Sightseeing
Quirky FunPaul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox
No admission feePose with the 18-foot concrete lumberjack and his blue ox on the shore of Lake Bemidji, then step into the visitor center.
Transit: reachable by public transit
Photo: Mark Evans from Orange City, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.
Sports & OutdoorsIconicOutdoor AdventureFamily Favorite
Itasca State Park
See where the Mississippi River begins at Lake Itasca, then explore old-growth pine forest.
36750 Main Park Dr · Park Rapids, MN
About Itasca State Park
Itasca State Park, established in 1891 as Minnesota's first state park, holds the headwaters of the Mississippi River at the north end of Lake Itasca. Start at the Mary Gibbs Mississippi Headwaters Center, then take a short walk to the spot where the river begins and wade or cross on the log bridge. Beyond that you can climb the Aiton Heights Fire Tower, follow the Wilderness Drive scenic road, walk among old-growth pines, and eat at Douglas Lodge, built in 1905.
- #state park
- #mississippi headwaters
- #hiking
- #camping
- #old growth forest
Printable maps
What's around here?
The closest stops to Itasca State Park, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.
22 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing
- Museums
Giiwedinong Treaty Rights and Culture Museum
Under $25An Indigenous-led museum in Park Rapids, Minnesota, focused on treaty history, rights, and culture.
23 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums
- Sports & OutdoorsOutdoor Adventure
Lake Bemidji State Park
Under $25Walk a boardwalk into a spruce-tamarack bog, swim from the beach on Lake Bemidji and bike the paved trail toward town, 10 minutes north of Bemidji.
27 mi awayMore like this
- Museums
Finn Creek Museum
No admission feeAn 18-acre open-air museum near New York Mills, Minnesota, preserving Finnish heritage and the history of early 1900s immigrants.
55 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums
