Nature Travelers
Contact Us​
  • Welcome
  • About
    • About Us
    • About NatureTravelers.com
  • Our Travels
    • USA Travels Overview
    • 31 Days In Iceland
    • 15 Days In The Galapagos >
      • Galapagos Resources
    • 28 Days In South Africa
    • 43 Days In Costa Rica
    • Travels In Canada
    • Cruises
  • Travel Journals
    • USA Journal
    • Iceland Journal
    • Galapagos Islands Journal
    • South Africa Journal
    • Canada Journal
  • Photo Galleries
    • USA Photo Gallery
    • Iceland Photo Gallery
    • Galapagos Islands Photo Gallery
    • South Africa Photo Gallery
    • Costa Rica Photo Gallery
  • Future Travels
  • Welcome
  • About
    • About Us
    • About NatureTravelers.com
  • Our Travels
    • USA Travels Overview
    • 31 Days In Iceland
    • 15 Days In The Galapagos >
      • Galapagos Resources
    • 28 Days In South Africa
    • 43 Days In Costa Rica
    • Travels In Canada
    • Cruises
  • Travel Journals
    • USA Journal
    • Iceland Journal
    • Galapagos Islands Journal
    • South Africa Journal
    • Canada Journal
  • Photo Galleries
    • USA Photo Gallery
    • Iceland Photo Gallery
    • Galapagos Islands Photo Gallery
    • South Africa Photo Gallery
    • Costa Rica Photo Gallery
  • Future Travels

Ash River Visitors Center Hikes - Voyageurs National Park - Minnesota

7/2/2015

0 Comments

 
We were working in northern Minnesota this summer (2015) about seven miles from Voyageurs National Park. There are two visitor centers: Kabetogama Lake & Ash River. Kabetogama Lake is closer, but today was our first trip to the Ash River area.
Picture
Ash River Visitors Center - Voyageurs National Park - Minnesota

Today we drove the 18 miles to the Ash River Visitors Center at Voyageurs National Park. 

 

 

As part of our usual National Park visitation routine, we watched the park movie.  Dean, the park volunteer manning the Visitors Center, said there were reports of bats in the viewing room and there was definitely the distinctive smell of bat guano.

Dean then gave us some information about the history of the Visitor Center building.  He's a volunteer from South Carolina and was fascinated with our lifestyle.  He had more questions for us than we had for him.   

After that, we hiked the Blind Ash Bay Trail, a 2.5-mile trail near the Visitors Center. 

 

 

It's a one-mile hike out, and then a .7-mile loop partly along the lakeshore, and then a re-trace of the first mile back to the parking area.

The trail can also be accessed via the Kabetogama Lake Overlook Trail which leads to this partial view of the lake.

 

 

The first mile through the woods is on a narrow trail where the vegetation is overgrowing the path.  Long pants are recommended.

The trail has lots of roots and rocks, so you have to keep your eyes on your feet. That's why Linda almost didn't see this deer walking out in front of her.

 

 

 

Eventually, we reached the intersection where the loop started.

 

 

We headed to the left and the trail eventually dropped down to the water.

 

 

We walked along Blind Ash Bay ....

 

 

for a short time and then the trail climbed up to an overlook with a view of the main part of Kabetogama Lake.

 

 

I walked down on the rocks to take a few photos while Linda waited up above on a bench.

 

 

There wasn't much to the rest of the trail.  We saw a small garter snake on the way back, but no other wildlife.  There were a couple of nice views and the deer encounter was cool, but it certainly wasn't a hike comparable to most national park hikes. 

Having worked a few hours this morning, that little 2.5-mile trail was more tiring than expected.  But I still had one tiny trail I wanted to do while in the area.

We headed away from the Visitors Center and parked at the Beaver Pond Overlook trailhead.  The overlook is only .15-mile from the parking area.

 

 

The overlook provides a wide look at a huge beaver pond.

 

 

Should've brought our binoculars - it's a long distance view.

The park website says:  "Although beavers are no longer active at this pond, this trail provides great birding opportunities, and the possibility of spotting large wildlife."  I'm not sure what they mean by "large wildlife", but it looks like good moose habitat.

