Superior Hiking Trail #1-2 - Jay Cooke State Park to Wild Valley Road

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 2

Jay Cooke State Park to Wild Valley Road 

Date Hiked: April 19th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 1

Grabbing a parking spot early in the day at Jay Cooke State Park was a familiar act. 

A little more than a month prior, I'd done the same thing when I completed the Jay Cooke State Park Hiking Club trail as my first stop of the day. By the time I got back to my car after that three-mile trek, the parking lot was jam-packed. I expected a similar scenario on a day that was even nicer than that one, although I'd be gone much longer this time. 

While I'd decided to begin section-hiking the Superior Hiking Trail, whether or not I'd be going north or south from Jay Cooke was still a question in my mind. It seemed like many people ignored those first two sections to the south, as even AllTrails had a complete route that started from Jay Cooke and concluded at the northern terminus. This likely has to do with the southern portions of the trail, through Duluth and beyond, being much newer than the rest of the trail. Alas, the curse of the completionist struck again, and after turning around several times on the swinging bridge (as rad of a bridge as it was the first time), I was off. 

Two times during the previous summer, I'd attempted sections of the Superior Hiking Trail. Admittedly, doing that while stoned for the first time was a terrible idea, especially as I had no idea how rugged and remote the trail was near the 301 trailhead. A sudden flapping ruffed grouse increased my paranoia, convincing me I'd run into a bear, and I opted to take the road back to my car. I took similar action after hiking a rocky cliffside near Tettegouche later that summer. This time, however, I was prepared. Remoteness, ruggedness, solitude; all things for which 67 state park winter hikes trained me, this time I wouldn't be bailing out to a road after a mile. I'd be bailing out to a road after 8.5 miles, and that's totally different because I completed the sections first! 

The epidemic of AllTrails users downrating trails for having the nerve to be muddy in the spring would've had a field day with this 5.9-mile section of the SHT, because slipping and sliding on these kinds of inclines produce more than a multi-colored pant leg. Without trekking poles, the risk of face-planting and getting nature's chilly skincare treatment becomes an even bigger possibility. I was stunned to still see ice in the valleys, but I had to remind myself that despite sporting my Doc Holliday tanktop, it was 50 in Northern Minnesota that day and only felt like summer because I'd experienced a 70-degree differential from other North Shore hikes within those past three months. 

The hills seem to go straight up, and crossing the stream requires steady rock hopping. The leaves on the trees must make the views even more impressive sight, but not being eaten alive by flies and mosquitos was a considerable compromise. 

Superior Hiking Trail #1-1 - Wild Valley Road to Southern Terminus

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 1

Wild Valley Road to Southern Terminus

Date Hiked: April 19th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 2

I'm not a thru-hiker, not yet. 

Not because I can't do the hikes, but as I stated in the introduction, sleeping outside is not something I'm yet inclined to pursue. Don't get me wrong, I consider it a tremendous amount of progress, considering I wasn't raised in outdoor culture at all and picked everything up on my own. But, while I can be outside from the moment I'm awake, once it's time to get some sleep, the idea of hard ground and canvas surrounding me isn't exactly appealing for a multitude of reasons. Bears, bugs, and other wildlife are a consideration, but even higher on the list is, quite simply, I've been a professional athlete in two different contact sports since I was 20, so... X number of years of impact and recovery on these muscles and bones, well... Air mattresses and the forest floor don't sound conducive to waking up in any condition to continue hiking. Maybe I'll get there someday, but for now, section hiking is my next step up. If that doesn't make me a "real" hiker, so be it, I've never been much of a real anything in various subcultures anyway. 

I started out in Jay Cooke State Park, a familiar sight to my eyes and hiking boots, and I'll detail those six miles in the next post, but suffice it to summarize: it's a bit harder than the Jay Cooke State Park Hiking Club trail, even though the two share the same path heading southbound. While I know that most people hike the SHT northbound, the website said that the Wild Valley Road trailhead was closed, and the Minnesota Hiking Club taught me, if nothing else, trying to work around parking lot closures was a terrible idea, even without several feet of snow on the ground. 

Alas, as I approached the aforementioned trailhead, I saw plenty of cars parked outside the gate on the gravel road, and though AllTrails listed this section as an out-and-back, I wasn't yet sure if I'd be willing to repeat those eight miles on the SHT going the other way. For as difficult as the Prairie and Deer Valley Loop at Afton was, logging in over 16 miles on a trail listed as "hard," half the distance on the SHT was considerably more strenuous, thus the conundrum of the solo section hiker. 

Other than a passing train, I saw nary a presence on this section, which does require southbound traversing, even for Northbound thru-hikers, in order to access. Once I reached the southern terminus and state border, it took a few minutes to decide to continue on the North Country border trail and return to my car another way rather than doubling back. While this may have expanded my overall mile count to 18, traveling on the side of the road until I reached the Wrenshall biking trail, then cutting back in through the West Ridge in Jay Cooke was more appealing than trying to do those two sections again.