Prior Lake – Neaton Adventures

Today’s hiking adventure began at Cleary Lake Regional Park.

We began our hike on the unpaved trails. The trails were wide and well maintained.

A mama deer and her fawn greeted us as we completed the Poplar Creek Trail loop.

The Lakeside Trail offered a beautiful view of Cleary Lake.

The birds were singing and the mosquitoes were buzzing as we hiked through the trees.

A frog hopped by us. He appeared to be enjoying a leafy snack.

The Ironwood Trail allowed us to see the frothy spittle from the Meadow Spittlebug and little mushrooms.

The paved trail loops around Cleary Lake and through a variety of tree groves.

Nature continued to surprise us. A Garter Snake slithered past us as we made our way closer to the lake.

We ended our hiking adventure at 8.3 miles.

I decided to cool down and relax by the lake for a few minutes before leaving the park. A Black Swallowtail decided to join me.

As I walked to the dock, I noticed giant water-lilies close to the shore. They demanded a closer look.

Cleary Lake Regional Park offers a variety of outdoor fun. I will definitely return in the future.

After a week of rain, ice and snow, today felt like Spring! The sun was shining with fluffy clouds scattered across the sky; a perfect day for a hiking adventure. The trails throughout the park were well marked and nicely paved.

The winding trail allowed us to see different tree groves and areas of wetlands.

We even found some pussy willows.

Even though the trees are bare, they offer their own beauty as they dance with the wind.

We briefly left the park to visit the still frozen Arctic Lake. The lake is on the Mdewakanton Tribally owned land.

As we looped back to our starting point, we stopped and watched people play pickleball at the Spring Lake Park Pickleball Court. I definitely need to learn how to play pickleball!

Today’s hiking adventure was 6 miles.

Tag: Prior Lake

Cleary Lake Regional Park-Prior Lake-Minnesota

Spring Lake Regional Park-Prior Lake-Minnesota