State park trail heads to small waterfall

Wolf Creek Falls at Banning State Park. Courtesy of Wikipedia.

Map to Wolf Creek Falls. Courtesy Minnesota DNR.

Wolf Creek Falls
drops 12 feet
in Minnesota

Hikers can enjoy a wooded walk alongside a river to a waterfall at Minnesota’s Banning State Park.

Twelve-foot Wolf Creek Falls await at the end of the 2-mile round trip Wolf Creek Falls Trail. This is not the trail’s official name but has been christened her for convenience’s sake.

To reach the trailhead, from downtown Sandstone take County Road 123/Third Street east toward the Kettle River. Turn left/north onto Old Wagon Road and enter forested Robinson Park. Park in the lot at the road’s end near the boat landing. From there, follow the wide dirt road north. You’re now in Banning State Park.

Through the trees to the west, you’ll catch some great views of the Kettle River as it flows over Quarry Rapids. The river also narrows here, so you may see kayakers walking along the trail as they make a short portage.

The river calms as the trail continues north through a forest. At about 0.45 miles, the trail crosses railroad tracks with a bridge over the river.

The Kettle River runs 83.6 miles flowing out of the northwoods from east of Cromwell. It ultimately joins the St. Croix River at Chengwatana State Forest to the southeast.

Since the last ice age, the Kettle has cut through glacial drift and into an underlying formation of Hinckley Sandstone, deposited here about 545 million years ago. The river was able to do that because it drained ancient Glacial Lake Duluth in a fast-moving flow.

At 0.85 miles into the hike, spring-fed Wolf Creek meets the Kettle. The creek is fairly short, flowing for a bit over 2 miles from outside of the state park.

Just upstream in 0.15 miles on Wolf Creek is the waterfall. To see the highest waterflow, visit in spring or early summer.

After taking in the sights, retrace your steps back to the parking lot.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Day hikes lead to diverse array of sites in Sandstone, Minn., region

Big Spring Falls Trail, Banning State Park.
Photo courtesy of Minnesota DNR.

The remnant of a historic quarry site, a forgotten island and falls, and Northwoods wildlife await day hikers in the Sandstone, Minn., area.

The small town borders Banning State Park and is near several other public facilities, including state forests, multi-county hiking trails, and a national wildlife refuge.

Located about midway between the Minneapolis-St. Paul and the Duluth-Superior metro areas, Sandstone is easy to reach via Interstate 35.

Among the region’s top trails are:
g Audubon Center Tallgrass Prairie Trail – An unnamed mile-long trail skirts the edge of a tallgrass prairie then cuts through woods on the south side of the Audubon Center of the North Woods west of town. Park at the trailhead on the southside of Audubon Drive just west of the Fox Road intersection.
g Bean Dam WMA hunter walking trails – A 1.8-mile round trip unnamed trail leads to several other hunter walking trails off of 350th Avenue in the Bean Dam Wildlife Management Area west of town in neighboring Kanabec County. The trails offer the chance to see a variety of wildlife, including bear, forest game birds, turkeys, small game, waterfowl, and whitetail deer.
g Big Spring Falls Trail – An island and waterfalls in the Kettle River await hikers on the Big Spring Falls Trail in the section of Banning State Park located south of Sandstone. The sites on the 0.75-mile round trip trail only became visible after the Kettle Dam was removed in 1995.
g Gandy Dancer Trail segments – Day hikers can walk across an old railroad bridge over the St. Croix River at the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway and St. Croix State Forest on the Wisconsin border. The Gandy Dancer Trail, which starts dozens of miles south of the state forest, crosses the border into Minnesota at Danbury, Wis., about a mile south of the river for a 0.8-mile round trip.
g Lower Tamarack River Trail – From County Road 173, take the Tamarack Forest Trail to the parking lot for the Hiking Trailhead in the St. Croix State Forest. Walk south, paralleling the Lower Tamarack River; at the second trail junction, turn back for a roughly 4-mile round trip.
g Matthew Lourey State Trail, Churchill Lake segment – From the same parking lot along County Road 173, head north past Churchill Lake for a 3-mile round trip. The trail north of the lake enters wetlands in the St. Croix State Forest.
g Matthew Lourey State Trail, County Road 173 to Campground segment – The Matthew Lourey runs north to south through St. Croix State Forest. Consider parking at the trailhead along County Road 173 and taking it southwest through wetlands to the campground for a 2-mile round trip.
g Quarry Loop Trail – Day hikers can explore the ruins of an old quarry site as walking along a picturesque whitewater river on the Quarry Loop Trail in Banning State Park. At 2.4 miles in length, the Quarry loop offers several historical and geological sites.
g Rice Lake Pool Trail – A variety of wildlife, from eagles and loons to black bear and sometimes even moose, can be seen on the Rice Lake Pool Trail in the Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge southeast of town. The 5-mile round trip trail connects to several other loops in the refuge.
g Willard Munger State Trail, Finlayson segment – In Finlayson, park on Finland Avenue (County Road 60) immediately west of Front Street. Going south on the trail heads past green farmland in summer.
g Willard Munger State Trail, Sandstone segment – West of Sandstone, park in a dirt pull-off along County Road 27 at the County Road 61 intersection. Either direction takes you through wooded areas and past bucolic farm fields.

