We’d really thrown ourselves into the Forestville / Mystery Cave experience. So by the time we reached Lake Louise State Park, both our spirits and the day were waning. And the weather, although not willing to commit to needed rain, was also not willing to give forth with mood-enhancing sunshine. Not that Nature has ever given a furry rodent’s bum about our mood. 😒
Lake Louise deserved more boot time from us (there are 12 miles (19 km) of trails in the park) but all we could muster for was the 1.1 mile (1.8 km) Wildwood Loop (the Hiking Club route). Although sunshine was in short supply this afternoon, there were fallen leaves and a few colorful fungi along the route to distract us. In the end, it was a good leg stretch that got us primed for the two hour drive back to Minneapolis amid the thrills of rush hour traffic. 😲
And so our six parks in three days southeast state parks quest came to its inevitable end. Guided by the Hiking Club (plus some additions of our own) we got to see maybe not all the best, but certainly representative, parts of each park. We wouldn’t put one over the other since all had something different and interesting to offer. Our Mystery Cave tour was a fascinating added bonus to our hikes. 😉
Winter is coming. 🥶 But we’re hoping to pull off one more multi-park quest Up North before the snow flies. Unless, of course, Nature has other ideas… 🙄😁
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BOOTS on the TRAIL 
Just an update on the Applegate Ridge trail: we decided to try out the other end today starting off Sterling Creek road. Another relatively cool day, plenty of hikers including what looked like an entire Boy Scout troop, guessing close to 30 in that party. It’s still smoky but you’re right, there are great views!!!
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We were surprised, too! We were the first car at the trailhead off 238 and only three cars total when we left. 🤔 We were out at the crack of dawn though…it probably filled up later.
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We loved the views you get from the top end of the East ART! 😃 I’m surprised you only saw three other people of the trail as it’s quite popular. We’ll be going Up North at the end of September – Fall colors – and if Nature decides to snow on us then, we’ll just wear warmer boots. 😉
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I hope you can hike there for a few more months. We were able to get out sometimes into December (sans snow) in the Green Bay area. Blaze orange not a bad idea. I hiked some of the East Applegate Ridge today. Saw one other hiker and two mountain bikers. It was a rare cool Saturday morning, so perfect for my first time on this trail. 😁
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