Iron Range Camping Trip

30 Jul 2007

The kids and I spent last Thursday through Sunday camping at McCarthy Beach State Park near Hibbing. For this trip I wanted to try someplace different, so I did a lot of research, including reading the excellent book The Best in Tent Camping: Minnesota. This book is for folks like me who are basically car campers, but want as much privacy and "northwoods feel" as possible. There were many tempting campgrounds listed in the book, but McCarthy Beach caught my attention because of the sandy swimming beach, fishing piers, canoe rentals, etc. With young children a place to swim is a godsend. By reserving early, we got what I consider to be the best spot in the campground, away from all the RVs and the clutter and noise they generate.

The Hibbing area appealed to me because I wanted to show the kids some of the mining related sites on the Iron Range. The biggest hit was the Soudan Underground Mine, where we got to wear hard hats, go half a mile underground, and take a rail ride back into the depths of the mine. An excellent tour guide (Pete) told us all about the history of the mine and the less than ideal working conditions the men there experienced. We also got a little added bonus tour, because Zach had to use the bathroom. There is an experimental particle physics lab in the mine, and Zach and I got to in for a quick look since they had the only toilet down there.

The Minnesota Museum of Mining in Chisholm was another popular stop, where the kids had a blast climbing on all of the old trains and mining equipment, especially the monster dump truck. Zach loves cars, trucks and trains, so he was in heaven there. We also went on a trolley ride at the Ironworld Discovery Center, where there were more opportunities to climb on and fool around with all the tools of the trade. Unfortunately, some of the exhibits were closed, including the children's area. It looks like the place is suffering from some neglect and falling into disrepair, so that was a little disappointing. Hopefully the closures are only temporary, since it looks like it has the potential to be an even better attraction with a little elbow grease. Thankfully it didn't matter a bit to the kids.

Back at the campgrounds, we spent hours enjoying the swimming beach on Sturgeon Lake. The water was clear and warm, the bottom was clean and sandy, and the kids could walk way out without getting in over their heads. This was definitely a great place to spend a hot afternoon with young kids. On Sunday morning we tried a little fishing and took a short nature walk in the forest before heading back home.

Since the trip went so well and the kids had so much fun, I'm already looking forward to planning next year's outings. There's just no substitute for getting out of the city and the daily routine every now and then. It's a lot of work for me since the kids can't help too much at their age, but it's all worth it in the end. I'll gladly exchange some temporary sore muscles for the lasting memories we're creating together.