identify. Anyone have any guesses?
The kids really LOVED exploring the little cave that we came to next. I loved that it was cool and the water dripping down was freezing! It was a nice reprieve from the heat.
Soon we made it to the top of the trail and were treated with amazing views! We were not able to stay for long because more hikers were coming and the spot would not hold all of us, so we pushed on to give others the opportunity to enjoy the views.
This was the last of our hike, we headed down. Again, folks commented on their surprise that the kids made it this far (6.8 miles today). Really, it was not that hard. We just had to be creative and keep them interested. This is why I write this blog. It is possible to have little one’s enjoy hiking and take a on bigger miles. It’s possible and not terrifying at all. Ok, so maybe the tantrums can be a little terrifying but we find ways to work around those (they happen, it’s natural, people understand, the kid will get over it). What was cool about this portion was that we passed right by our campsite and were just able to make out our tent between the trees.
WELL, the kiddos did great, so we had to go to Dairy Queen (after finally showering for the weekend). William had a Cotton Candy Blizzard and Joey had the Peanut Butter Reese’s Pieces Blizzard. Both tasted amazing! Maybe it was the weather, the camping, the hiking..who knows, but I do know they were really tasty! We also have a tradition on family vacations to go to a local Dollar Store to buy souvenirs. Joey chose a cat stuffed animal and William chose a car (surprise, surprise).
Armed with our new treasures we hit the town! We cruised around Caledonia, taking in the sights. It was a really cute town and I wish I would have gotten some photos. We even saw a Moose and Deer at their Fairgrounds! We then went to a diner for my Birthday dinner. The food was AMAZING and the company was even better!
We headed back to our campsite after dinner and enjoyed a cake decorated by Dad, Joey, and William. So much sugar! We also played card games and built a fire.
That is all folks! Thank you for joining us on this spectacular journey! We had a blast and I hope that at least one person is inspired to venture into the great outdoors with their little people. The memories last forever and I can promise you that you will never regret it (yes even the tantrums and the mishaps).
Terrain – The trail consisted of a single track dirt path, winding in and around the blufflands. The trail was not always marked well, but it we were able to navigate to our destination fairly easily. I would suspect that even if you did take a wrong turn it would not take long to get back on track, due to the multiple intersections of trail. Near the top of the blufflands we encountered a grassy path that was perfect for really letting loose.
Bugs or Pests – Our luck is still holding out – no Ticks! We did encounter a few slugs though…we even saw their slimy trail!
Plants – The greenery was absolutely AMAZING on the trail! We were in the middle of the Hixon Forest and boy could we tell. The trees towered, surrounding us in a magical forest. We discussed that this MUST be what it would have been like on the Bridge to Terabithia. Of course the mushrooms were everywhere and we enjoyed marveling at their shapes, sizes, and designs. We also enjoyed looking at all of the vines that wound around trees and the surrounding vegetation.
Bathrooms – There was a single porta-potty at the parking lot. Joey told me that it was a little gross but what can you expect on a warm day of a porta-potty that get’s plenty of use?
Weather & Trail Conditions: We could not have asked for better weather! The sun was shining bright and there was a soft breeze when we broke out of the trees. The trail was well maintained and we were mud-free finally!
Trail Food: Today we packed a lunch which consisted of Juice Boxes, Roast Beef and Salami Sandwiches, Carrots, Sugar Snap Peas and a Sucker for desert! We also had homemade Trail-Mix (peanuts, yogurt covered raisins, and chocolate chips), Sour Patch Kids, Gummy Bunnies, and Jerky.
Highlights:
Joey – The horses!
William – The treats!
Dad – He has to think about it:)
Mom – The winding trails that were constantly changing.
Our adventure actually started on Friday May 24th, when we headed out to Beaver Creek Valley State Park for Mom’s Birthday weekend and Memorial weekend. The kids knew that we were going camping and that we were going to pick them up after lunch, but what they did not know was that we were going to surprise them with McDonald’s. Score!
We made it to our cart-in campsite around 4:00 pm and got to setting up camp right away. One thing we did not expect was the stream crossing that lead to our campsite but that just added to the fun. We had everything setup and ready to go in under 30 minutes.
The best part about our campsite was that we were right next to the creek. The kids could easily climb down a short embankment and BOOM…fun in the water! This feature definitely was a lifesaver because when Mom and Dad were tired, the water was not and they were close enough that we could swoop in for a rescue, if needed.
And of course another fan favorite is the camp meals! To heck with the healthy stuff…bring on the yummy! Exploding Brats for dinner, cooked over the campfire.
It did rain on us so we had to play a few card games while huddled in the tent but it did not last long. We went back outside and worked on getting the fire going again. This took a little doing because the approved fire wood was not the easiest to light in the first place. We noticed this same trend when we purchased fire wood at Forestville/Mystery Cave State Park last year. Our guess is that the fire wood comes from the same distributor and it is our recommendation that you bring a fire-starter to help out, otherwise it can be quite the endeavor! Once the fire was roaring we roasted Marshmallows and told spooky stories. William regaled us with a story about “I’m an old man”, complete with a walking stick and all!
Now on to the exciting stuff. We had an early start, up at 6:30 am with an oatmeal breakfast and leftovers. The morning mist while we were having breakfast was especially pretty. We packed our lunches and snacks and were on the road by 9:00 am. We chose to go to La Crosse because Sunday was supposed to have the best weather and Beaver Creek’s trail was longer.
Mom and Dad worked on figuring out which trail to head out on while William and Joey played on the rocks. Joey got into a bit of trouble pushing her brother which resulted in a scolding and in turn a sour Joey that chose to run on ahead, not cooperating with photos. Eight going on sixteen, I tell ya!
Next we had Operation Cheer Joey up. This took some doing and I had to try out several different tactics before she would crack a smile. I am never one to turn down a challenge so game on!
William was feeling especially capable and so we decided he should be our navigator and we gave him the compass. One problem though…nearly 5 year olds do not understand the concept of the compass pointing North. In his mind the compass always points in the direction that you are supposed to go (despite several coaching sessions), thus we were directed to go North frequently. We had to do some creative thinking to help him keep us going in the right direction.
We encountered some really cool mushrooms today! The kids always enjoy pointing them out on the trail and insist that we take pictures of them. I think we will need to invest in a mushroom identification book/pamphlet soon so they can learn about their cool finds.
The scenery on this trail truly was gorgeous. We felt like we were in a storybook the entire time. Who could believe that we were just a few minutes outside of the bustling city of La Crosse?
Along the way we chatted about what we would do when we returned to camp and it was decided that we MUST purchase squirt guns. And of course we needed to figure out what kind of treat we would reward ourselves with afterwards – can you guess what it was? Yep, ICE CREAM!
At one point, William decided to walk the tight rope across a long log and his near biff was hilarious! He came precariously close to squashing his “nuggets”.
Soon we broke the tree line and were treated to a very pleasant breeze.
We also came across a tire on the trail and speculated that it must have been there for quite sometime. Thinking about the tire cruising through the air onto the trail gave us a laugh. I bet it must have really startled folks if they were there to see it!
The trail was scattered with Honey Suckle and the kids enjoyed their sweet goodness!
Soon we saw a few horses on a private property that bordered the trail. By this time we were getting hot, sweaty and hungry. Nothing like a couple of Hangry kiddos to make the hunt for a decent lunch spot a priority. It took us probably 30 minutes of searching for a place where we could sit down and pull off the trail to enjoy lunch and the kids were VERY happy once we found a good spot.
Lunch was just we needed to recharge and get back to exploring!
After lunch we were out in the open quite a bit and it got to be even hotter. Rosy cheeks for everyone!
The slug that we found was really cool! It left a trail of slime behind and we watched it move on the trail for several minutes before moving on.
The views of the Quarry were quite impressive and even Joey and William stopped to take in the sights.
One thing that we did not expect to encounter was a pair of sneakers just off the trail. The sneakers were in great shape, yet we could see no evidence of their owner. Strange…
William was quite interested in a tree that we found COVERED in mushrooms. He stared at it for several minutes.
