hinckley – Neaton Adventures

We hiked St. Croix State Park on October 8^th, 2023.

The fire tower was our first destination. The fall colors were at a minimum. We noticed quiet a few trees were already bare, so we may have missed some of the bright red and orange fall colors. I absolutely love the views from fire towers.

Our hiking adventure began at post #13 on the Matthew Lourey State Park Trail. There were so many leaves on the ground. The crunching leaves added a cool soundtrack to our hike.

We crossed over Bear Creek.

The trail led us to a large open field. A sign posted nearby said the area is used as a helicopter evacuation site. Thankfully, we didn’t need to be evacuated.

The sound of the Kettle River crashing across the rocks as it flowed by us was so relaxing. A guy fishing nearby said the river was higher today due to all the rain we have had recently.

Hiking on the Kettle River Highbanks Trail allowed us to hike near the river.

The overlook of the Kettle River was stunning! The blue water reflecting off the brilliant blue sky was incredible.

Chapel Grove Trail looped us back to our starting point.

The fire tower in the distance.

A small pond mirrored the clouds above.

A fall hike is never complete without finding mushrooms, and we found a giant mushroom patch!

Our hiking adventure was 9.3 miles.

We hiked St. Croix State Park June 3rd, 2022.

As we drove into the park, we noticed that the main park office was 5 miles off the highway. Wow, this park must be gigantic was our first thought. Yep, it is!! St. Croix State Park is the largest state park in Minnesota at over 33,000 Acres!

Our first stop was the Fire Tower. The Fire Tower was built in 1937 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. With 134 steps to the top and 100 feet tall, we were up for the challenge.

As soon as we cleared the top of the trees, a gust of wind hit us and our adrenaline kicked in. No stopping now, we had to make it to the top. We continued our climb to the top for a breathtaking view.

With a rush of energy, we were ready to begin our hiking adventure. We drove to the St. Croix Lodge to hike the trails closest to the St. Croix River. Behind the lodge we found a trail leading down to the river.

The River Bluff Trail was the next trail we hiked.

There were a couple of interesting nature finds on this hike. The first, a tree completely burned to a crisp surrounded by other lush trees. Second, we found a communal nest of caterpillars… kind of cool, kind of gross.