treadnorth: February North Shore Weekend

Northern Minnesota in the winter is not what many people would think of when they are wondering where to spend their weekends, right? But I suppose if you love being outside all the time, and you happened to live in St Paul, that’s what you do. And you discover that it’s an experience that people shouldn’t write off before they see it for themselves. A certain amount of mental gusto and quality winter gear are required, and I suppose this is what detracts the masses. OK. That’s fine, more solitude for those of us who know better.
I spent last weekend on MN’s North Shore of Lake Superior, snowshoeing and camping with a couple good friends, Ty and Joel. It was a short trip, but it is always refreshing to get out of the city and into the woods. We camped at Temperance River State Park, and only saw one other tent in the whole place.
Saturday we snowshoed up Carlton Peak. A short hike to a small summit, but MN is not known for mountains. If you go in expecting the same experience as the West, you wont find it. Don’t look for epic heights in the North Woods. Look for the North Woods in the North Woods. It is an entirely different experience, valued for it’s own unique outdoor settings. When reaching the top of a “peak” in MN, you find yourself not high above an epic valley or gorge, out of breath in thin air, or at all nervous about making it down safely before nightfall. Rather, you find yourself in a peaceful place just high enough to get a good look at the vast expanse of tranquil woods and lakes (one of them Great) that contain some truly wonderful hiking and paddling. Carlton is one of those lookouts (and it even has a bit of climbing). A nice place to spend a Saturday.
Saturday night we cooked, ate, maybe sipped a little whiskey, and enjoyed a good fire after a great sunset/moonrise over Lake Superior. Sleeping was pretty good, despite the temps somewhere around 12 F, estimated. Not at all cold for the region.
Sunday, I’d say, was the highlight of the trip- a snowshoe hike down part of Wolf Creek and up part of the Devil’s Track River near Grand Marais. February had warmed quite a bit, and the water was not as frozen as January. Still walkable, but only if you’re ok with punching through occasionally (the water in most areas was only knee high at most). We had to be a bit careful picking our route to stay to the areas acceptable for falling in. Honestly, it made it more fun; I guess I’m a little off in the head.
On the up the river, we passed what is apparently one of, if not the seminal MN ice climbs- Nightfall. I think in the next couple years I may finally take the plunge and learn to climb ice. We seem to have enough of ice here in MN to make it worth it.
The weekend was a great experience and yet another lesson in just making trips happen, regardless of the season. MN in the winter is harsh, yes, but staying inside all the time is to me even harsher. We were treated to a great time in relatively balmy MN February temps and I’ll be going back soon I’m sure.

Snowshoeing up Carlton...