We didn't see any birds or wildlife and, without our binoculars, we didn't see much point in sitting and waiting.  However, for those staying in the Ash River area, it looks like a great place for an early morning visit.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    Interests - Backpacking
    Interests - Bird Watching
    Interests - Boat Tours
    Interests - Caves
    Interests - Fishing
    Interests - Hikes
    Interests - Paddling/Float Trips
    Interests - Scenic Drives
    Interests - Waterfalls
    Interests - Wildlife - Alligators/Crocodiles
    Interests - Wildlife - Bears
    Interests - Wildlife - Beavers
    Interests - Wildlife - Bighorn Sheep
    Interests - Wildlife - Bison
    Interests - Wildlife - Coyotes
    Interests - Wildlife - Deer
    Interests - Wildlife - Dolphins/Porpoises
    Interests - Wildlife - Eagles
    Interests - Wildlife - Elk
    Interests - Wildlife - Javelinas
    Interests - Wildlife - Manatees
    Interests - Wildlife - Moose
    Interests - Wildlife - Mountain Goats
    Interests - Wildlife - Otters
    Interests - Wildlife - Owls
    Interests - Wildlife - Prairie Dogs
    Interests - Wildlife - Pronghorn
    Interests - Wildlife - Seals
    Interests - Wildlife - Whales
    Interests - Wildlife - Wolves
    National Conservation Areas
    National Conservation Areas - Red Rock Canyon
    National Monuments
    National Monuments - Bandelier
    National Monuments - Chiricahua
    National Monuments - Grand Staircase Escalante
    National Monuments - Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks
    National Monuments - Vermilion Cliffs
    National Monuments - White Sands
    National Parks
    National Parks - Acadia
    National Parks - Arches
    National Parks - Badlands
    National Parks - Big Bend
    National Parks - Bryce Canyon
    National Parks - Canyonlands
    National Parks - Capitol Reef
    National Parks - Carlsbad Caverns
    National Parks - Cuyahoga Valley
    National Parks - Everglades
    National Parks - Glacier
    National Parks - Grand Canyon
    National Parks - Grand Teton
    National Parks - Great Basin
    National Parks - Great Sand Dunes
    National Parks - Great Smoky Mountains
    National Parks - Hot Springs
    National Parks - Isle Royale
    National Parks - Joshua Tree
    National Parks - Lassen Volcanic
    National Parks - Mammoth Cave
    National Parks - Mesa Verde
    National Parks - North Cascades
    National Parks - Petrified Forest
    National Parks - Redwood
    National Parks - Rocky Mountain
    National Parks - Saguaro
    National Parks - Theodore Roosevelt
    National Parks - Voyageurs
    National Parks - Waterton Lakes (Canada)
    National Parks - Yellowstone
    National Parks - Yosemite
    National Parks - Zion
    National Preserves
    National Preserves - Mojave National Preserve
    National Wildlife Refuges
    National Wildlife Refuges - Ash Meadows
    National Wildlife Refuges - Bosque Del Apache
    National Wildlife Refuges - Laguna Atascosa
    National Wildlife Refuges - Okefenokee
    State Parks
    State Parks - Adirondack NY
    State Parks - Anza Borrego CA
    State Parks - Dead Horse Point UT
    State Parks - Del Norte Coast Redwoods CA
    State Parks - Goblin Valley UT
    State Parks - Hocking Hills OH
    State Parks - Jedidiah Smith Redwoods CA
    State Parks - Kodachrome Basin UT
    State Parks - Palo Duro Canyon TX
    State Parks - Patrick's Point CA
    State Parks - Prairie Creek Redwoods CA
    State Parks - Quoddy Head ME
    State Parks - Valley Of Fire NV
    States - Alabama
    States - Arizona
    States - Arkansas
    States - California
    States - Colorado
    States - Florida
    States - Georgia
    States - Kentucky
    States - Maine
    States - Michigan
    States - Minnesota
    States - Montana
    States - Nevada
    States - New Hampshire
    States - New Mexico
    States - New York
    States - North Dakota
    States - Ohio
    States - South Dakota
    States - Tennessee
    States - Texas
    States - Utah
    States - Washington
    States - Wyoming

    Archives

    September 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    March 2017
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    January 2015
    June 2014
    May 2014
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    May 2012
    August 2011
    July 2011
    March 2011
    January 2011
    October 2010
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    March 2009
    January 2009
    November 2008
    May 2008
    April 2008
    March 2008
    February 2008
    October 2007
    July 2007
    June 2007
    May 2007
    February 2007
    November 2006
    March 2006
    October 2005

Thanks for visiting and we hope you enjoy our website.

Contact Us

Nature Travelers  •  Howard & Linda Payne  •  Howard@NatureTravelers.com  •  www.NatureTravelers.com

All content, photos, and videos - Copyright © Nature Travelers.  All Rights Reserved.
Website Designed by: WCWDesigns