Margo

This is to be another of our USA car trips. About 7-9 days. Fly into Duluth in late July.
Really could use suggestions on route, hotels (mid-priced) and good places to eat.

So far, this is the route--Duluth, up the North Shore of Lake Superior. Should we go all the way to Grand Portage or just to Silver Bay, as we intend to go to International Falls next?

From Int'l Falls we would like to take a scenic route, maybe via Bemidji, or even to Fargo (Husband has this city locked in his head from the movie!), anyway get back to Duluth.

Our interests are scenery, historical places, National Parks, some walks/hikes of 2-3 miles.
Thanks for any suggestions--

Margo

Dukey1

Unless you know of some back roads I am unaware of to get to International Falls you are either going to have to drive all the way back to Duluth or cross into Canada and take the longer route.

If you are asking if it is worthwhile to go all the way to Grand Portage, IMO, it isn't. I did the road trip last June from Duluth; there are some falls, etc., you can visit on the way but in terms of scenic views over the lake, after a while things started looking pretty much the same to me.

flpab

Grand Marais, do spend time in the Boundary waters canoe area. Grand Marais always had so much charm. I lived there in my hippie days but took my husband back several years ago. We stayed in Duluth by the lift bridge. I could not get over how it all looked so nice there now.

flpab

http://www.southpierinn.com/ we stayed here by the lift bridge. It was very nice and easy walk to pubs. But if I wanted to stay outside of Duluth this really caught our eye.
https://www.lighthousebb.org/

WhereAreWe

I've covered a lot of that area in some different road trips.

There are 8 state parks between Duluth and the Canadian border. Jay Cooke is just south of Duluth and worth a stop if it's on your route back.

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/map.html

My favorites are Split Rock Lighthouse, Tettegouche and George Crosby Manitou. The latter is primarily a backpackers park with no visitor services so you can skip it. Definitely stop at Split Rock and tour the lighthouse and take a short hike to view the lighthouse from a distance. Tettegouche has some good short hikes with views of the lake. The other state parks along the North Shore are primarily inland along rivers so the main attractions are waterfalls.

Not sure if a scenic railroad day trip would interest you as it's going to be the same scenery as the drive, but you'd get a history lesson at the same time.

http://www.northshorescenicrailroad.org/Home/Home.asp

At Silver Bay you'd take Highway 1 to Ely and continue on to International Falls. It's not a backroad at all. You can visit the Wolf Center and North American Bear Center in Ely. West of Ely are two really good state parks - Bear Head Lake State Park is beautiful, and Soudan Underground Mine State Park has a tour of an old iron mine half a mile underground. It's definitely worth a stop.

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_par...ine/index.html

The Grand Portage National Monument is nice but not sure it's worth the long(ish) drive, especially if you also want to go to Fargo. If you do go up there, you can also visit Grand Portage State Park and check out the waterfalls (High Falls is the tallest waterfall in Minnesota, right on the Canadian border). If it's possible to take your rental car into Canada, it might make sense then to drive up to Thunder Bay and then head west to International Falls.

I'm assuming you're going to spend a couple days in Voyageurs National Park? It's not much of a hiker's park but more of a boater's park...take the day trips to Ellsworth Rock Garden and Kettle Falls.

http://www.nps.gov/voya/planyourvisi...-and-tours.htm

For that matter, you may want to stay at the Kettle Falls Hotel for a night just for the experience. If you do that check on visiting Anderson Bay and hiking to the overlook.

The Blind Ash Bay hiking trail is nice too. It's near the Ash River Visitor Center.

After International Falls your route really depends on whether you are going to Fargo or not. If you decide that's a priority, you could head west on Highway 11.

http://www.exploreminnesota.com/thin...y/details.aspx

This is a map of all the scenic byways in the state for reference.

http://www.exploreminnesota.com/wher...ays/index.aspx

Or you could do as you suggested and head to Bemidji, then pick a route over to Fargo. If you get as far as Bemidji, go to Itasca State Park for at least a few hours if not a day.

There's a huge difference between the woods of Northern Minnesota and the prairies of northwest Minnesota/North Dakota. I was a bit shocked at the transition.

If you decide to skip Fargo, then I'd say go to Bemidji and head east towards Duluth. Either go directly back to Duluth on Highway 2, or take a longer route through Hibbing and Virginia.

