PERSONAL

TRAVEL

LIFE IN ITALY

TONIC

MARKETING

PASSIONE THE PODCAST

THE BLOG

PEEK BEHIND THE SCENES.

Postcards From The North Shore: Temperance River in the Fall

I’m a firm believer that in Minnesota, especially on the North Shore of Lake Superior, the colder it is – the cooler it gets. Cold weather puns aside, I really do love hiking in the late autumn season. It brings about the crisp smell of pine sap in the air, leaves crunching under foot and fresh smell of the water hitting the rocks on the shoreline.

Cooler air makes hiking the trails in state parks much easier to do from breakfast until the sun dips below the horizon line, and let’s be honest – a view of the November gales or ice on Lake Superior for a lunch spot is pretty hard to beat. Though, hopefully, late October shouldn’t bring you too much ice up north…yet.

 

Don’t Step Into The Gorge!

Not that you actually could. Temperance River State Park’s immense gorge with rushing “root-beer float” style river is truly something that is amazing to see. The gorge itself is home to many waterfalls along its path, creating rapids and a massive foam that you may not be able to see anywhere else.

State parks, especially along Lake Superior’s northern shore, were highly volcanic areas hundreds of thousands of years ago. What we get to enjoy now rather than lava, however, is the incredible geologic features left behind. If you have a keen eye for rock types, you can even try and spot the basalt and rhyolite in abundance throughout the trail system.

 

 

The best thing about temperance river state park…and perhaps, northern Minnesota itself

Have you ever smelled sap oozing from a balsam fir or white pine in the crisp air of early winter or late fall? It’s chilling, revitalizing, enthralling and it makes you feel like you’re using your lungs to the fullest capacity with every breath. I can’t even begin to describe just how much this exact smell has made me want to ditch city life and move up to a pine grove in Northern Minnesota.

I can just imagine it, a Nordic-style, cozy hunting lodge feel – full of wools and warm textures, a roaring fire in a stone fireplace, a brilliant whiskey bar for those extra-cold nights, wood grains and faux-fur tossed over the couch in the living room.

Temperance River state park is full of this smell. I’ve even deemed it to be one of the best places for the “prime pine time”, which you really only get when the air is crisp and dry with a chill. That, and that alone, makes this park worth the visit.

 

 


 

 


 

Have you ever been?

 

 

Read the Comments +

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

as seen in:

READ          LATEST

the

The Blog Playlist

In The Mood For...

ENTREPRENEURS

MARKETING

BRANDING

PERSONAL

PODCAST

POPULAR READS

TRENDING

Are TONIC Templates Worth the Money?

5 Restaurants You Can't Miss in Florence

30 Blog Ideas for when you don't know what to write

SHOP MY BUSINESS, HOME & TRAVEL ESSENTIALS

FAVORITE THINGS

There's essentials, and then there's CAN'T LIVE WITHOUTS. From closet heroes to business tools - these are mine. 

Check it out →

SHOP MY FEED

Instagram saw it first, next thing you know - it's in your shopping cart.

SHOP MY CLOSET →


 @gretchen_reese

Life can take you anywhere. Even places you never expected. From Minnesota to Puglia and back again, travelling the world with a wine glass in hand - this is where you'll get the stories behind it all.

Instagram

LET'S GET CASUAL →

Podcast

Time to tune in →

Pinterest

I'M REAL INTO PINTEREST →

follow along: