featured parks
Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area
307 3rd Street Ironton , MN 56455 Park open daily from 8 a . m . until 10 p . m .
Mille Lacs Kathio State Park
15066 Kathio State Park Road Onamia , MN 56359 Park open daily from 8 a . m . until 10 p . m .
Crow Wing State Park
3124 State Park Road Brainerd , MN 56401 Park open daily from 8 a . m . until 10 p . m .
Charles A . Lindbergh State Park
1615 Lindbergh Drive South Little Falls , MN 56345 Park open daily from 8 a . m . until 10 p . m .
Father Hennepin State Park
41294 Father Hennepin Park Road Isle , MN 56342 Park open daily from 8 a . m . until 10 p . m .
Lum Park
1619 NE Washington Street Brainerd , MN 56401 218-828-2320
Paul Bunyan Land Campground
17553 State Hwy 18 Brainerd , MN 56401 Check-in time is 1 p . m . or after . Check out time is 11 a . m . E-mail : camping @ paulbunyanland . com Phone : ( 218 ) 821-9617
operated in the area during the mining boom of World Wars I and II . The mining pits have since filled with water , and now serve as great exploration places for scuba divers .
In 1993 , the area officially became a Minnesota State Recreation Area . In 2011 , funding was secured to build the 30-mile Cuyuna Lakes Mountain Bike Trails there .
Hopper says the second most popular park in the area is Mille Lacs Kathio State Park . “ It is extremely popular , especially during the spring , winter and fall . The summer tends to be a bit buggy though ,” says Hopper .
The park features three walk-in sites , four sites that campers can backpack to , ten sites that can accommodate campers with horses , five yearround camper cabins , two group camping sites that can accommodate 60 people ( 15 at one site and 45 people at the other ), and 67 sites campers can drive in to , 22 of which offer access to electricity . There are also seasonal showers and restrooms available for campers .
For people interested in learning about history , this is a great place to explore . Over thirty archaeological sites have been identified within the park ’ s borders , making it one of the most significant places to showcase Minnesota ’ s heritage . Among the sites are those associated with the ancestors of the Dakota and Ojibwe nations , including one that revealed copper tools manufactured during the “ Old Copper Tradition ” and another dating back to at least 9,000 years ago .
Mille Lacs Kathio State Park is also home to a wide variety of wildlife , including hawks , ospreys and eagles , beavers , raccoons and mink , and of course deer . Geologically speaking , there is evidence of the immense geological forces at work over thousands of years there . The land features rolling hills formed when a major glacier stopped its advance south , and Mille Lacs Lake itself is the result of glacial meltwater .
Because of how popular they are with visitors , camping sites at both the Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area and Mille Lacs Kathio State Park tend to fill up fast . Another park in the system that tends to fill up fast in the summer , but may still be worth checking for space , is Father Hennepin State Park .
This park has six seasonal group camping sites open through October . Sites # 1 and # 5 can accommodate up to 15 people , Site # 2 can accommodate up to 20 people , Sites # 3 and # 6 can accommodate up to 25 people , and Site # 4 can accommodate up to 12 people . The park also has 103 drive-in sites set in two separate campgrounds . Fifty-one of them feature electricity . There are also seasonal showers and restrooms available for campers .
Hopper says for those who want to find a place to camp in the area that is likely to have space available , better bets are Crow Wing State Park and Charles A . Lindbergh State Park .
Crow Wing State Park features a group camping site that can accommodate up to 75 people ,
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