Minnesota 150th Anniversary Coin - State Park History Challenge Quest TB

After camping in Site #25 at Big Bog SRA we headed out to find the cache first thing this morning. It was fairly cool this morning so the mosquitoes weren't too bad. The ones we saw were moving rather slow. We had camped here five years ago when they were just putting the finishing touches on the campground. We took time today to complete the two mile hiking club trail that wasn't here when we last visited. We enjoyed the bog walk and learned all kinds of new things from the informational signs. Why would they think they could drain this bog and make it into farm land??? We also talked to a park employee who said that money has been delegated for a visitor center here and they will be moving the Pine Island Fire Tower to the park. Sounds like we will have to be back in another five years to see all the new additions!

We completed the Big Bog Earthcache and then took the Pine Island Forest Road across to Big Falls. We saw deer and a barred owl near the road.

Franz Jevne is a great little state park with scenery along the Rainy River that can rival any other beautiful spot in Minnesota! We had camped here in site #1 back in September 2003 so it was nice to come back for another visit. As we stood near the cache a bald eagle winged its way down the river. A sight that will remain in our minds for a long time to come! We were glad that this little TB was along for the ride on this one!

Zipple Bay is a neat state park. We camped here at the end of September in 2003 and it was nice to come back for another visit. The views of Lake of the Woods are spectacular and the white of the birch trees against the changing colors of the folliage were fantastic. God sure did a good job in this neck of the woods!

We made it to Garden Island...AGAIN!!! We were last here in late September 2003. Back then we were visiting all the state parks for the passport club and caught a ride to the island via the NW Angle with Dan from Flag Island. We had a wind and rain and snow and sleet and thunder and lightning and waves so bad that we had to time our jump from the boat to the dock with the waves because it was too rough to tie up to the dock. It was a very memorable trip!

Then the State Park History Geocaching Challenge comes along... Hey! We get to go back to Garden Island!!! Oh!!! We have to go back to Garden Island!!! This time we went to the island via the southern route. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the ride out and hike around the tip of the island. We saw a Bald Eagle feeding on the beach at the point and saw the tracks of deer, raccoon, and mink. The trip back was a little bumpy with the wind from the south but Chris, our guide, did a fine job maneuvering through the one to two foot swells.

Hayes Lake State Park is another great example of an area that preserves our past! This was our second visit here. We camped here in September 2003.