Snowshoe Hiking McLain State Park

It was a beautiful sunny day when we rented our snowshoes for the first time. We purchased a seasonal pass so we can just head to the shop and pick these up whenever we want to head out on the trails! We packed ourselves in the car (both dogs and toddler included). Then when we arrived at the trail, we realized it was PACKED. We were not ready to see how many people are still active up here in the winter! That already made us nervous because handing both dogs at the same time is a little difficult and one of the dogs needs special attention at times. We notice quite a few people are just hiking in regular shoes, so we figure we would go ahead and try, get a few hundred feet down the trail and decide we should turn around and put the snowshoes on. THEN, we can’t even figure out how they go on, dogs are going while, our daughter is cold and tired, and we end up getting all frustrated at each other. After getting back to the car, we decided to laugh it off, pick up pizza, and try again another day.

Unfortunately, it was a couple weeks after that day before the weather was warm enough for us to hit the trails. We watched plenty of YouTube videos on how to properly wear the shoes and researched easy trails for us to start on, landing on McLain State Park. The park was empty when we arrived, but packed by the time we left! It was also an absolutely stunning hike. We headed to the beach area to check out the frozen lake first, then headed towards the trailhead.

Once we got closer to the trailhead, we stumbled upon some super cute mini cabins! The park offers mini cabins with a stunning view of Lake Superior and perfectly nestled in the tree. They are also handicap accessible with ramps. They are heated, have cabinets for storage, devices for warming/cooking food, and have vaulted bathrooms with electricity. The cabins are all relatively close to a bathroom facility.

We weren’t on the trail long before we had to hop over the main road to access the other side of the trail. The road wasn’t too busy at all, so it was perfectly safe! The other side of the trail whimsically wove through the forest and bordered Bear Lake. We even walked over a few wooden bridges that were so cute!

Overall, we finished at 2 miles and beat the crowed out of the park. I always like to keep a little treat in the car for post-hike and it was much needed in this case. She was so happy to be back in the car and on the way home, with a ring-pop!

Have you ever gone snowshoeing?