Superior Hiking Trail #1-8 - Grand Ave. Chalet to Waseca Street

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 8

Grand Ave. Chalet to Waseca Street

Date Hiked: May 3rd, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 9, Map 1 - Section 10, Map 1 - Section 11

With a memory of the view from the top of Enger Tower, I set out from the Spirit Mountain parking lot with the intention of reaching that park, despite both the heat and how crowded it might be on a gorgeous Saturday in the north. The first spur led me to see the ski lifts from the other side, so I knew the visibility was going to be outstanding. With no familiarity of these sections, I couldn't predict how difficult it would be to reach Enger Park and meet my ride, but missing someone who stood in the top of the tower with me that day, the next best thing I could do was pursue a scene from a memory. 

Normally a trail getting this close to a major interstate would be a turn-off, but it was the magic section of the 35, the one for which I'm always building up for someone taking the trip to Duluth and the North Shore for the first time. After two hours of mostly uninteresting highway driving, crossing over the hill and the following descent into Duluth is one of my favorite sights, and this day's hike would give me the chance to admire it as long as I wanted to from a place where I didn't have to worry about driving while sneaking glances at both the view and the first-timer's face when it unveils itself. 

Along the ridges, mud was still a factor, but not as much as it had been with a few of the previous hikes. The urban sections were naturally going to have more than just remote nature, which had both advantages and disadvantages. There was more likely to be infrastructure like bathrooms or places to fill up on water, but it also meant concrete, sidewalks, crossing roads of varying traffic flow, thus increasing the noise level from which a sensory sensitive autistic person like me is constantly trying to flee. 

Going under the 35, briefly reacquainting with the DWP trail, and heading back into the woods, my confidence was high that I could reach my goal. The heat was becoming a factor though, as I was more sensitive to it than ever before. It took so much conditioning and adjustment to complete the winter speedrun of the Minnesota Hiking Club that conversely, the heat felt more overwhelming to me than it likely would've at any other point in time. I wrote about this in my William O'Brien log for the Minnesota Hiking Club series, where 70 degrees seemed like 120 because I'd only recently been used to numbers with negative signs next to them . Year-round hiking is a series of adjustments in all capacities, but temperature tolerance is one that's constantly in flux. It's either tempering the cold and finding ways to minimize the impact it has on your motivation, or it's wondering why you're suddenly going through so much water and your chest seems heavy even though you haven't put in the miles you're used to. 

Superior Hiking Trail #1-7 - Magney Snively to Grand Ave. Chalet

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 7

Magney Snively to Grand Ave. Chalet

Date Hiked: April 28th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 6

Damn, that's a big pokeyboi on a very skinny treetop!

This was another section with which I was familiar. The previous fall, my delusions of being ready for this trail were confronted by my obsessive need to complete every Adventure Lab in existence (if you don't know what ALs are, it's a Geocaching thing. If you don't know what that is, I can't help you. I'd say 'Google it' but even that's not good advice anymore). Autumn ere, I was working on a Lab about trails in Duluth and I used the Superior hill descent to reach the DWP, a rail trail following a similar path through the hills into Duluth proper. It involved crossing the same high bridge, but where I once stayed on the flat and paved route, this time I followed the blazes into the hills and rocks. 

But not before I saw this guy while crossing that bridge! I've never seen a porcupine in the wild before! While my constant running paranoia mistook every noise for a bear or mountain lion making chomps out of my solo hiking ass, giant porcupine in the tree nearly passed me by. But, even from across the bridge, I couldn't help but be like "what's that giant thing up there?" As a birdwatcher, I'm used to mistaking vague bird shapes for branches or bunches of leaves, but... Are they that excellent of climbers or are the birches that deceptively robust?

This is a smaller section of the 14 in Map 1, and my views of sections will alter dramatically by Map 2, but even then, I am devoting so much of the uniform word limit to this fella because... even if only doing this section, nostalgia and spinyguy are really all I remember. I mean, this was the same hike as starting off with Ely's Peak, which is like having Ospreay/Omega as the curtain-jerker but featuring a tag match with no stakes in the main event; not necessarily bad, but damn is it difficult to follow (If you don't know wrestling either, just insert a comparison of whatever subculture is appropriate for your comparison). 