William eventually decided that the compass was slowing him down and handed off the navigation duties to Joey. I wish that I could say that Joey was a better navigator but sadly it seemed that the compass was more of a fashion piece. Clearly this is an area that we will need to work on. Maybe we should setup an orienteering course in our backyard for practice? More to come on this idea.
Spirits were trending in a negative direction as the heat and the distance was starting to get to both William and Joey. We started discussing a medal that would be awarded to the best hiker after each trail, passed back and forth after each hike. The kids liked this idea and found a new source of energy. Luckily we also stumbled across a bridge which added to their fuel.
Shortly after the bridge, Joey informed us that she had to pee and William let on that he needed to poop. Uh oh! The race to the end of the trail was ON! Nothing like bodily functions to get you cruising! Funny enough, we also passed a trail marked “Stinky’s”…how fitting.
Upon completion of our 6 mile hike, we rewarded ourselves with Squirt Guns from Target and Ice Cream and French Fries from McDonald’s…YUM!
Back at camp we feasted on Brats, Roll-Ups, Pineapple and Pasta Salad! We all had a good chuckle that our Brats were bigger than our buns. A feast it surely was! More fun in the creek and playing with Squirt Guns before bed. Another successful day in nature!
Burning Question: Where is the best place to get good hiking shoes for kids?
I have always and will always put my trust in REI for several reasons:
REI’s customer service is AMAZING! Their sales people are friendly and very knowledgeable. What’s best is they do not follow you around their store, constantly trying to get you to buy something. They take the time to figure out exactly what you need and then work tirelessly to help you find it. They help fit your shoes, giving recommendations as they see fit and even have you try them out on their simulated trail. They have helped us (kids included) find hiking shoes, boots, and sandals for several years now and I have yet to be disappointed.
REI also offers a membership for a one-time lifetime fee. The membership comes with exclusive coupons and member-only events. Furthermore, they offer a dividend at the end of the year!
REI donates a large portion of their profits back to nature.
Thanks for joining us on the first half of our camping trip! Stay tuned for Sunday’s adventure! As always, please leave a comment and let us know how we are doing. Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated! Also, if you have any trails or parks that you would like to see featured, let us know. We can scope it out for you!
Distance: 2.9 miles (1 hour and 4 minutes) & 0.5 miles (14 minutes)
Toddler Perspective
Running Wild – We felt completely safe letting the kids run wild on both trails.
Terrain – Lake Carlos’ trail was mostly flat and dirt packed. We did encounter some mud and a few gentle hills. Inspiration Peak was a steep upwards climb on a paved path that had become overgrown.
Bugs or Pests – Nothing today!
Plants – We were warned about Poison Ivy at Lake Carlos but did not see any. I am guessing they just had not grown in yet for the season. We did see some blooming yellow flowers, but only a few. The trees had yet to bloom but I bet they are really impressive during the summer! At Inspiration Peak we saw the normal forest growth, nothing out of the ordinary.
Bathrooms – Lake Carlos had structured bathrooms and porta-potties. Inspiration Peak had one porta potty just before the parking lot and away from the trailhead.
Weather & Trail Conditions: Today was overcast for our hiking adventures, with the sun only peaking through on our drive home. The lack of sun made it a bit chilly and we all rethought our decision to wear shorts, shortly into our hike (it was bright and sunny when we left the house). The silver lining was that the entire week the weather forecast predicted rain so we felt pretty lucky that we were not rained out.
Trail Food: Sad day – last of the Dog turds. We also had Reese’s Pieces, Sour Patch Kids, Jerky, and Almonds.
Highlights:
Joey & William – Getting Ice Cream at the end!
Dad – Lake Carlos was so different depending on if you were on the highlands or lowlands portion. And at Inspiration Peak, it was short, easy, quick, and cool. It just kind of came out of nowhere.
Mom – Being outside and spending time with my family.
