Day 3
Sunday 8/8/2021
I spent three nights in Lutsen for one reason only. It’s the closest place to the trailhead for Eagle Mountain, the highest point in Minnesota. I gave myself two days here to increase my odds of having a clear day.
To get to the trailhead, it was an easy drive north a couple of miles through “downtown” Lutsen. It’s a few general stores, gas stations and a coffee shop.
The turnoff is clearly marked for County Road 4, Caribou Trail. The first five miles are paved. The rest of the eighteen miles is, in all honesty, one of the smoothest dirt and gravel roads I’ve ever driven. Except for the blind hills and curves, I felt perfectly comfortable maintaining 35MPH(55KPH)
The road dead ends at a fire road, equally as well maintained. Four miles later, I was in the parking lot for the trail.
To do the hike, you do need a permit from the federal government. The good news is, you can fill out a form at the kiosk for a day use permit. Easy enough. With the yellow copy filed in the drop box and the white copy on my pocket, it was time to head up.
The first two and a half miles is forest floor, with plenty of rocks and roots to step over. Water crossings were all bridges of various condition, though none seemed unsafe to me.
The first landmark it a bog, courtesy of the local beavers.
Eventually, you reach Whale Lake and skirt around the south-western corner. Why Whale Lake? All will be revealed later…
At the two and a half mile point, you hit a trail juncture. Turn right and it's six miles to a lake. Head left, and you start climbing your way up Eagle Mountain. Stretches were a bit steep, but still not so bad.
At one point, two guys were chatting on the trail. One was heading up and the other headed down. They were comparing high points they had done. This was only twenty-seven for me, but I paused and enjoyed the conversation.
Just shy of the peak, I came to a vague split in the trail. If I hadn’t known about it, I could have easily missed it. Head off to the right, and it's a two minute walk to the marker for Eagle Mountain.
Backtracking and taking the left fork quickly brought me to an overlook.
Remember Whale Lake?
The fog seemed to be thinning, and the forecast did call for sun around noon. So, I stayed there for a bit. As quickly as the fog dissipated, it came back. No complaints, I had still made the high point,
From the hike down...
It was early afternoon when I made it back to the trailhead. From the drive out...
Having dealt with an off and on light mist all day, I drove back to the Inn for some dry clothes. The woman at the check in desk asked how it went, and we got to chatting. She recommended a place up the road called the Cascade Restaurant.
I easily found the place and found one selection on the menu to curious to pass up. Imagine a burger that’s part bison, part elk and part boar. Interesting flavor.
Lake Superior from across the street.
The hotel across the street from mine is a little bigger and has its own restaurant. I had no interest in food, but a beer would be nice. Outside, a guy was playing guitar and singing for the assembled crowd. They all seemed to know him, and he was calling out people by name as he took requests. There were songs by local musicians I didn’t recognize, as well as what you’d expect. However, hearing twenty or so people sing along with Radiohead was something different.
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