Voyageurs National Park: Ash River Area Exploration

It was another beautiful fall day. We headed down to the Ash River section of Voyageurs National Park to do some exploring. Our first stop was the Voyageurs Forest Overlook Trail. At .5 miles in length it's pretty short. Right off the bat, we picked up the Hike To Health rubbing,

then we headed into the forest

among the yellow aspen leaves.

Like I mentioned, the trail is short. However, there is a very steep section

that makes the hike a little bit more difficult than one would anticipate. After we were done, we ate lunch at a picnic table in the parking lot.

After lunch, we made our way past blooming black-eyed Susan,

over to the Sullivan Bay Trail. We had previously hiked this trail back in May. However, we did not bring our Hike to Health passport and so we set out to hike it again,

this time with beautiful fall colors decorating the trees. After making the rubbing,

we spent some time admiring the view from the picnic table there.

A loon constantly dove and resurfaced, putting on a show for us. After watching the loon for a bit, we hit the trail

and headed back to the car.

At the parking lot we decided that since we were already there, and since it was a beautiful day, we might as well hike the short Beaver Pond Overlook Trail. It was definitely worth it! We quickly returned to the car and headed a short distance further down the road to the Kabetogama Lake Overlook. It was another short hike in autumn splendor,

past a chattering red squirrel

to the beautiful overlook of Kabetogama Lake.

Again we spent some time relaxing and admiring the view before our return to the car.

Our last stop for the day took us to the secret Levin Cabin.

It is a beautiful, old cabin that the park acquired some time ago and park officials did not have the heart to tear it down. We went inside to check it out

and explored the grounds for a bit, including the unique water storage/delivery system.

Soon it was time to get back into the car for the drive home.