Minnesota’s Only National Park Now Stuns National Rankings

Minnesota may be home to 10,000 Lakes, but did you know our lone national park was just highlighted as one of the best in the country?

In addition to our 10,000 lakes (which the DNR says is actually closer to 11,482), Minnesota is also home to 75 state parks and recreation areas. The Bold North is also home to nearly 4,400 campsites that are visited by an average of just under 10 million people each year, according to the DNR. So yeah, Minnesota's parks are pretty popular, right?

Why Minnesota’s Only National Park Is Nationally Ranked

However, that's not necessarily the case for Minnesota's National Parks. Or, should I say national PARK. While several states out west have several National Parks within their borders (like, say, Montana, which is home to seven National Parks, including Yellowstone, Glacier, and Bighorn Canyon), here in the North Star State, we only have one:

Voyageurs National Park. It's located way up north, near Minnesota's northern border with Canada. (It's about 350 miles-- a little over 4 hours-- north of the Twin Cities.) The NPS website describes Voyageurs National Park like this:

With 218,055 acres, Voyageurs National Park is an adventure wonderland all year long full of exposed rock ridges, cliffs, wetlands, forests, streams and lakes. This is a place of transition between land and aquatic ecosystems, between southern boreal and northern hardwood forests, and between wild and developed areas.

How Voyageurs Became One of America’s Best Parks

Here's the thing: Voyageurs National Park (NP) doesn't attract a ton of visitors. According to an NPS report, Voyageurs usually ranks around  53rd out of 63 National Parks here in the U.S. (Although many of us might think that fewer people tromping through the Minnesota wilderness is a good thing, right?)

That doesn't mean Voyageurs isn't popular, however. In fact, a new survey from outdoor retailer, Kühl's, was just released, and in it, Voyageurs ranked second on the list of national parks that 'exceed expectations,' the Minnesota Star Tribune reported. A story by Yahoo Travel explained more:

Voyageurs ranked Number 2 among all 63 national parks for exceeding visitor expectations, outperforming much more famous parks (like Yellowstone, Yosemite and others) that often suffer from crowds and hype.

Stargazing and Dark Skies Make Voyageurs Stand Out

Here in Minnesota, we've already known that a trip up to Voyageurs National Park can be well worth it, especially if you like to stargaze. That's because Voyageurs has also been named as an International Dark Sky Park, an award that's shared with only 122 other parks, not just here in the U.S. but worldwide.

While Minnesota may only have one National Park, as we mentioned, our state DOES have some incredible state parks. Keep scrolling to check them out, as well as some helpful tips if you are planning to visit Voyageurs National Park later this year.

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