I could talk about how the final patch approaching the chalet had become a miniature waterfall, but it's spring in Duluth. The mud comes with the territory, despite what some in reviewer culture would have you believe. I could talk about how I picked this stopping point because the Munger Trail was right across the street, but I've referenced that hike so many times that you're likely filling in the background of it yourself if you've read this blog more than ever. I will say though, after it took me over three hours to get the six miles of these two sections, the steady grade going back up the hill only taking an hour and ten minutes was a pleasant surprise, as well as a marker of how far I'd come. 

But I was honestly just relieved for the thankfully easy hike to loop back up.

Superior Hiking Trail #1-6 - Becks Rd. to Magney Snively

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 6

Becks Rd. Trailhead to Magney Snively

Date Hiked: April 28th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 7

My plan of working on the Superior Hiking Trail on Saturdays lasted an entire two of them. Given the previous series about the Minnesota Hiking Club, the only surprise about that is likely that I made it an entire week without jumping ahead. Even with how exhausted I felt staring at the impending Ely's Peak at the end of the previous hike, temptation won out. When the weather looked to be relatively cool and dreary, and with the season of bugs and North Shore crowds approaching, I imagined that this section might be one of the more popular weekend spots. Therefore, a cold morning summit felt like a good way to knock some miles off the highlight poster. (Why does that sound dirtier than it is?)

Only one other car was at the Becks Road trailhead that morning, as compared to the overflow situation that past Saturday. further validating my decision. Granted, that one car was one of the "Idling in the Car for Hours at a Time at a Park" Club I've seen so much of in the last few years, but I digress. 

A few flurries began to fall as I recalled the tank top weather only a couple days earlier. The FAQ on the SHT website makes sure people know that the trail doesn't control the weather's predictability any more than it manifests mosquitoes and deer ticks, because some people apparently think going through the remote northwoods in the summer has an off switch that's only not flipped because fuck you, that's why. I wonder if they think mud is also a conspiracy to piss off the rubes. 

I couldn't help but recall two previous adventures as I slowly pushed myself up the steep, rocky incline. First, that time my partner and I accidentally climbed Cougar mountain (no, accidentally is not a typo), where I was in mesh shoes, had no water, and every step on the hike down hurt my knees. How far I had come in three years, indeed. Second, my longest hike to date (as of this writing on May 14th, 2025), the 22.2 miles on the Münger Trail, likely because it was right below and I'd be taking it on the way back, but also because there was a time where that rail grade incline seemed difficult. 

Blue blazes on rocks as a guiding sign were really useful. Good invention, them trail blazes, because AllTrails can be a liar. The views were good, but some white blazes led to the actual peak, and I was already there. Why not stare down from the place at which I stared up hours earlier? I mean, it's no Unimpressive Overlook, but it's alright, I guess. It's not its fault that it can't meet the impossible standard of Unimpressive, that doesn't mean it should stop trying. 

After that though, it starts feeling like getting lost in Emyn Muil for a while (and that's not a bad thing, unless you're going in circles), but Duluth's skyview awaits. 

Superior Hiking Trail #1-5 - 131st Ave. W to Becks Rd. Trailhead

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 5

131st Ave. W. to Becks Rd. Trailhead

Date Hiked: April 26th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 3, Map 1 - Section 4

"How much harder could 2.4 miles be?" my mind taunted me with that silly question on repeat as I pushed myself toward my pickup location when I could've gotten off my feet sooner at 131st. My ride had even offered to pick me up there, but no, I had to push on for some impractical idea of outdoing my first hike with three sections instead of two, which mattered to me and literally nobody else. All the while, news of my Browns selecting Shedeur Sanders reached my fleeting data signal long enough for flashbacks of the circus around Johnny Football to flood my brain. At least those were nicer than other mental torment chambers from which hiking was often an escape? Even mushroom clouds have silver linings. 

After the jaunt down by the river, where I did not see Matt Foley but instead thought of a pleasant memory drifting along the river toward Duluth, I was now back with the bare branches, crossing bike trail junctions, and inching my way closer to Becks Road, where there would be graciously-provided beverages and no more need to climb up hills. The inclines on this trail are like the area itself gained sentience around the time the term "flyover country" became colloquial, and therefore the trail had to punish everyone for the commonality of such a thought. "I'll show you flyover country, climb up this flat, boring plain, bitch!" After 10+ miles and several hours, the internal monologue's perception of difficulty may have been exaggerated slightly, but without that, all that remains is the cautiously-guarded optimism someone from Cleveland gently pushes out into the universe, knowing that other shoe's gonna drop like a fourth down pass right on the numbers. 