This is out of the way but I thought it was really cool because it's so different. You'd be somewhat in the vicinity if you head to Bemidji from International Falls.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_par...bog/index.html

I think it's tough to really narrow down a route until you decide if you're going to Fargo or not. That's going to be at least a day, if not two for the drive and stops along the way.

I'm not much of a food person so the only thoughts I have are Betty's Pies near Two Harbor and the Angry Trout in Grand Marais.

Lastly, have you considered flying into Minneapolis instead of Duluth? It's only a 2.5 hour drive from Minneapolis to Duluth, and with a layover and short flight you might be spending the same amount of total travel time - but the flight to Minneapolis would most likely be cheaper.

ziggypop

http://www.northshorevisitor.com/hiking-trails

A valuable book is Backroads and Byways of Minnesota by Amy C. Rea.

I would not go all the way to Grand Portage unless you want to gamble in the casino or go into Canada and see Thunder Bay. I would drive up the Gunflint Trail for the 'up north' experience, probably a half a day drive.
Fargo was not filmed in Fargo, ND. If you are going to visit Fargo, I would get some concert tickets or have some itinerary, otherwise things might seem a little slowwww.

Cali

I grew up on the North Shore and go back several times every year so I am a bit prejudiced, but I strongly urge you to spend some time in Duluth (I love the Canal Park Area and there are lots of hotels/motels down there now). The Canal park Area with the Visitors Center and the boats going in and out under the Aerial Bridge is still fun for me. You might also enjoy touring Glensheen Mansion which is on London Road on the Lake. There are also harbor and shore boat tours and you can tour an ore carrier. All in all, very enjoyable. When leaving Duluth go up the shore to Two Harbors on the scenic road rather than the highway. Do stop at Betty's Pies which is just outside (north) of Two Harbors. It is a landmark. After leaving Two Harbors, head up the shore to Split Rock Lighthouse. It is fun to see and amazing to think of building that complex in the days of no roads. After leaving Split Rock Lighthouse, you can head up to Silver Bay (not a lot to see there besides the plant where they ship taconite pellets via the ore carriers - they do that in Two Harbors also). Beaver Bay (just south of Silver Bay) does have a couple restaurants and shops as well as gas, however I rarely stop there so can't recommend anything. I would definitely go on up the shore from Silver Bay to Grand Marais. It is (in my opinion) the prettiest little town on the North Shore. It has lots of shops, art, The North House Folk School, a beautiful natural harbor and quite a few restaurants. The lake views from Silver Bay to Grand Marais are beautiful. I do recommend the Angry Trout in GM for seafood. It sits on the harbor and the food is very good. If you want light quick seafood meal you can go to Dockside, which is above Angry Trout right on the harbor. It is owned by the fisherman who supplies the fish to all the restaurants in town and of course to his own shop which is run by his wife. they also have fresh and frozen ocean fish. My favorite is the Herring basket but they have lots of other choices. Another good restaurant is the Harbor Grill which is a big yellow house across the highway from Angry Trout, so it also overlooks the water. Down on the main street across from the harbor is Java Moose, which has great coffees and sandwiches and other goodies. Just a few feet from Java Moose is The Pie Place Which is part of Harbor Inn. They have good food and excellent pies. Farther down the Main Street is Gunflint Tavern which has a lot of unique food(usually not to my taste but lots of people love it) and they have a large selection of beers and wines. In the very next street down Main Street, there is The Crooked Spoon, which features a more upscale Dinner Menu and a lovely lunch Menu. Two doors down from there is Sven & Ole's which is a landmark and it sells my very favorite pizza. They also have beer and wine and cocktails in the bar. There are a number of other restaurants that are good but I don't go to them as often so can't give my opinion on them. There are a number of hotels, condos, cabins and motels to stay in around Grand Marais. I personally like the Best Western Superior Shores Motel which is right by downtown and overlooks the lake. They have beautiful rooms and the location is great. Just a few yards from there is the Aspen Lodge. I have been in there and it also looks nice. The Aspen Lodge and small motel next to it and the Aspen Inn on top of the hill are all run by the Shoreline Hotel which is downtown. I have never stayed at Shoreline so cannot say if they have been upgraded in recent years. They also rent the Cove Point Townhomes which are right on the Harbor and we have stayed there and had a great time. It is s super location. The East Bay Suites also rent out condos and they look nice but I have not stayed there. I have heard they don't have a/c and sometimes that doesn't matter but on a hot day you will want it. There are cabins for rent all over around town and out in Croftville (a small road right out of town and right on the lake) and there are also several B & B's which I have heard are good. If you do decide to drive up to Grand Portage (it is a pretty drive but not much to see up there besides the stockade and Casino) I would definitely stop for breakfast, lunch or Dinner at Naniboujou Lodge. It is half way between Grand Marais and Grand Portage and is so unique you will be glad you went there. Food is also wonderful there. I would head to International Falls by going up Highway 1 right before Silver Bay to Ely and then head across to the rest of the range and on to International Falls. I don't know why yu are going to The Falls but to be honest it was not a very scenic drive and not that much to see. We did go to Winnipeg from there and I enjoyed that and then we drove down the 94 fwy through Grand Forks and Fargo and back to Mpls. I have been to Fargo and Grand Forks several times but would not go out of my way to go there. I agree with you flying into Duluth rather than Mpls. just to save time. We often fly into Mpls. because we have friends we want to see there but it does add some time tot he trip. It isn't a terrible trip from Mpls. to Duluth but if you can get a good rate to Duluth I'd fly into Duluth. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask me as I'd be happy to tell you anything I can.

