boundary waters, mn.

When Logan told me he wanted to go to Minnesota for our summer trip, let’s just say, I didn’t jump for joy. When I thought of Minnesota, I thought of flat, wide open spaces (insert Dixie Chicks), and a lake or two. But, in all fairness, it was Logan’s turn to plan the trip so I said, “Let’s go!”

In true fashion for us, we decided to drive and not only go to one spot in Minnesota, but drive in a massive circle so we could conquer more land and not see the same highway twice. We left on a Saturday and came home Friday and ended up driving 34 hours. All of the places we went, you could certainly do individual trips for, no need for the long car drive unless you are limited on vacation time and trying to squeeze in as much as possible, like us!

Once you get to Chicago, most of your drive is through the state of Wisconsin. We drove from Chicago to Chippewea Falls, Wisconsin to stop at the original Leinenkugel’s brewery. Though I couldn’t drink (hello pregnancy life), it was still a really neat brewery to stop at. The town itself was very small and industrial, you can tell the brewery is most likely the largest employer and tourist attractor. The brewery did not have food, only food trucks but it did have a massive store where you can get all kinds of Leinie merch. Logan got a flight and afterwards, we ate at the Blue Marlin pub across the street, I would not recommend eating here.

DULUTH

From Chippewea falls, it was another three hours in the car to Duluth, MN. Duluth sits right on the border of Wisconsin and Minnesota. If it weren’t for Duluth Trading Company (which is now headquartered in WI), I would have never heard of Duluth! I would compare Duluth to a midwestern Portland, Maine. The town is a very industrial, blue collar, gritty town. Duluth is rich in history, it’s full of red brick hills, and old brick buildings. There are more breweries than I can count and there is a beautiful waterfront area. I thought Duluth was an awesome destination, I would definitely go back.

We only had one full day in Duluth and we decided to drive two hours north on the famous North Shore drive which takes you all the way up to Canada. If you are visiting Duluth, you are going to want to make this drive. Yes, it’s more hours in the car, but it’s a beautiful scenic drive with plenty of stops.

We headed north, hugging the beautiful Lake Superior coast. Our first stop was at Black Beach. There was a rocky beach near the parking lot that we walked over, climbed over some rocks, of which Logan of course cliff dove, and then we stumbled upon the black sand beach. I thought you had to travel all the way to Hawaii to experience a black sand beach but this beach was just as gorgeous.

Next we continued north about five miles until we reached Palisade Head. Parking can be tricky here as the lot fills up quickly. Most people just park to take a photo and leave so be patient and spots will open up rather quickly. We walked along the edge for a ways and experienced gorgeous, secluded views with the exception of a few rock climbers!

Another few miles north is Tettegouche State Park. The visitor center is very well maintained, a great bathroom stop as opposed to the port a potties offered elsewhere. The state park has plenty of parking and is free to visit. We hiked to the top of Casper Falls. The hike was moderate and was 2.5 miles round trip.

If you don’t feel up for another hour north, this would be a good spot to turn around and head back to Duluth. We decided to drive one more hour north to the town of Grand Marais. We are drawn to breweries, if you can’t tell and heard that Voyageur Brewery was a great stop! After the brewery, we walked to Artist’s Point. I thought this was a stunning area to explore right near downtown. When you are walking to the point, it feels like you are walking toward shops and restaurants, we thought we were going the wrong way! Just trust your phone GPS and you will suddenly stumble upon the beautiful point.

After Grand Marais, we drove two hours south, back to Duluth.

**Where We Stayed:** We stayed at the Pier B Resort right on the water in Duluth. This hotel was amazing, I cannot recommend it enough. If you choose to visit Duluth, you have to stay here. The resort is extremely dog friendly, which was a plus too! The resort has all of the amenities you need, including incredible breakfast (we got ours to-go and ate on their lounge chairs by the water), a bar, free scooters and bikes, and close proximity to many restaurants and shops. We took advantage of the free bikes and rode along the water to get coffee one morning.

Breakfast View at Pier B Resort, July 2021

Where We Ate: Boat Club Restaurant: This is definitely a higher end restaurant but we made it more casual by sitting at the bar. The seafood was great and there were great views of the lake!

Blue Fin Grill: On our way back down the North Shore Drive we were looking for waterfront dining and found this gem. The location was right on the water and again, the restaurant was a bit fancier but we sat at the bar and overlooked the lake. We split the paella and it was delicious!

Eating out gets expensive and for some reason, prices in Minnesota felt higher than what we expected. As with all of our road trips, we packed a TON of snacks including a loaf of bread and peanut butter and jelly. For lunches each day, we just made sandwiches in the car. Not only does this save money but also, it saves time!

Breweries: Ursa Minor Brewery in Duluth: This brewery had a ton of brews, including non-alcoholic options as well as a huge outdoor space. They also had a full menu!

