Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge — Attraction in Blue Hill Township

It's so nice to be able to enjoy such an untouched wild area of nature so close to home. I am camping next to it as I write this at 2am relaxing by my fire...well...I was relaxed until an owl just startled me. I guess I walked too close to the huge white pine it us sitting in and it gave a little call out to let me know that it is its tree at the moment. I decided to not argue the point. Ooh! There he goes again and now the coyotes just piped up again. I hear them every single night. Sometimes closer than others but don't worry. I couldn't get close if I wanted too. They are very clever. I also startled a couple of deer from their sleeping area thus morning. Confession: my fire light died to glowing embers and the rustling that I keep hearing has my sitting in the dark instead of hunting for more firewood. Two nights ago I was feeding a cute little raccoon some of my Reese's Puffs Cereal because it's so funny to hear sniff, sniff, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch over and over again. After about 5 minutes there was a fairly loud snap close by and he took off so I hopped in...

The refuge is a central Minnesota gem that needs to be seen by everyone. The best times to drive through are early morning and evenings to see wildlife. The fall is the best time as the leaves are changing colors and the Sandhill cranes are migrating to and from the refuge. Many different species of birds can be seen from the comfort of your vehicle. This place is a great place for wildlife photography so don't forget the camera and binoculars. The last trip was on Memorial Day and during the daytime there was a lot of wildlife present. Here is a photo of an Eight-Spotted Forester Moth. I have never seen these before so I thought it would be cool to share with others that...

I grew up in this wildlife refuge. Every day I would go explore, and when I was old enough I would hunt it just as often. If you want a good swamp buck, or corn fed doe to fill the freezer, this is the place. Or walk the trails with a shotty and low base shot to fill your game bag with pheasants and grouse. There are also trails for the non hunter. The wildlife walk near Orrock, with a platform and viewing scope to view bald eagles nest. Or blue hill trail, and manoomin trail. It is there for the wildlife, but also a gateway to nature to those who...