Our goal is to hike the Hiking Club Trail at each state park in Minnesota. At first this was a pretty easy goal with several parks and trails to choose from. We now have now collected 33 out of 71 possible state park Passport Stamps and 30 out of 68 possible Hiking Club Passwords. As you can imagine we started with the parks closer to home, with a few bigger trips planned in between. Now we are finding ourselves faced with longer drives and we want to pack as much into those drives as we can. That being said, we chose to go to both Lake Carlos State Park and Inspiration Peak.
The drive to Lake Carlos State Park was just under 2 hours and by the time we got to the trailhead, both kids really had to go. We walked to the bathroom structure only to find that it had not yet opened for the season. We saw hopeful white chimneys sticking out into the sky not far off so decided to make a quick detour. We had two options 1) William said we should make a straight shot and just climb the picnic hill or 2) I said the Hiking Club trail would likely lead us to the porta-potty. I actually bet William that if the trail did not lead to the porta-potties that I would buy them Ice Cream on our way home and if the trail did lead to the porta-potties we would all win with a place to relieve ourselves. Well…William was right. The trail did not lead past the porta-potties but instead a road branched off to the facilities. I guess I have to buy Ice Cream for the kids, but at least we were all able to start the hike comfortably!
Once business was taken care of we hit the trail. Like I said before it was pretty chilly out and we needed to give the kids some warming fuel (Reese’s Pieces) before really getting going. This was a big hit! We also encountered a woman hiking with her dog. She stopped to chat with us and we are fairly certain that she would have talked about hiking and her family all day if we had stuck around. We talked for approximately 10 minutes before politely excusing ourselves and heading back out. We also found a tree that had MASSIVE mushrooms growing out of it’s bark – super cool! Joey was surprised to learn that some mushrooms that are found in the wild can actually be eaten and that many people hunt for them. BUT we were stumped when she asked which one’s could be eaten (research for a later date).
After heading back out William was still in great spirits, cruising along at a great pace. William had several tantrums along the way today and I will not be recounting each one. What I can say is that we have now adopted the “Well, we are just going to keep going, I hope you can catch up!” attitude. I am not going to lie, there is some yelling and some extra crying but eventually he gets up and continues along his way. Each time it takes less time for him to get going again, so here’s hoping! Once he catches up to us he is praised like nobody’s business and we usually have a celebratory treat.
We always need to stop and smell the roses along the way. When the kids find something interesting, we stop. This is how we get them to enjoy the simple and often grand pleasures that nature has to offer us. William and Joey found a grouping of cut logs and decided that they should climb them and proclaim themselves “king of the world” and “queen of kittens”. Can you guess who was who?
Along the trail we saw and heard several signs of Woodpeckers but unfortunately we were unable to spot any. The kids really enjoy finding birds!
Joey was also quite proud to tell me how tall she was and how close she is to catching up to me. I am 5’1, so sorry kid that is not saying much but you keep tricking yourself:)
At this point we needed to refuel with some treats. I should mention that we only have one small piece at a time. We do not want to make our stomachs unhappy, carry a bunch of extra weight, and we want to make the sugary goodness last throughout our adventure.
Next we encountered “the big hill”. There were actually signs that warned us to take it easy on the hill and we had a good chuckle. It is fun to see the different perspectives – some say difficult and some say “Blazing Speed” like William.
William soon found a very cool tree that he of course had to hide in. Joey has gotten very good at pretending she does not see him hide and playing along when he jumps out and scares the hibby jibbies out of us. Many times they fight like cats and dogs but those moments when they are sweet and considerate with one another are gold.
Soon we realized that our first camping trip of the season was just 2 weekends away! We will be staying at a cart-in site (no backpacking sites available) at a state park and needed to get going on planning our menu. Deep thought and discussion soon took place. We have decided on Velveeta Shells and Cheese – easy to cook on a backpacking stove, and walking taco’s, hot-dogs and burgers on the fire, and possibly roll-ups to start.
Next we spotted an Eagle’s nest. We marveled at the sheer size of the nest when we were able to see it up close. I bet Joey could have comfortably laid down inside of it! As we were debating whether or not Joey could fit in the nest, William found the sign that instructed us to look up to see the nest – beat you to it!
