Minnesota’s Dark Winter Skies Explode With Beauty During Boreal Stargazing Week

One of the things I love most about my home state is that northern Minnesota is home to some of the best places for stargazing in the Lower 48 United States. These include Voyageurs National Park, a certified International Dark Sky Park, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which is one of the first and largest Dark Sky Sanctuaries in the world. Even away from these official areas, there are millions of acres of forests, parks, lakes, and bogs in the Bold North where you can look up at the firmament and gaze at the celestial wonders to be found there with little to no light pollution.

And this February 9-15, we're celebrating all the wonderful opportunities for enjoying our state's dark skies with Boreal Stargazing Week. This stargazing event in Minnesota is one of the things I'm most looking forward to this winter.

This weeklong celebration of the fabulous stargazing to be found in the North Star State is the result of a statewide collaboration between many organizations, including Friends of the Boundary Waters, Voyageurs Conservancy, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Starry Skies North, Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, Expeditions in Education, and the University of Minnesota's Bell Museum of Natural History. Although the week focuses on the stargazing opportunities in the northern part of Minnesota, events and programs will be held throughout the state.

In fact, several virtual K-12 events are scheduled during the week, so students in every part of Minnesota can participate in the event. These include programs focused on the stars and the aurora borealis - one of the celestial events for which Minnesota is particularly renowned - as well as events about identifying animals active in the winter and their tracks, and a program hosted by the International Owl Center in Houston, MN.

There will also be several community events where you can enjoy guided stargazing in some of the state's best spots. In many cases, telescopes and other viewing aids will be provided, but you may wish to bring along your own pair of binoculars or viewing scope, as well.

The community events are scheduled throughout the state at places such as Wood Lake Nature Center in Richfield, Voyageurs National Park, Ely, Duluth, Coleraine, Grand Rapids, and the Bell Museum in St. Paul. Visit the Friends of the Boundary Waters on the web for more details and a schedule of events and programs.

Get starry-eyed planning your next Minnesota night sky escape using Only In Your State's Travel Planner!