What was even running through my head at this point? I'm not pretending it's organized or sensical, I'm just a travel essayist telling the events as I experienced them. What, you don't also have thoughts like "oh god, my team's up by 26, now they've got us exactly where they want us!" I'm not saying it's rational. 

A similar level of relatable jadedness seemed to greet me along this relatively short section, where a sign pointed me toward an "Unimpressive Overlook." 

Sign me up for some of that irony! 

Said overlook is the first picture on this post, and as you can see, even without any leaves on the trees, the overlook just doesn't have the self-confidence necessary to own exactly what it is. With Ely's Peak looming nearby on the next NOBO section, it must be hard to get worked up and excited about showing off what you got.

With the Beck's Road trailhead mere dots away on my tracker, I looked up at the steep ridge giving me its forest middle finger taunt. For the first time since Split Rock with no spikes, I ate it hard and my water bottle slid to the bottom. Flyover country indeed, having pushed on yet again in a way nobody asked of me.

Superior Hiking Trail #1-4 - Grand Portage Trailhead to 131st Ave W. Trailhead

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 4

Grand Portage Trailhead to 131st Ave. W. Trailhead

Date Hiked: April 26th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 3, Map 1 - Section 5

After rugged and remote scenes taking over shortly after leaving Jay Cooke State Park, or at least the visitor's center area, the riverside stroll wasn't the only surprising sudden change, and not just realizing that I was still within the bounds of the massive aforementioned state park's grounds. The trailhead had groups of people heading in either direction, and the road nearby had somewhat regular traffic. To go from near isolation to seeing human congregation and vehicular consistency was the inverse of the journey into the wilderness from the previous post, and this is only the halfway point of a single hike. 

No matter how many times I get reacquainted with the St. Louis River, one memory in particular will always resurface. A short-lived but nonetheless impactful relationship I had in 2018 gave me an unusual adventure where my special interest in trains combined with a love of kayaking, and I ended up with a hand-crafted wooden loon that still remains prominently displayed on my bookshelf to this day. That was the day I did the Choo-Choo Paddle, where an excursion train dropped us off six miles from the marina, and we paddled back on the St. Louis River by ourselves on a perfect day for weather and affection that would soon regrettably dissipate. Now, seven years later and being a completely different person in countless ways, the river and I caught up like old friends at a high school reunion. There was no animosity or frustration expressed over the duration between visits, but circumstances necessitated the encounter's brevity, and one bend in the trail later left me once again on a short overlook spur, hiking away from my lost contact before I even realized it was over. Such is the nature of a new trail, but lost connections can be such sweet sorrow. 

The white pines were comforting, drifting in the wind with the recognition of someone encountering the steep inclines on which they've been rooted for generations. They were nice enough to provide me with the brief reprieve of a stone bridge before giving me the choice of ending at the 131st Ave. Trailhead or moving on to the Beck's Road stop a mere 2.4 miles farther. I opted for the latter, though I was halfway down the spur route to the trailhead before realizing my error. 

Cell phone signal reconnections were brief and fleeting, but I did manage to alert the person gracious enough to provide me with transport as to where I'd need to be picked up. How much harder could a few miles be on such a glorious sunny Saturday after all? The previous weekend, I'd added 10+ miles after the initial 8.5 of this trail, it couldn't be that bad without having to double back, right? 

Being too exhausted to bother looking for the nearby Geocaches answered that question for me. I once again reminded myself that I'd spent most of the winter hiking trails that were 6 miles or less. 

Alas.

Minnesota State Parks Revisited - Nerstrand-Big Woods State Park

 

Nerstrand-Big Woods State Park

Date Hiked: June 6th, 2025

Trail Hiked: Hidden Falls, Fawn, Hope, Beaver, Maple Big Woods, and Fox Loop 

Distance Hiked: 10.6 miles

Elevation Gain: 830 feet

Duration: 3h 21m

I have previously described the Hiking Club trails as the appetizer for what the rest of the park has to offer. Afton, for instance, had a small loop that teased the prairie, woods, and some of the ridges along the river, only to later unveil longer, more difficult trails with better views that made the Hiking Club trail disappear like mist upon the morning on the lake. 

In this case, the Hiking Club trail is like getting dessert first and then wondering why they're so hesitant to bring you the meal you ordered in the first place. 

