Greater Sucker Creek — Attraction in Detroit Lakes

Update 2: Garbage is gone, but still have long grass on the bridges. Makes it difficult for people in wheelchairs to get across. This is supposed to be accessible for everyone from the start. It's sort of the whole reason it was built.

Update: Not as nice as it used to be. A combination of neglect from the city, and trash from people in the area not respecting this gift. Cigarette butts all over, all forms of trash, even the confetti from what looks like someone having a gender reveal party. The grass has grown through the bridges to the point that I'm not sure it's even usable by someone in a wheelchair. Really disappointed that this area is not appreciated by the people that live here.

Wow! What a nice surprise. Thought we'd check this out for a hike. We usually like more challenging hikes, but this one was so relaxing. A lot of it is paved, and is a nice place for handicap accessibility.

The real treat is a rustic 1.3 mile loop. It's maintained well enough, but still gives you a great connection with the environment. Several bridges over Sucker Creek add to the enjoyment. I'd recommend entering at 46.769784,-95.795117 do the loop at the end and make your way...

If you stay on the paved path it is very pretty. If you go off onto the actual hiking trails it is overgrown, mosquitoes so thick that they were crawling up my nose and into my mouth and on my eyelids and face and arms and legs. And this is even with me using a heavy duty bug spray like deet 40.

They were also large portions of the hiking trail that were surrounded on both sides with poison ivy.

There is very little direction on where to go once you go off the paved trail. It looks like there was a place that held a paper maps but again, the trails were not marked at all. If I didn't have a app on my phone that showed me where I was going, I would have gotten completely lost.

The only restroom facilities they have is a porta potty that has been sitting in the summer sun for God knows how long. So be aware. I found it a little easier just to stop at a gas station right before coming in so I didn't have to...

You can tell a lot of heart, sweat, planning and effort went into this smaller nature preserve. It is in very good shape. The creek throught the park is the highlight for sure. There is a well paved accessible trail throughout as well as separate hiking trails through the woods. It has a nice mix of hardwood forest as well as smaller area of bog and wetland. There are two separate parking area with one having a picnic shelter. The only major downside is you can't escape all of the persistent outside noise. It blocks all the sounds of wildlife. It is next to town so all you can here is road traffic, trains, dogs barking and shooting from the rifle...