Voyageurs National Park
Minnesota’s Voyageurs National Park is a place to see unspoiled northern wilderness in a series of beautiful lakes situated on the Canadian border.
Minnesota
2016
About The Park
Minnesota’s Voyageurs National Park is a place to see unspoiled northern wilderness in a series of beautiful lakes situated on the Canadian border.
The remoteness of the location, near International Falls, Minnesota, and the fact that the primary access to the park is via boat, probably accounts for its having only 239,656 visitors in 2018. This puts it around number 46 out of the then 60 national parks in terms of visitation.
International Falls is known to weather-
Most of the park is only accessible by watercraft or long back country hikes through dense forest. There are over 500 islands and 655 miles of shoreline.
There is access to the park via roads along the periphery of it with visitor centers located at Rainy Lake, Kabetogama Lake and Ash River. There were a few trails near the Rainy Lake and Ash River visitor centers that can give one a sense of the park.
We were there in early September and the weather was sunny and warm and quite pleasant. Boating, canoeing, camping and fishing seem to be the primary activities that draw people to the park.
We took the boat tour from the Rainy Lake visitor center and that gave us a sense of what the park is about. Lots of water. About 40% of the park is water. The boat stopped at one of the islands for a short hike. There was a cabin where an early settler lived and it was hard to imagine life so isolated… especially in winter.
Basically, for us and people looking to see all of the national parks, Voyageurs is an out of the way destination. It is one that we are not likely to pass by again. It is about a 5 hour drive north from Minneapolis and I can’t say that the scenery was all that exciting. Fairly flat with lots of farmland. Even the Mesabi Range wasn’t a mountain range like the ones that one sees out west. With heights generally 200 to 500 feet (61-
Wildlife
The wildlife consists of black bear, timber wolves, moose, beaver, foxes, river otters, bald eagles and more.
Lodging
There is virtually no lodging in the park itself. The only in-
The city of International Falls, Minnestoa is about 12 miles west of the park entrance where the Rainy Lake Visitor Center is. There are many local motels to choose from here.
Rainy Lake Inn
We stayed at the Rainy Lake Inn in Ranier, MN, a few miles east of International Falls. It has limited rooms but some overlooking the lake with beautiful views.
Hiking
Kabetogama Lake Overlook Hike
The relatively short Kabetogama Lake Overlook hike is near the Ash River visitor center. It is an easy walk along the shore of the lake with beautiful views of the lake and tree-
Oberholtzer Trail
The Oberholtzer trail, lies just outside of the Rainy Lake visitor center. It is also a relatively easy trail through the forest to two lake overlooks. It was about 2 miles round trip.
Voyageurs National Park Photo Gallery
Other Resources
Voyageurs National Park on the National Parks Service website -
Voyageurs National Park -
Other National Parks Within a Day’s Drive
Isle Royale National Park is one of America’s least visited National Parks. Located in Michigan’s upper peninsula it is 320 miles east and about a 7 hour drive to Houghton, Michigan where you can take a 6 hour boat ride to the park.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan is 444 miles to the east and about an 8 hour drive.
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Updated 02/11/23 7:04 PM
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