Voyageur Brewery: We sat on the rooftop overlooking Lake Superior. The views were great and the brewery itself was a really neat, wooden building. This brewery is in Grand Marais and is a short walk out to Artist’s Point.

Rathskellar: No this isn’t a bar but it’s a really unique and historical speak easy that you have to visit! I love a good speak easy and this one truly felt like we stepped back into the Prohibition. Put “Rathskellar” in your maps and the directions will take you to the old City Hall building. There are no signs for the bar other than a sign for a Chinese Restaurant. We walked in confused and told the hostess we were there for the speak easy. She pointed to the back of the restaurant where we found an elevator. We decided to go downstairs only to find that the basement was under construction. The next elevator button was a second basement in which we selected. As soon as we got off the elevator we heard the music and knew we were in the right spot. The bar was all exposed rock and dark and moody. This was a really neat spot to spend time out, I enjoyed it and I was only drinking water! Definitely a must see if traveling without children.

VOYAGEURS NATIONAL PARK AND RAINIER, MN

After our time in Duluth, we headed north another three hours towards Rainier, MN. Rainier is the closest town to Voyageurs and has a population of 500 people! The drive north was pretty remote other than one town we drove through where we stopped to make sure we had plenty of gas! As we drove more north, the roads became less lanes and much more remote. We barely saw anyone else on the roads and questioned if we were going the right way. When we arrived in Rainier, we checked into our hotel and walked around the town. The town consisted of a few small diners, an ice cream shop, a dive bar, and a distillery. What more could you need?! There wasn’t even a stop light in all of Rainier.

From Rainier, the Rainy Lake Visitor Center at Voyageurs National Park was only a fifteen minute drive. We planned ahead and rented two single kayaks from Voyageurs Outfitters. Make sure to plan ahead and book your boats in advance. What we didn’t realize was the outfitters drops the kayaks off for you in the morning and picks them up in the evening. To our surprise, we arrived at the park and there were no gates to get in; the park was completely free. We walked into the Rainy Lake Visitor Center and they told us where to go for the kayaks. We both assumed there would be a booth with a guide but again, to our surprise, we turned a few corners and found a piles of kayaks sitting in the grass. I called the outfitter to make sure one of these kayaks was ours and he said to take what we reserved. Talk about the honor system. We grabbed our kayaks, loaded them up, and took off.

What we did not plan very well was where to go once we got in the water. Rainy lake was much larger than we expected and there were several inlets along the lake. We took off hugging the coast and I’m so glad we did because just a few minutes into paddling, we spotted a bald eagle. The eagle was taking food to its nest! We sat still in awe and watched the bird swoop down into the lake, catch a fish, and bring it up to her nest. This was an amazing site!

We continued to paddle for quite some time, zig zagging across the lake and hugging the coast. We saw lots of birds, islands, and we really enjoyed the quiet of the nature. We saw very few other boats all day. Keep in mind, there are no amenities here: no bathrooms, no places for food, etc. If you need to use the bathroom, you need to paddle onto shore which can be quite tricky when the shoreline is rather rocky! We packed our usual hiking snacks and enjoyed the day on the water.

After about seven hours of kayaking, our arms were numb and we didn’t know if we would make it back if we went any longer. We were also freezing! The day we kayaked, it was overcast and in the upper 50’s! We didn’t wear our swimsuits, there is no need to, but we did get a little wet.

After dropping off our kayaks, we warmed up in our car and headed back to Rainier for dinner at the hotel.

Really the only way to experience Voyageurs is by boat. Through Voyageurs Outfitters, you can rent kayaks, canoes, fishing boats, and pontoon boats. Voyageurs truly is a very unique spot; it’s unlike any other national park we have been to before. This isn’t a park I plan on visiting year after year, but I am so glad we made the trek up to Voyageurs and experiences the boundary water region. It felt so good to be remote, away from city life, and really in the deep of nature just the two of us.

**Where We Stayed:** Our hotel in Rainier, MN was truly one of the most unique places we have ever stayed. The Cantilever hotel is both a distillery and a hotel. The first floor of the building is a distillery and restaurant with 30 rooms sitting above it. The aesthetics of the hotel were very industrial with an outdoorsy twist. If visiting Voyageurs, this is definitely the place to stay.

Where We Ate: We ate dinner at the Cantilever both nights were were in Rainier (there really weren’t any other options). Due to the remoteness, the food and drink were expensive but very good. I recommend the pasta! We also grabbed breakfast sandwiches and lattes at the hotel’s coffee shop one morning.

After leaving Rainier, we drove back down to Duluth, only to cross over Wisconsin into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to continue our journey.

cuyahoga national park.

pictured rocks national lakeshore.