Maybe that sounds mean, or harsh, or like I don't want the park to exist anymore, and that'd be fair, given that I don't often extend any level of hostility or negativity toward state parks, especially in this day and age. And I admit the possibility of everything just seeming lonely and cavernous as I felt isolated and distant from everything and everyone no matter what I did could also have been an influence to my experience. 

But while the Hiking Club trail itself was quite good, well-maintained, and traversed the land near the small waterfall with a good quality short hike, going deeper into the woods of the Big and Nerstrand variety only made me feel like either I shouldn't have been there at all, or that nobody else spent much time doing so. 

Granted, this is June in Minnesota. The mosquitos were thick and the humidity thicker. The morning dew is replaced by the sweat of the grass, the trees dripping like they'd just filmed a Gatorade commercial. Cedar: Just Do It. If you're from the Midwest, you know exactly the kind of day I'm describing. If you don't, imagine the woods where you're from. Put them through a rainstorm. Get bit. Feel like spiderwebs are wrapping you up like you're about to get paralyzed and taken to the Cirith Ungol. Throw all your clothes in a swamp then put them back on. Take cold water, heat it up like you're about to make soup, then dip your face in it and try not to overheat. Do all those things, then go try to walk a hiking trail that is spongy, muddy, and mostly is made of tire tracks going through six-inch grass, and that was June 6th revisiting a state park for me that day. 

If you want a hike that's longer than a novice jaunt, I'd suggest staying on the falls trail and doing that five or six times, unless you're really into unkept, deep woods mosquito farms. I'm not saying I dislike the park itself, only that the upkeep and maintenance seems to stick to the initial trail most are likely to traverse upon arrival. While that's not necessarily bad for first visits and just starting out, my mission around this time was to pick the most difficult trail a park had to offer and add that to my verified complete list. I sure got that, at least. 

Superior Hiking Trail #1-3 - Jay Cooke State Park to Grand Portage Trailhead

 

Superior Hiking Trail

Map 1 - Section 3

Jay Cooke State Park to Grand Portage Trailhead

Date Hiked: April 26th, 2025

Other Sections Hiked That Day: Map 1 - Section 4, Map 1 - Section 5

Finally, a NOBO hike where I didn't have to worry about how to get back to the starting point! Although, of all the places on the trail where that would be a concern, a parallel with the Munger trail was probably among the most convenient of options. Not only was it rail grade and paved, but being the trail on which I'd recorded my longest hike to date (as of this writing on May 9th), familiarity was a bonus too, considering the dense remoteness of the majority of the Superior Hiking Trail. 

It's amazing how quickly this trail transitions from "hanging out with everyone at the state park" to "when did I get out of the Red Lodge and why is everyone calling me Dougie?" The Northwoods in general have a knack for that skill, but it never becomes less surprising. With Jay Cooke in the proverbial rearview, I straddled the line of intentional isolation among its copious ridges. Turning around a bend, I'd be traversing the ledge of one, spotting another several hundred yards away, and nothing but cavernous abyss between them. Then, without fail, a descent worthy of the hopes and dreams of northeast Ohioan football fans would bring the trail to a creek whose idea of a bridge was "hop on that rock and hope it's steady." Continuing on, almost immediately, the upward trajectory brought the trail back to the other side of that ridge, where I could look back fondly and realize that even a year ago, I'd have been struggling and sore from those two elevation changes, and not just because I hadn't yet discovered the magic of trekking poles. I'd feel really good about myself, and then inevitably be passed in either direction by a trail runner. 

Trail runners simultaneously reminded me of two very different things:

- For all the physical progress and endurance I've gained since becoming a serious hiker, they're on a level I cannot even begin to comprehend. I didn't even like to run playing team sports when I had to. Doing it by choice on such terrain blew my mind. But also...

-The level of difficulty on this trail mostly keeps it limited to those who are serious and dedicated to trail activity, as compared to my "couldn't find a date today/let's take that 38th selfie while blocking the narrow trail" excursion to Judge CR Magney State Park back in February. At some point, maybe by the time you're reading this, I'll have revisited that section as part of the Superior Hiking Trail as opposed to the Minnesota Hiking Club, which now seems like a distant childhood memory of whimsical proportions. 

The timing of this hike presented me with views that would likely very soon be covered up by dense leaves and swarms of bugs. The St. Louis River peeked out beyond thousands of temporarily empty branches, before it would inevitably greet me upon the second section of this hike. 

I wasn't anywhere near ready to be done yet.