Now that cold weather is all the rage, it's tempting to cuddle up with your favorite blanket and pass the next few months indoors. But there are many places around Minnesota that are at their most beautiful under a fresh coat of snow. If you want to get outside this winter - but not for too long - this easy one-mile hike is just the thing to do. It'll get you out of the house and into one of Minnesota's nicest state parks. This might be one of the very best winter hikes in Minneapolis - and maybe the state!
Fort Snelling State Park is a large park in St. Paul that is brimming with outdoor activities - even in the winter.
The great outdoors is part of what makes Minneapolis-Saint Paul so incredibly spectacular: the cities are filled to the brim with outdoor based activities for every season. While not every resident of the Twin Cities is an avid outdoors person with expansive knowledge of nature, that doesn't mean that they're incapable of enjoying what Minneapolis and Saint Paul have to offer. If you want to spend time outside in the Twin Cities but don't want to scale cliffs and do daredevil sorts of things, here are seven easy hikes to add to your outdoor bucket list in Minneapolis-Saint Paul. These might just be some of the best hikes in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, so write them down:
Every Minneapolitan loves Minnehaha Falls. The 53-foot-tall waterfall is incredibly mesmerizing and the surrounding park has some of the most beautiful and accessible hiking trails in the entire city. Most hiking trails are along the Minnehaha Creek, which eventually connects to the Mississippi River in Saint Paul.
Minneapolis is known as the Mill City and the economy was once heavily based in flour milling. In the late 1800s, one of the flour mills exploded, leaving its ruins behind. From Mill Ruins Park, one can meander across the Stone Arch Bridge into the Marcy Holmes neighborhood or follow a trail along the ruins and eventually hit the Mississippi Gorge Park.
The Winchell Trail is a hidden gem in Minneapolis. Hidden within the Longfellow neighborhood of the city, this 4.5-mile trail extends along the Mississippi River from great heights along the river bluffs. You will feel as if you've left Minneapolis entirely and have entered a new, enchanting world.
Simon's Ravine Trailhead has only been open since 2007 but has quickly become the access point to many of Dakota County's trails. Located in South Saint Paul, the trail is named after the Ravine family who settled in and owned the area in 1878. Pathways through this trail are well paved and beautiful.
The best hiking trails are always along the Mississippi River, and Lilydale Regional Park in Saint Paul is absolutely stunning. Once you're done with your hike, you can fish in the park's small lake to continue your outdoor adventure.
Minnehaha Falls isn't the only extraordinary waterfall in the Twin Cities. Hidden Falls in Saint Paul is a bit tucked away; you'll have to follow the path to eventually find the waterfall and it will be worth the hike.
Crosby Farm Regional Park in Saint Paul covers a whopping 736 acres and a variety of scenery. Many of the hiking trails are immersed within the woods, but others come with a view of Lake Crosby and the Mississippi River as well.
These are just a few of the easiest and most beautiful hikes within Minneapolis and Saint Paul that you should add to your outdoor bucket list. We know the Twin Cities offer a variety of other options for hiking, and we'd love to know about your favorites in the comments below!
It seems as if everyone in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area are really all about the great outdoors. Twin Cities residents love to bike, swim, and hike their way through their springs, summers, and autumns since winters are so entirely wretched. Hiking in Minnesota is an easy and accessible activity for most people. For beginners, these short hikes all under three miles long will be perfect! Check out some of the best hikes in Minneapolis-Saint Paul for yourself:
Hidden Falls Regional Park and Crosby Farm are interconnected on the east bank of the Mississippi River in Saint Paul, which means there are a variety of trails that will either take you to the riverbanks, or to the waterfall if you want to walk a bit farther and deeper into the park.
Occasionally, the most gorgeous and serene trails are in the suburbs of Minneapolis-Saint Paul and there's no shame in that. Make a quick drive out to Eagan to explore woods, marshes, and other wetlands. You'll be sure to soak in the beauty of nature on any of the park's trails. Hear that? It's Lebanon Hills Regional Park whispering your name.
Battle Creek Park is famously pet friendly, which makes any hike a special one when man's best friend is included. The trails are particularly stunning in the fall.
We don't appreciate Minneapolis' suburbs enough, so let's show some love to the beautiful and expansive Elm Creek Park Reserve. Not only does this park have a man-made swimming pond and places to tube and snowboard in the winter, the park's expansive acreage is full of a variety of trails for hikers, bikers, and more.
Since these trails are located on both the West and East banks of the Mississippi River, hikers get to pick and choose their adventure. The trails will be beautiful in any season, and if you don't want to walk more than three miles, you definitely don't have to. This is one of the best hiking trails in Minneapolis-Saint Paul and can't be missed.
What was once a great military outpost, is now a historical site in Saint Paul. While many abandoned buildings from Fort Snelling still exist for passersby to experience, Fort Snelling also has a variety of more rugged trails, including a longer five mile trail that will lead you to Minnehaha Falls.
A simple walk through the main grounds of Minnehaha Park will lead you to hills or steps down to the most incredible natural waterfall in all of the Twin Cities. If that short hike isn't enough for you and you decide you want more, follow the trails along Minnehaha Creek, which will eventually lead you to Fort Snelling.
This park is located along the border of Saint Paul and Maplewood. Not only does it have a beautiful lake and woodlands, the park features a clubhouse for you to relax post-hike. If you want to kick it up a notch in the winter, Theodore Wirth Park is an excellent spot to do some cross-country skiing, which is basically hiking with skis.
Along the northwest side of Dayton's Bluff, the Swede Hollow neighborhood was once one of the most impoverished areas of Saint Paul. It was basically a dumping grounds until the 1970s when it was converted into a nature center. Walk through the beautiful tree-lined trails and you'll hardly believe Swede Hollow Park was ever a dump.
There's no better way to appreciate Minneapolis and Saint Paul's natural beauty than through a hike along the best trails in the city. Even if you're not a hardcore hiker, you can appreciate these stunning, short trails that are all less than three miles along. Where's your favorite place to hike in the Twin Cities? Let us know in the comments.
