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Camping in Wild River State Park, MN

October 7, 2018 by Claire Leave a Comment

Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.We went camping last weekend for the first time in forever! The last time we camped was on our way out to California in 2017… that feels like a long time ago. So we packed our car on Friday afternoon and drove up to Wild River State Park. It’s northeast of the Twin Cities on the St. Croix River (and the Wisconsin border). Wild River is not the most well-known park in that area, but it’s just as beautiful with the fall foliage IMO.

Is this “travel post” just an excuse to show you gorgeous pictures of autumn in MN and try to convince you to visit? Pretty much. No shame, I love where I live and I love sharing it with you 😛

It was pretty cold this weekend (in the 40s) so when we got there on Friday evening, E immediately built a fire and we roasted hotdogs. So yummy. I ate so much this weekend… why does all food taste better when eaten around a campfire?

After breakfast the next morning, we went on a hike. We drove to the start of the River Trail, walked up the river, then cut across to the Old Logging Trail and walked south back to where we’d parked. Only a couple of miles roundtrip, but a beautiful couple of miles. I was glad I brought a camera, my trusty little Sony. I really need to practice using my DSLR in the cold before Norway, but I’m freaked by the possibility of getting condensation in it…

Anyhow, some pictures from this weekend!

Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.After our hike, we snuggled up in our tent and read all afternoon. I’m currently reading There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather and loving it! It’s about the importance of spending time outside–specifically unstructured time–in child development and happiness. The author is a mom of two from Sweden who takes a six-month trip back to her home country with her daughters. She writes about the differences she sees between the US and Scandinavian education systems and the scientific literature that exists to back up her observations.

We cooked dinner over our trusty little camp stove. It’s cheap but very good; I highly recommend it for campers on a budget. It’s been all over the US with us! Then we read more until bedtime.

We slept in again this morning, packed up and drove home. Taking a hot shower after being out in the cold for a couple of days is the best feeling. Then we made eggs and bacon, and I am currently munching dark chocolate almonds while lying in bed. So you could say it’s been a good weekend 🙂 I think we’ll definitely be back to Wild River in the future!

Here's how we spent a weekend camping and hiking in Wild River State Park on the St. Croix! It's an excellent location to see the fall foliage in Minnesota.What did you get up to this weekend? What are you reading/listening to/cooking lately? Lately I’ve had this YouTube music video on repeat. The songs between 35 and 40 minutes are my favorites. He also has a Part 1, so that’s four hours of music total! I love Celtic music and it’s so perfect for fall.

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: camping, hiking, Minnesota, nature, travel, US

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Hi, I’m Claire!

I'm 31, writer, wife, and mom of 4. Just to Claireify is a lifestyle blog for women who aspire to live healthy, balanced lives. (And, okay, it's a throwback to that girly 2010s blogger vibe sometimes too!) If that sounds like you, grab a cup of coffee and make yourself at home. (Learn more about me here.)

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