A waterfall on a river, trails through varied landscapes, and museums with regional history collections offer different highlights for a trip to Pine County. When choosing what to do, you can distinguish nature experiences by trail type and mode of travel, and plan cultural sites as a separate part of your itinerary.
Choose forest trails by distance and landscape
St. Croix State Park covers more than 33,000 acres in Pine County. Forests, meadows, wetlands, and streams shape the terrain. The three-mile Kettle River Highbanks Trail is an out-and-back route; along the way, you can enjoy views of rocky rapids, nesting eagles, and wildflowers. Its out-and-back format and the views described give the trail a different character from a loop.
By contrast, the five-mile Two Rivers Trail is a loop that leads to the confluence of the Kettle River and the St. Croix River. A shorter loop is the 1.8-mile Quarry Loop Trail. The Lower Skunk Cabbage Trail is 0.6 miles long and follows a one-way route.
For cycling, St. Croix State Park has a mostly flat, paved, one-way trail that is 5.5 miles long. Its surface and route distinguish it from the Kettle River Highbanks Trail. Those interested in different ways to get around can visit the General C.C. Andrews State Forest, home to the fully paved Willard Munger State Trail. It is open to hikers, inline skaters, cyclists, and snowmobilers.
Rivers, waterfalls, and lakeshores
At Banning State Park, there is a spot on the Kettle River where canoes and kayaks can be launched from the shore. The park is also home to 12-foot-high Wolf Creek Falls, where spring-fed Wolf Creek flows into the Kettle River. These two river features offer different points of interest: one for launching a canoe or kayak, the other for viewing a waterfall at a confluence.
Osprey Wilds is located on the eastern shore of Grindstone Lake in Pine County. The 780-acre site includes old-growth pine and hardwood forests, conifer stands of different ages, prairie, an oak savanna, wetlands, and lake and stream habitats. The diversity of habitats is a distinctive landscape feature of this place.
At Dago Lake, two practical features go hand in hand: the Dago Lake Day-Use Area has a boat ramp, and the lake is relatively shallow and clear, with a sandy bottom that makes it suitable for swimming. The Snake River flows through Chengwatana State Forest. Several miles of rapids run through the forest before the river joins the St. Croix River. Several miles of scenic, flat and hilly snowmobile trails run through the forest; in the northern part, they connect to the Matthew Lourey State Trail and the trails of St. Croix State Park.
Regional history in Hinckley and Pine County
The Pine County Historical Society Museum displays a one-room schoolhouse and a limited-edition, life-size replica of the Wright Flyer. It also has an extensive reference library with information on Pine County history, as well as old photographs and maps that anyone can consult. The museum brings together a historic schoolhouse, an aircraft model, and reference materials in one collection.
The Hinckley Fire Museum preserves an extensive historical archive of documents and artifacts related to the history of Hinckley and Pine County. The museum can arrange tours for groups with advance notice by phone. Those interested in the Eldon Boulder area in Banning State Park can reach it via Teacher’s Overlook; a free permit is required for climbing.
The options range from river landscapes and loop trails to collections about local and regional history. When planning, compare trail lengths and types, your preferred way of getting around, and the subjects you want to make time for.
Discover more destinations: Hinckley, Kandiyohi County, Clearwater County, Kanabec County, Steele County, Blue Earth County, Hennepin, Watonwan County.
For the broader travel overview: Minnesota.
