Duluth State Parks

MEA break found us spending a few days in the Duluth area, checking out some of the State Parks, and spending time with Katelyn and Donovan in her last year of college there.

 

On the way there we stopped by Jay Cooke State Park. We had a chilly picnic followed by the journey across the swing bridge and exploring/hiking along the river.

When we got to Duluth we stopped by Canal Park, took Katelyn and Donovan to dinner Grandma's and treated ourselves to a few of these delicious caramel apples!

 The next day we started with Split Rock Light house.

Then we journeyed to Tettegouche State Park. It was an ambitious hike with hills and steps along the way, and lots of mud to avoid. When we got to the waterfall I was so glad we took the treck. Especially since the kids did so great!

 Our final State Park for the day was Gooseberry.

We spent the evening swimming in the hotel pool and bringing Katelyn and Donovan out for dinner again, this time at Texas Roadhouse.

The following morning we went back to Canal Park to watch a ship come in (named the Phillip Clarke), sadly it came in an hour and a half ahead of schedule, so we missed it. We still walked to check out the William Irvin and got to see the lift bridge go up for a sail boat.

Then we went to Enger Tower, the highest point in Duluth, to check out the amazing view. We also went to a park to explore more waterfalls and have another chilly picnic.

All in all the trip was great, although cut short a bit. We hoped to head to a few more state parks on the way home, but on Friday night Henry's asthma really flared up. We suspect it was from all of the hiking. We almost went home in the middle of the night because of his intense coughing. Instead I positioned Henry and I to sleep with our heads by the window which we cracked open a bit. The cold air opens his airways more to help him. Still, a great time checking out so many state parks, hanging out with Katelyn and Donovan, and making memories.