Next we encountered our first bridge of the day and you know what that meant! Yep, William had to stop to throw a stick in. Joey and I enjoyed looking at the yellow flowers that had just started to bloom – anyone know what they might be?
Our leisurely stroll then consisted of discussing food options for the rest of the day. We decided that we should have take-out Chinese and Cheese Curds and Ice Cream from A&W. Joey and William were quite disappointed that we forgot our A&W coupon at home. It was funny to explain to them that you do not need a coupon to purchase the food but if you used the coupon you would just pay less. It seems that the talk of food really got William’s engines blazing!
We soon encountered our first signs of mud but were pleased to discover that it was EASY to walk around (nothing like Rice Lake State Park).
Soon Joey informed me that she had to poop. Seriously what is it with hiking that gets that kids system rolling? She also elaborated, explaining that she could not run because she feared it might make an early departure from her body. Where does she get this stuff? The hunt for a bathroom was ON like Donkey Kong! Side note – I was recently asked by a coworker if I was old enough to remember Donkey Kong and I thought it was pretty funny that the kids would use this phrase to describe our search:)
10 minutes or so later we made it to the lake. It was impressive how absolutely clear it was! Both kids had to put their hands in the water to test whether or not it was warm enough to swim – definite NO from both, lol! Luckily discovering the lake also meant that we found a group camp and another porta-potty! Joey was relieved! Interesting potty note – there was a bird’s nest on the eves of the porta-potty and Joey was disappointed to find there was no toilet paper. Mom to the rescue! I ALWAYS keep a roll of toilet paper (and a plastic bag to carry out garbage) in my pack. Man was she relieved when I swooped in with the life saving white, triple ply squares!
The last stretch of this hike was the best! It was a narrow dirt trail that ran along the lake. Dad and I both decided that it reminded us of the Superior Hiking Trail. It really put a new spring into everyone’s steps!
Last the kids both thought we should double back and take the original trail to the first bathroom stop to get to the car but Dad and I saw that the trail we were on was a more direct shot. The kids were skeptical and it was fun to watch their reaction as they discovered that we were right…BOOM!
We piled back into the car and headed for our next destination. We also called my Mother to wish her a Happy Mother’s Day. Inspiration Peak was about 30 minutes from Lake Carlos, so it was perfect for a quick lunch. The kids had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on hot-dog buns (don’t judge, we do not like to waster anything).
Once at the trailhead we took off – the kids were disappointed. We had told them that it was a paved trail and they expected it to be similar to the sidewalk outside of our house. It was not. The trail or path, was overgrown in several areas and quite steep.
William did suffer from another tantrum and being the last stop on our Mother’s Day hike, I decided I would do the motherly thing and carry him. Oh boy! That certainly added a bit more strain to the calves. BUT when I told him that I would need to put him down for a little bit he was rejuvenated and ready to go again. We also saw our first glimpse of the panoramic views promised.
The kids and I discussed that this hike would be a short up to the top and back down again. Things were starting to look up for them!
Next we saw that we were close to the top and the kids took off!
At the top we were awarded with panoramic views of the area – it was absolutely gorgeous and we hope to come back just for a picnic. Last night I also learned that one of my friends actually grew up in a farm that was visible from the top of Inspiration Peak – so cool!
Next we had to decide if we wanted to take the same trail down or the other to the left. I chose the trail to the left and the kids were disappointed because they thought this meant we were taking the longer way down.
Once we explained that it was the same distance (or less as it turned out to be) the game was back on! With some caution not to fall when running, we were off!
Once at the bottom we found the picnic area and a hand well pump. The kids were convinced that it would not work but Dad showed them otherwise!
We also had to play king of the world one last time on the big rocks near the picnic area!
Thank you for joining us on another journey! I hope that you enjoyed the post and please, if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions please let us know! OR if a post has inspired you to get outside and hit a featured trail we would LOVE to know! Until next time!
Hiking with Kids! 