Ludlow Pond Trail and Big Bog Boardwalk

Big Bog, an uninspired name for the 500 sq. mile bog in north central Minnesota (the largest in the continental United States), is sometimes called Minnesota's last true wilderness. The Boundary Water Wilderness is so remote, unvisited, and uninhabitable that all attempts at settlement failed - the bog wouldn't drain, the land couldn't be farmed, and mosquitos drove people mad. Wildlife has tro...

A little known section of the Chippewa National Forest called “The Lost Forty" leads day hikers through some of the last remaining virgin red and white pine trees in Minnesota. These trees are 300-400 years old and measure between 22 and 48 inches in diameter. But even more incredible than the age and size of the trees is their back story. In 1882, a land surveyor accidentally mapped this secti...

Big Wolf Lake is a relatively little lake in comparison to neighboring waters (Leech, Cass, or even Bemidji).  Start out at the access point on the southwestern part of the lake. The southern bay mostly consists of summer residences. If you paddle north, you'll cross a point that separates the lake into two bays. The northern bay has outlets to the Mississippi River and is also less populated, ...

Star Island is located on Cass Lake in Northern Minnesota. Camping on the island is a great experience, it is usually very secluded; it is not a remote location during the day, but after 6 pm, the island is usually empty besides the few (lucky) people that reside there during the summer months. The campsite is located at the Southwest shore of the Island (see pin) - Star Island is visible fro...

Lake Kabetogama is located in Voyageurs National Park and is one of the main attractions for the park. We saw so many vehicles with boat trailers in every parking lot. There are houseboat campsites, lots of fishing, tour boats, rental canoes and kayaks. Since we don't own our own boats, we rented canoes from Arrowhead Lodge & Resort which was just down the hill from the Wooden Frog Campgro...

This trail starts either in the parking lot near the Ash River Visitor Center, or from the Kabetogama Lake overlook. We started from the Visitor Center since we were already there for a ranger program. The begins with some uphill but soon levels out and is mostly just a rolling trail that winds through the forest. 0.1 miles up the trail you'll reach the intersection and you'll want to continue...