Minnesota Hiking Club #26 - Scenic State Park

 

Minnesota Hiking Club

#26 - Scenic State Park

Date Hiked: February 24th, 2025

Other Hikes That Day: Schoolcraft State Park

Wanderloon Ranking System Score: 3.33

This may sound like a brag but it's just a statement of how I work: I'm writing these travel essays the same way I hiked these parks: way faster than anyone asked me to for no other reason than I wanted to. I'm writing this on April 4th. When you are seeing this, it is obviously... not. I'm nothing if not consistent.

This was one of those hikes where I wondered why I was doing this to myself, but it turned out pretty well, comparatively at least. 

February 24th was an unseasonably warm day, and I chose to spend it going way up north to trudge through the snow because that's who I am as a person. Again, writing this two months in advance, it tracks. As I've no doubt detailed by this point, some parks are easily accessible in the winter months, some are gated off and require finding out what thigh-deep in snow feels like. This was... somewhere in the middle of those. 

While the gate was open, I'm not sure I parked in a real space, but no one else was there so it didn't matter a great deal. 

The snow was melting due to the weather, but not enough to make steps easier. Better than Franz Jevne, but taking more effort than walking on ground or on top of snow like Soudan; but the beauty and, dare I say... scenic nature of this park made up for how exhausting it was. I feel ridiculous saying that, but hey, it's not just a clever name. 

I imagine that when most people who have been here think of this park, it's about the swimming, canoeing, being on the lakeshore, or other activities that bring out the best of the summer's offerings. And it should, that's when most people choose to be there, and I can't emphasize enough that I don't blame them for that. My goal with these essays are not to chastise people for not hiking them through two feet of snow, but to offer the perspective of what it's like when no one else is there, as stated from the very beginning. That said, blue and green surroundings are not a prerequisite for being scenic either.

I long to see this place when I can hear loon tremolos and wails alike, though I'll have to choose my time carefully.  

This is not on the easier end of the Hiking Club trails, regardless of snow factor. There are two distinct parts that are separated by a junction, which is also probably easier to follow in times where creatures are awake and mosquito buffets are plentiful. Conversely, what is likely easier during occasions when touching grass is possible, that the loop in the woods half of the trail, was on veteran difficulty for reasons I've already stated. But the other half, which is a down-and-back excursion on a narrow peninsula, was tremendously easier than the flat loop because it was clear of almost all snow. Everything is perspective.