Cali

Oops, I mentioned the Cove Point Townhomes in the above post. That was incorrect. It is actually Cobblestone Cove Townhomes. Cove Point is a lodge on the lake down near Beaver Bay. Sorry about the error.

Margo

Wow!! I can't tell you how impressed I am with the information provided by you Fodorites. Thank you, Cali, for your extensive note. And for WhereAreWe for all the websites. (liked the one for scenic drives in Minn).

After digesting all of this, I can say that we probably won't be going to Fargo. We will be going to Voyagers Nat'l Park and Int'l Falls (often reported as the coldest place in the continental US). Could use some more info on this area.

What about the lake area between Bemidji and Grand Rapids? Just trees and lakes?

Finally, flying in and out of Duluth is $60 more that in and out of Minneapolis. The rental cars are much cheaper in Duluth.

Thanks again,
Margo

flpab

Cali, you forgot Blue Water Café, it was there in the 1970's and was happy to see it in 2010! They made these homemade cookies with leftover potato chips that were so good. I miss the spelt season, hunting for blueberries and the bears. We use to get ice cream and go to the dump for entertainment. One time someone hit a moose on the hwy and the IGA sold all the meat for 99 cents a pound. It was a great town. Now I want to go again.

WhereAreWe

If flights to Duluth are only $60 more than Minneapolis than that makes perfect sense to fly directly to Duluth.

What do you want to know about Voyageurs and International Falls? There's really not a lot to recommend for International Falls - its the gateway for the Rainy Lake section of Voyageurs and that's about it. You'll find some smaller chain hotels, some mom and pop motels and restaurants and not much else. I much prefer the Lake Kabetogaoma section of Voyageurs (that's where you'd find the boat tours and hiking trails I linked to). Lodging is all resorts and campgrounds in that area.

Bemidji to Grand Rapids....definitely lakes and trees. Like I said though, go to Itasca State Park southwest of Bemidji. Visit the Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox statues in Bemidji, check out some of the little stores in town. Grand Rapids is the birthplace of Judy Garland and there's a museum in town if you're a fan of her and/or the Wizard of Oz.

You can either go directly back to Duluth from Grand Rapids, or take a longer route through Virginia. There are some museums and historical sites on that route related to logging and mining.

http://www.ironrange.org/

Check out the links for Chisholm, Hibbing, Virginia and Eveleth on that site.

I think you could break the trip down into 4 segments: Duluth, the drive up the North Shore to Silver Bay and then over to Ely, International Falls and Voyageurs, and the drive back to Duluth via Bemidji. If you give yourself roughly two days for each segment you'll find enough to do in each area without rushing or spending too much time in any one area.

Cali

flpab, I don't know how I missed thinking of Blue Water Cafe as I have been going there all my life - even when it had different names. I love their blueberry pancakes and my husband loves the hot beef and hot turkey sandwiches.