Discover Sherburne County: Prairie, River and History

Prairie, oak savanna, wetlands and the Mississippi River shoreline shape the nature experiences in Sherburne County. The trails also vary considerably, from short paved sections and boardwalks to routes several miles long and gravel roads. This makes it easy to choose outings by landscape, trail length and mode of travel.

Nature Trails Between the Prairie and the Mississippi

At Bridgeview Park Reserve, a 1-mile hike passes through restored prairie, oak savanna and oak forest. The loop includes a 0.25-mile paved, accessible section. Viewpoints extend along 1,200 feet of the Mississippi River’s Wild and Scenic Corridor. The park thus combines varied landscapes with a designated accessible trail section on a compact route.

Grams Park offers access to wetlands, a tamarack bog and oak forest via nearly 2 miles of trails and boardwalks. An original footpath in Grams Park passes through steep terrain. Viewpoints overlooking Lake Fremont and Blue Hill are 10 miles to the west. The trails and boardwalks through the bog area are quite different from this steep path.

Oak Savanna Park has more than 4 miles of hiking trails through native prairie, a pine plantation, oak forest and oak savanna. Nearly 2.5 miles of horseback riding trails also pass through these landscapes. An accessible loop with limestone gravel begins at the Sherburne History Center parking lot. It leads to a viewpoint overlooking Clitty Lake and historic outdoor features, including the Fox House and the remains of the Stuve Farmstead.

The Prairie’s Edge Wildlife Drive in Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge is a 7.3-mile gravel route that can be traveled by vehicle or bicycle, or on foot. It passes through a mosaic of oak savanna, prairie, oak forest, shallow wetland, sedge meadow and tamarack swamp. The Great Northern Regional Trail is also suitable for cycling, inline skating and hiking.

The hiking trails at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge are open year-round from half an hour before sunrise until half an hour after sunset. Seasonal restrictions may apply to other facilities and activities. Planning for different trails makes it possible to choose between a gravel route that allows several types of use and hiking trails with set daily access hours.

History, Culture and Regional Landscapes

The Sherburne History Center preserves more than 4,000 objects, photographs and archival materials about the county’s history. Its award-winning permanent exhibit covers topics including Dakota and Ojibwe, early settlers, 19th-century agriculture, the planting of the state forest and electricity generation. The collection and exhibit offer different ways to explore the past, focusing on both individual historical materials and broader themes in regional history.

Oliver Kelley Farm is an open-air museum about rural life in the 1860s. Its focus is the life and work of Oliver Hudson Kelley, founder of the National Grange. Visitors can meet farm animals, interact with staff as they work in the house, barn, garden and fields, and take part in activities that change with the seasons of the agricultural year. The farm’s nature trails run along the Mississippi River and through wooded areas and restored prairie.

Two Inlets at Bdé Heḣáka - Omashkooz Zaaga’igaans Regional Park includes 1 mile of natural-surface trails and a small part of the ancestral lands of Dakhóta Oyáte and Anishinaabe. The heart+land interpretive trail also follows the 1.0-mile Lower Prairie Loop at Two Inlets Regional Park. Signs and a mobile phone application use native plants to share the history, cultural significance and ecological connections of the landscape in central Minnesota. The interpretive program is associated with the Minnesota Parks Artist-in-Residence Program 2024–2025.

Discover more destinations: Big Lake, Becker, Elk River, Faribault, Polk County, Rice County, Chisago County, Cook County

For the main travel overview: Minnesota.