Love Acadia National Park? Try This Similar Spot in Minnesota

The Land of 10,000 Lakes is no slouch when it comes to natural beauty. Whether you love the expansive tallgrass prairies of the west, the rugged bluffs and hardwoods of the southeast, or the lakes and deep forests of the Northland (or "d," all of the above), there's much to adore in Minnesota. What's funny, though, is that many folks who aren't from here don't realize just how beautiful our state really is. I'd go so far as saying the Bold North's natural gifts would hold their own against those from many other states. Take the North Shore of Lake Superior, for example. I would argue that it's just as stunning as other, more famous places, like Acadia National Park in Maine. In fact, Acadia and Minnesota's North Shore are practically doppelgängers for one another.

Look at Otter Cliff, for instance. At 110 feet above the ocean, it's one of the highest Atlantic headlands in North America—one of the tallest north of Brazil, in fact—which is fine. It also happens to bear a striking resemblance to Shovel Point in Tettegouche State Park, which soars to more than 170 feet above the surface of Lake Superior. Can you tell which is which in these photos? (Hint: Otter Cliff is the first one.)

If you're looking for more impressive features, nearby Palisade Head, just south of Shovel Point, rises 335 feet above the lake's surface. Further proving my point, Palisade Head was used as a location stand-in for Maine in the 1993 movie The Good Son. That's right, the North Shore is more Maine than Maine.

You'd most certainly be forgiven if you found yourself standing atop 1,340-foot Mt. Josephine, looking out over Grand Portage Bay to Hat Point, Pigeon Point, and the Susie Islands (below), and believed, instead, that you were perched atop 1,530-foot Cadillac Mountain gazing at the Mt. Desert Island coastline. The views are practically dead ringers.

Acadia National Park is home to the incredibly scenic, 37-foot-tall Bass Harbor Head Light Station, stunning in its bright whitewash and red roof, as it stands above the Atlantic on a rocky, evergreen-covered headland. At 54 feet, the North Shore's Split Rock Lighthouse is taller, as is the cliff on which it's perched, and just as majestic. The tan bricks, white trim, and red roofs of the adjacent buildings give Minnesota's most beloved lighthouse a stately look, I think.

I will concede that Grand Marais, Minnesota, is no Bar Harbor. Like its Maine counterpart, though, Grand Marais is a charming coastal port that wraps along a curved bay below the forested Sawtooth Mountains of northern Minnesota. Tourists visit year-round, and it's home to one of the state's favorite eateries, gorgeous outdoor areas, and a beloved coffee shop.

I'm certainly not trying to sell Acadia National Park short here—it's truly a wonderful place—but if you're looking for similar scenery without the thronging crowds, I think Minnesota's North Shore is a worthy substitute.