Minnesota Road Trips

By Dustin and Kelly Ratcliff

Minnesota was settled by the Ojibwe and the Dakota Native People in 1849 and entered the union in 1858. Known for being the “land of ten thousand lakes,” Minnesota actually has nearly eleven thousand lakes. Lake Superior, the world’s largest freshwater lake borders Minnesota on the North Shore. The Headwaters of the Mighty Mississippi begin at Lake Itasca in Bemidji, MN, and flow some 2,350 miles to the Gulf of Mexico. 

Minnesota Road Trips

  1. Minnesota River Valley Byway
  2. North Shore All-American Scenic Drive
  3. Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway
  4. King of Trails Scenic Byway

Minnesota Websites

Minnesota River Valley Byway

  • Bonanza Education Center, bonanzaeducationcent.wixsite.com/bonanza
  • Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge, bit.ly/bigstonenwr
  • Swensson Farm Museum, bit.ly/swenssonfarm
  • Fagen Fighters WWII Museum, fagenfighterswwiimuseum.org
  • Ramsey Park Zoo, bit.ly/ramseyparkzoo
  • Schell’s Brewery, schellsbrewery.com
  • Veigel’s Kaiserhoff, kaiserhoff.org
  • New Ulm Turner Hall, newulmturnerhall.org
  • Wanda Gág House, wandagaghouse.org
  • Brown County Historical Society, browncountyhistorymn.org
  • Harkin Store, mnhs.org/harkinstore
  • Morgan Creek Vineyard, morgancreekvineyards.com
  • Hub Food Park, hubfoodpark.com
  • Mom & Pop’s, momandpopsicecream.com
  • Walking Sculpture Tour, cityartmankato.com
  • Betsy-Tacy House, betsy-tacysociety.org/visits-tours
  • Hubbard House, blueearthcountyhistory.com/hubbard-house
  • Linnaeus Arboretum, gustavus.edu/arboretum
  • Treaty Site History Center, nchsmn.org
  • W. W. Mayo House, mnhs.org/mayohouse
  • Kerfoot Canopy Tour, kerfootcanopytour.com
  • Ney Nature Center, neycenter.org

North Shore All-American Scenic Drive

  • Canal Park, canalpark.com
  • Grandma’s,grandmasrestaurants.com
  • Northern Waters Smokehaus, northernwaterssmokehaus.com
  • Amazing Grace Cafe & Grocery, amazinggracebakeryandcafe.com
  • Glensheen Mansion, glensheen.org
  • New Scenic Café, newsceniccafe.com
  • Russ Kendall’s Smoke House, facebook.com/RussKendalls
  • Castle Danger Brewery, castledangerbrewery.com
  • Lou’s Fish House, lousfishhouse.com
  • Betty’s Pies, bettyspies.com
  • Gooseberry Falls State Park, bit.ly/gooseberryfalls
  • Split Rock Lighthouse, mnhs.org/splitrock
  • Palisade Head, bit.ly/palisadehead
  • North Shore Commercial Fishing Museum, commercialfishingmuseum.org
  • Temperance River State Park, bit.ly/temperanceriversp
  • Superior National at Lutsen, superiornational.com
  • Lutsen Mountains, lutsen.com
  • North Shore Winery, northshorewinery.us
  • North House Folk School, northhouse.org
  • Sven and Ole’s, svenandoles.com
  • World’s Best Donuts, worldsbestdonutsmn.com
  • Drury Lane Books, drurylanebooks.indielite.org
  • Naniboujou Lodge & Restaurant, naniboujou.com
  • Voyageur Brewing Company, voyageurbrewing.com
  • Grand Portage Lodge & Casino, grandportage.com

Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway

  • La Crescent Aquatic Center, bit.ly/lacrescent
  • Van Lin Orchards, bit.ly/vanlinorchards
  • International Owl Center, internationalowlcenter.org
  • Houston Nature Center, houstonnaturecenter.com
  • Sweet 16 Farm, sweet16farm.com
  • Peterson Station Museum, petersonmn.com/peterson-museum
  • Norsland Lefse, norslandlefse.com
  • Aroma Pie Shoppe, facebook.com/aromapieshoppe
  • Stone Mill Hotel & Suites, stonemillsuites.com
  • Lanesboro Museum, facebook.com/lanesborohistoricalmuseum
  • Lanesboro Arts Juried Sales Gallery, lanesboroarts.org
  • Commonweal Theatre Company, commonwealtheatre.org
  • Root River Rod Co., rootriverrodco.com
  • Eagle Bluff Environmental L
  • earning Center, eaglebluffmn.org
  • National Trout Center, nationaltroutcenter.org
  • Trout City Brewing, troutcitybrewing.com
  • Historic Forestville, mnhs.org/forestville
  • Spring Valley Methodist Church Museum, springvalleymnmuseum.org

King of Trails Scenic Byway- Hwy 75

  • Far North Spirits, farnorthspirits.com/home
  • Revelation Ale Works, revales.com
  • Sky-Vu Drive-In, skyvumovies.com
  • Voyageur’s View Campground, voyageursview.com
  • Wonderful Life Foods, facebook.com/WonderfulLifeFoods
  • Pembina Trail Scientific and Natural Area, bit.ly/pembinatrail
  • Red River History Museum, bit.ly/redriverhistory
  • Red River Zoo, redriverzoo.org
  • Fargo Air Museum, fargoairmuseum.org
  • Plains Art Museum, plainsart.org
  • Children’s Museum at Yunker Farm, bit.ly/childrensmuseumatyunker
  • Hjemkomst Center, hcscconline.org/the-hjemkomst
  • Red River Monument, bit.ly/redrivermonument
  • Big Stone County Museum, bit.ly/bigstonecountymuseum
  • Madison Speedway, bit.ly/madisonspeedway
  • Robert Bly Study, lqphc.org/robert-bly-studio
  • Gnometown, USA, gnomedaws.com
  • Historic Lund-Hoel House and the Carriage House Interpretive Center, canbymuseums.org
  • Heritage and Windpower Learning Center, bit.ly/lakebenton
  • Lake Benton Opera House, lakebentonoperahouse.org
  • Historic Calumet Inn, calumetinn1888.com
  • Pipestone National Monument, nps.gov/pipe
  • Blue Mounds State Park, bit.ly/bluemoundsstatepark
  • Rock County Historical Society, rockcountyhistorical.com/attractions/rock-county-history-museum/nutcrackers
  • Those Blasted Things, thoseblastedthings.com