Discover Long Lake

Long Lake offers several points of interest for a trip: Nelson Lakeside Park on the lake, access to the Luce Line State Trail, and local history. For planning, you can distinguish the highlights by activity and season; some offerings at Holbrook Park are seasonal.

By the lake: Nelson Lakeside Park

Nelson Lakeside Park is on Long Lake in the heart of downtown. The park includes a public boat launch and a swimming beach; the Long Lake Veterans Memorial is also located there. This brings waterfront amenities and a memorial site together in one place. If you plan to use the boat launch or beach, check current conditions beforehand. Conditions at the launch and beach, as well as beach availability, can change.

Buckhorn Days is held annually at Nelson Lakeside Park, 1860 Symes Street, in Long Lake. Dates and programming may vary. If you want to pair your trip with the festival, check the specific event dates beforehand.

The Luce Line State Trail and its access points

The Luce Line State Trail is 63 miles long and follows a former railroad corridor. It is popular for biking, hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, and snowmobiling. There is an access point with a parking lot near Long Lake. To get there, travel south on Old Crystal Bay Road to Watertown Road, then west to Stubbs Bay Road, and then a quarter mile south to the parking lot on the west side of the road. Local road conditions can change; temporary notices may also affect individual trail sections. Check road conditions and notices for the sections you plan to visit before setting out.

Another point of interest for bike rides is Hardin Park, where the Luce Line Trail intersects the city’s Wurzer Trail. The park also has a bike repair station. The trail intersection and repair station are two specific points of reference when planning your time on a bike.

Seasonal offerings at Holbrook Park

Holbrook Park has hockey and recreational ice rinks; the skating areas are seasonal. A warming house is open seasonally there during the winter months. In spring, summer, and fall, a dog park is located seasonally in the hockey rink area. The offerings are therefore tied to different times of year: the warming house is available during the winter months, while the dog park is in the park area in spring, summer, and fall. Before a specific visit, check current conditions for the seasonal offering you plan to use.

Local history and family research

In Long Lake, the Western Hennepin Pioneer Museum is housed in an old red-brick schoolhouse with four classrooms. The museum has a picture gallery and archives with more than 1,000 family histories from Western Hennepin County. The building and collections offer different perspectives on local history: a former school setting and the stories of families from the region.

For family research, you can search the WHCPA Family File Index online. You can then visit the archive or request copies online. Search, visit, and copy procedures may change; check the current processes beforehand if you are planning research or an archive visit.

The history of the Catholic Church of St. George is also connected to Long Lake. The church was founded in 1916 after Catholics in Long Lake asked Father George Scheffold, OSB, to establish a Catholic church there. At the time, Scheffold was pastor of the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Medina.

For the broader travel overview: Hennepin.