Lake Superior in Minnesota

Trip Overview

Minnesota North Shore of Lake Superior

My wife and I paddled in the area around Gooseberry Falls and Split Rock Lighthouse State Parks. This area is part of the Superior Water Trail, which has great potential.

We camped at Gooseberry, and did two day trips. Day 1- we struggled a bit to find a put-in, as we planned to start at Tetteguche St Park, but the kayak put in was too much of a trek from parking with our big tandem. We ended up starting at a beach a mile north of Silver Bay (mile 53 on LSWT). We paddled north to just past Palisade Head, which included one cave to paddle through and some nice cliffs.

Day 2 started at Gooseberry and went north to Split Rock. It was very nice with cliffs along the way and several nice rock beaches to stop for lunch or breaks. There are a few kayak only (though we saw some people who had walked down to one site and set up a camp) campsites in the area. Use the maps provided on the watertrail website, or you can get maps in Duluth at a kayaking store at the lakeshore (Canal Park in what looks like a former train depot, don't remember the name).

Accommodations:

Gooseberry St Pk is a typ state park. Sites are close together. But, there are 2 kayak sites where the Gooseberry meets the lake that are nice, but near lots of walking traffic.

Outfitting:

Northwest Seascape 2 - fiberglass tandem

Fees:

$15/nt for sites at state parks. Don't know if you have to pay if you paddle in.

Directions:

North from Duluth, MN, about 50 miles or so on Hwy 61. Keep the lake on your right, and you are going north.

Resources:

Lake Superior Watertrail web site
http://www.lswta.org/