On our last full day on the North Shore, we cruised up the shore to check out the Minnesota State Parks along the North Shore. There is a moderately steep escarpment about 150' high along the North Shore, where many streams and rivers cascade down to Lake Superior. There are about a dozen state parks between Duluth and the Canada border, most featuring waterfalls and the Lake Superior shoreline. Many are connected by the Superior Hiking Trail, a long distance hiking trail stretching over 250 miles from Duluth to the Canada border. Some are also connected by the Gitchi-Gami State Trail, a paved multipurpose rail-trail. We thought we would do some short hikes, but we particularly wanted to check out the campgrounds to see if any were good candidates for future trips. Our first stop was Tettegouche State Park which is on the Baptism River. There we hiked to the 60' high High Falls and then Two Steps Falls. The falls were nice, but the river flow is way down. They 
would be much more impressive during spring runoff. The drive-in campground was likewise unimpressive. It was a long way from the lake shore. It was OK, but nothing to brag about. I guess I'm spoiled by the beautiful campgrounds on the Blue Ridge Parkway. They did have a number of very nice walk-in/paddle-in sites right on the lake shore. We also drove up to Palisade Head, a 250' tall volcanic outcrop that drops straight down to the lake. Pretty impressive. You could see all the way to Wisconsin and the Apostle Islands. Matilda was acting bold, so we kept her on a short leash. Apparently Palisade Head is a good climbing destination. There were several parties of climbers on the cliff when we were there. We lunched at the Caribou River State Wayside on the banks of the Caribou River. Matilda had a big time playing in the cascading water. There was supposed to be a pretty nice waterfall about a mile up the river, but we had a lot of things to do today, so we resisted the temptation to hike to the falls.
We
cruised on up the shore to Taconite Harbor. Taconite Harbor, constructed in 1950, was the site of a new town and new harbor, where neither existed previously. The harbor was constructed by building breakwaters across two islands and back to the shore. Taconite, a pelletized iron ore, is shipped out to steel mills on the lower great lakes. Close by is Shroeder and the Cross River. In 1843 Father Frederic Baraga, a priest and missionary from Yugoslavia, was crossing the lake from Madeline Island, Wisconsin when an unexpected storm came up and threatened to sink his small boat. He was blown unharmed to the mouth of a small river, where he erected a small wooden cross to thank God for his deliverance. Thus was named the Cross River.
Next stop was the Temperance River State Park, located at the mouth of, you
guessed it, the Temperance River. The Temperance River is one of the longest rivers on the North Shore and is so-named because it has no gravel "bar" at it's mouth. I don't know about that one, but that's what they say. The river features a mini-gorge and swift cascades at the mouth of the river. The drive-in campground is also right on the shore and has some electric sites. Sweet. This was by far the most pleasant campground of the state parks we visited.
The last park
we visited, and our turn-around place for this tour, was Cascade River State Park. The Cascade River features a rushing river, falling through a narrow, deep gorge, with wonderful waterfalls and cascades. It also contains old-growth pines and hardwoods. As do most of the parks along the North Shore, it features a number of structures constructed by the CCC during the 1930s. All day we collected rocks for Izaak's memorial, but none from the state parks, of course.
On the way home,
Dorcas insisted we buy a pie. I resisted (really!) but of course I caved. The North Shore is famous for its fresh pies. Betty's Pies is the most famous of the pie joints, but we had been told it was overrated, and were directed to the Rustic Inn Cafe at Castle Danger. At the Rustic Inn Dorcas bought an apple caramel pie with pecans. Yummy! Great choice.
would be much more impressive during spring runoff. The drive-in campground was likewise unimpressive. It was a long way from the lake shore. It was OK, but nothing to brag about. I guess I'm spoiled by the beautiful campgrounds on the Blue Ridge Parkway. They did have a number of very nice walk-in/paddle-in sites right on the lake shore. We also drove up to Palisade Head, a 250' tall volcanic outcrop that drops straight down to the lake. Pretty impressive. You could see all the way to Wisconsin and the Apostle Islands. Matilda was acting bold, so we kept her on a short leash. Apparently Palisade Head is a good climbing destination. There were several parties of climbers on the cliff when we were there. We lunched at the Caribou River State Wayside on the banks of the Caribou River. Matilda had a big time playing in the cascading water. There was supposed to be a pretty nice waterfall about a mile up the river, but we had a lot of things to do today, so we resisted the temptation to hike to the falls.We
cruised on up the shore to Taconite Harbor. Taconite Harbor, constructed in 1950, was the site of a new town and new harbor, where neither existed previously. The harbor was constructed by building breakwaters across two islands and back to the shore. Taconite, a pelletized iron ore, is shipped out to steel mills on the lower great lakes. Close by is Shroeder and the Cross River. In 1843 Father Frederic Baraga, a priest and missionary from Yugoslavia, was crossing the lake from Madeline Island, Wisconsin when an unexpected storm came up and threatened to sink his small boat. He was blown unharmed to the mouth of a small river, where he erected a small wooden cross to thank God for his deliverance. Thus was named the Cross River.Next stop was the Temperance River State Park, located at the mouth of, you
guessed it, the Temperance River. The Temperance River is one of the longest rivers on the North Shore and is so-named because it has no gravel "bar" at it's mouth. I don't know about that one, but that's what they say. The river features a mini-gorge and swift cascades at the mouth of the river. The drive-in campground is also right on the shore and has some electric sites. Sweet. This was by far the most pleasant campground of the state parks we visited.The last park
we visited, and our turn-around place for this tour, was Cascade River State Park. The Cascade River features a rushing river, falling through a narrow, deep gorge, with wonderful waterfalls and cascades. It also contains old-growth pines and hardwoods. As do most of the parks along the North Shore, it features a number of structures constructed by the CCC during the 1930s. All day we collected rocks for Izaak's memorial, but none from the state parks, of course.On the way home,
Dorcas insisted we buy a pie. I resisted (really!) but of course I caved. The North Shore is famous for its fresh pies. Betty's Pies is the most famous of the pie joints, but we had been told it was overrated, and were directed to the Rustic Inn Cafe at Castle Danger. At the Rustic Inn Dorcas bought an apple caramel pie with pecans. Yummy! Great choice.
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