|
Tucked into the scenic Turtle Mountains along the Canadian border, Lake Metigoshe State Park is one of the state's most scenic and popular year-round vacation spots.
The Chippewa called the lake "Metigoshe Washegum" or "clear water surrounded by oaks." The heavily forested hills of the Turtle Mountains are covered in oak, birch, elm, aspen and ash.
The 1,551-acre park, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s and the Works Progress Administration in the 1940s, offers outstanding recreational facilities for fishing, swimming and hiking in summer and snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling in winter. Snowshoes and skis are available for rent.
Wetlands thrive a short distance from dense forests here. The park harbors wildlife of all kinds, from elk, moose and white-tailed deer to such smaller mammals as snowshoe hares, beavers, mink, weasels and muskrats.
Bird life includes songbirds, gulls, eagles, osprey, herons, bitterns, terns, loons and red-necked grebes, as well as migratory waterfowl.
The park is open for camping and picnicking year-round. Electrical hookups, hot showers and a sanitary dump station are available from Memorial Day through Labor Day. All picnic areas overlook Lake Metigoshe.
Hikers can walk the Old Oak National Recreation Trail, a three-mile, self-guided nature trail that explores swamp and woodland.
A boat ramp, rental canoes, a dock and a parking area are available on the eastern shores of Lake Metigoshe.
Visitors can fish for walleyes, perch, bluegill and northern pike in Lake Metigoshe. In other park lakes, anglers go after bass and trout. Ice fishing is popular.
A terraced beach on Lake Metigoshe has an adjacent bathhouse with changing rooms and toilets.
The Turtle Mountain Environmental Learning Center offers nature and orienteering classes year-round.
There are three modern cabins and two dormitories and kichen/dining hall facilities available for rent year-round.
Outdoor Activities |
A stand of golden aspen shows its colors at Lake Metigoshe State Park.
Wildflowers bloom in the woodlands of Lake Metigoshe State Park.
Lake Metigoshe is a picnicker's paradise.
|