Read more about day hiking Northeast Minnesota in my Headin’ to the Cabin: Day Hiking Trails of Northeast Minnesota guidebook.

Willard Munger accessible in several cities

Willard Munger State Trail passes a rock cut between
Duluth and Carlton, Minn. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

The Willard Munger State Trail ranks as among Northeast Minnesota’s premier recreational routes.

The paved bike path stretches across three counties, running 63 miles from Duluth south to Hinckley. It’s the fifth longest paved trail in the United States. Day hikers are welcome on the trail.

The Willard Munger can be accessed in a number of other communities. Among them are:
g Barnum – A parking lot is on the south side of County Road 6/Main Street west of downtown. Going north, the trail crosses the Moose Horn River.
g Carlton – A large parking lot with picnic shelter is along County Road 1 (Third Street) between North and South avenues. This route heads east/north toward Duluth with a connecting trail to Jay Cooke State Park.
g Duluth – The northern tip of the trail can be accessed at a number of spots. Among the most popular with parking lots are (from south to north): off 123rd Avenue West via the Superior Hiking Trail; off Riverside Drive at Grand Avenue (Minn. Hwy. 23); and marking the trail’s northern terminus, off Pulaski Street east of Grand Avenue (Minn. Hwy. 23).
g Finlayson – Park on Finland Avenue (County Road 60) immediately west of Front Street. Going south on the trail heads past green farmland in summer.
g Hinckley – The southern terminus of the trail begins at a gravel parking lot along 2nd Street NW (County Road 18) between Old Hwy. 61 N and Root Avenue N. The trail passes the Grindstone Reservoir and dam with a bridge over the Grindstone River.
g Mahtowa – Though there’s no designated parking lot, a number of access paths run from parallel streets, most notably Minn. Hwy. 61 and County Road 141. The trail heading north of town is more wooded that the southern route.
g Moose Lake – Park along Industrial Road between Third and Hickory avenues. Going south on the trail takes hikers across and then along the Moose Horn River.
g Rutledge – Park at the City Hall and Community Center off Minn. Hwy. 23 N., taking a stem trail behind (north of) city hall to the Willard Munger. Heading north brings hikers over and along the Kettle River.
g Sandstone – West of town, park in a dirt pull-off along County Road 27 at the County Road 61 intersection. Either direction takes you through wooded areas and past bucolic farm fields.
g Sturgeon Lake – A dirt parking area sits off of County Road 61 north of 2nd Street. Going south takes hikers into General C.C. Andrews State Forest.
g Thomson – Parking is available off the west side of County Road 210 south of Dalles Avenue and north of the trail. Heading west on the trial brings you past some rock formations and to a bridge over the rapids-laden St. Louis River.
g Willow River – A parking lot is located at the end of Church Street, west of County Road 61. The north-bound trail heads into the General C.C. Andrews State Forest.

A branch of the Willard Munger, known as the Alex Laveau Memorial Trail Segment, runs from Carlton through Wrenshall east to Minn. Hwy. 23. Major access points for this segment include:
g Carlton – Use the lot along County Road 1 (Third Street) between North and South avenues; walk south along the side of County Road 1, accessing the trail after crossing Otter Creek. Head southeast through wooded areas and rock outcroppings.
g Wrenshall – On non-school days, park in the Wrenshall Elementary lot northeast of the building; walk southeast on Pioneer Drive for an access road to the trail. The southeastern route runs through a nice mix of forest and farmland.

