Enjoy A Long Walk At This Underrated State Park In Minnesota
By Trent Jonas|Published November 30, 2023
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Trent Jonas
Author
Trent Jonas came to Minnesota to attend college - and never left. He's a Twin Cities-based writer with a BA in English and a MFA in creative writing, a Minnesota Master Naturalist, and the proud father of two adult children. With more than a decade of freelance writing experience under his belt, Trent is often out exploring his favorite topics: Minnesota's woods, lakes, and trails. Rhubarb pie is his weakness, so discovering new diners is also a passion.
If you were to start listing state parks in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, Savanna Portage State Park may not be among the first to come to mind. This gorgeous state park near the town of McGregor is not only home to incredible natural beauty, including lakes, wetlands, and Northwoods forest, it was established to protect an historic trail in Minnesota. This makes it a perfect park for enjoying a long walk while learning about the fascinating human and geological history of our state.
Savanna Portage State Park was established in 1961, and encompasses almost 16,000 acres of Minnesota's signature Northwoods and peatland terrain, dotted with lakes and crossed by the West Savanna River.
The Continental Divide Scenic Overlook and Continental Divide Trail afford the opportunity to explore and learn more about this geographic feature that divides the Mississippi River watershed from the Lake Superior basin.
An ancient footpath connected the East Savanna River in the Lake Superior basin with the West Savanna River in the Mississippi watershed. The Savanna Portage Trail was used for centuries by the Dakota and Ojibwe peoples, and later Voyageurs and fur traders, for transporting their goods by water routes.
The park was established to preserve this historic trail in Minnesota.
The 6.3 mile portage was also an historically brutal trek - especially for heavily-laden Voyageurs. It could take as long as five days to slog through the portage's bogs, forests, and marshes, and over its hills. But the area traversed by the portage remains the shortest stretch between the Mississippi and St. Louis Rivers.
Today, almost five miles of the trail is regularly maintained, and boardwalks have been placed through many of the bog and marsh segments.
The easternmost 1.6 miles of the Savanna Portage Trail, however, is "minimally maintained," so you can "enjoy" it in the same way it's been walked for centuries.
If you were to hike the full length of the trail, it would be a 12.6-mile out and back trip.
The first 5 miles is considered an "easy" route, however, the final stretch is more challenging due to trail conditions. If you don't want to complete the hike in one day, there are shelters and campsites along the route.
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The park is also home to a traditional campground if you prefer to set up a basecamp with a few more amenities than you'll find on trail.
So, if you’re up for a long walk with a little history thrown in, you can’t do much better than the historic Savanna Portage Trail at this underrated state park. Visit the Savanna Portage State Park web page for more information about camping reservations, as well as park updates. You can also download detailed trail maps from AllTrails Plus – a good idea if you run into the spotty cell service that I’ve encountered in the park.
Have you done any hiking in Savanna Portage State Park or followed the portage trail, itself? Tell us about it in the comments.
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