Learn more about nearby day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of Northeast Minnesota guidebook.

Explore century-old ghost mining town

Sandstone outcropping on Quarry Loop Trail
in Banning State Park.

Day hike also heads past
rapids, potholes on river

Day hikers can explore the ruins of an old quarry site as walking along a picturesque whitewater river on the Quarry Loop Trail in Minnesota’s Banning State Park.

Located north of Sandstone, the state park boasts 17 miles of hiking trails. The Quarry Loop Trail, at 2.4 miles in length, offers several historical and geological sites to see at the park.

May marks a good time to visit the park. During warm years, blossoming white trout lily as well as Canada, rue and wood anemones spring through the grass as warblers sing during the early part of the month. By late May, trillium, bunchberry, clintonia, and star flower blossom.

To reach the state park, from Interstate 35 take Exit 195 and go east on County Road 23. Turn right/south into the park entrance. Upon passing the information/park office, watch for where the road splits; go left/southeast and park near the picnic area.

The trailhead is in the picnic area southwest of the parking area. Take the trail counterclockwise so that the best sites are on the last half of the hike.

Most of the trail follows an old railroad bed so is fairly flat with a mere 40 feet of elevation change. Interpretive signs can be found along the route. Watch for trail posts as other walking paths do intersect; just remember to always veer right.

Ghost mining town
Along the way, you’ll pass outcroppings of sandstone covered in moss, lichen, fern and liverwort, as water seeping from cracks in the rock encourage their growth. The forest floor also is littered with immense sandstone slabs and tiny rock piles, known as spall.

The loop trail crosses the site of the former mining town of Banning, which centered on a sandstone quarry that opened in 1892 but was abandoned in the 1910s. About halfway through the trail, you’ll come to the quarry.

Steep walls line the quarry of Hinckley Sandstone, whose warm pink color ensured its popularity as a building material many decades ago. The sandstone formed in a shallow sea more than 540 million years ago.

If hiking the trail in May or June, keep an eye out in the quarry for bird’s-eye primrose, a pinkish flower with a yellow center. The flower is found in only one other spot in Minnesota.

Leaving the quarry, you may notice large metal rings pounded into rock on the ground. Known as a deadman, the rings are anchoring points for cables that once supported giant derricks used for hoisting stone blocks onto railroad cars to be shipped south to Minneapolis and St. Paul.

As the trail curves east, it junctions with Hell’s Gate Trail. As inviting and as short as the Hell’s Gate stub looks, don’t take it if you have small children with you, as its narrow passages and steep drops are dangerous.

Classic whitewater river
When the Quarry Loop Trail curls back north, it comes to the Kettle River, a tributary to the St. Croix River. Aspen, pines and birch hug the shoreline, which the trail follows the rest of the way.

The Kettle River formed a mere 10,000 years ago following the last ice age when glacier meltwater found its way along a depression that is an old fault line. The rushing water exposed the sandstone bedrock, which in turn left riffles and rapids. Those features today make the river popular with whitewater canoeists and kayakers and gives it a pleasing, rushing sound.

The Little Banning Rapids is the first of those geological features hikers will come across. Where the river is calm, keep an eye out for holes in the sandstone; these are called kettles or potholes. As the river valley was formed, swirling sand and water from flooding meltwater drilled out these oddities.

After the rapids, the first of the three ruins from the trail’s quarry days – the stone cutting shed – appears. Workers sliced the larger slabs of sandstone there.

Next are the walls for the power house, which supplied the energy needed for jackhammers operated in the neighboring crusher building. Rock deemed not good enough for building construction was brought there to be crushed for use in cement.

The final feature on the trail is the Dragon’s Tooth, a rapids that turns the placid blue Kettle River into roiling white water.

After the rapids, the trail reaches the picnic area near your parking lot.

Read more about day hiking Northeast Minnesota in my Headin’ to the Cabin: Day Hiking Trails of Northeast Minnesota guidebook.