Itasca State Park — Attraction in Park Rapids

We live very close to the park and go there all the time for work. It is so beautiful. I highly recommend going there in the fall and winter, that is our favorite time as locals to go. The leaves are just stunning in the fall. In the winter, they have some sites open for camping and there are good opportunities to ice fish as well. The snowmobile trails are gorgeous.

My biggest suggestion for first timers would be to plan ahead as much as you can. Verizon is one of the best up here for phone service, but in some spots the best I get is one bar, so researching is not possible. Give yourself ample time at the park and stay at least a night or two if you can. There are over 300 campsites and they also have cabins and a lodge. The campsites are notorious for booking up quickly, but if you go Sunday-Wednesday, you can usually find something and the park is much more pleasant to be at. The tree loops (pine, oak, etc) are usually less busy than Bear Paw, but are a little more crowded, especially the sites in the middle. Some sites have electricity. There are no full hook ups or water sites. La Salle is your go to if you need full hookups. Bear Paw has a new dump and water station and there is a smaller one outside of the tree loops.

As far as attractions, we like the visitors center and the Headwaters. Go drive the wilderness trail (seasonal), and climb the tower if you are able. Biking is definitely a huge hit here, and I also recommend bringing or renting a boat to tour the lake.

If you have a big group, check out the Ozawindib Group Center. It has a cabin, a couple RV sites, and a tent area. It is HUGE! Plus it comes with a shower house and a building with seating and a commercial kitchen that you can use. It is private and has it's own trail down to Ozawindib Lake, which is also stunning.

As far as other things to do while you are staying here, I recommend going to Park Rapids, Dorset, Nevis, Walker, and/or Bemidji. For groceries, these are going to be your best bets. There are a few restaurants around, including the Douglas Lodge in the park, but they have limited hours now, by no fault of their own. It really is in the middle of nowhere for a lot of folks, but that is why we...

I grew up in St Paul, and adore Minnesota, but had never made it up here until late on Labor Day. The park was full of people still, we stayed two nights overnight in a tent, and we barely got to see half of what we wanted to see. I was a little surprised how much some of the activities and rental possibilities seem to just "disappear" on Labor Day, when the rest of the Park is still fairly busy and there is still so much to do! But that was about the only thing that was even a little disappointing here.

Edited to add: I forgot to mention that our campsite in Pine Ridge was amazing! Huge, good smooth ground for our large tent, and even though it poured and stormed our first night, we didn't get any water in our tent from bad drainage around the tent pad either. It was perfect. The showers are great, restrooms clean, and there are even a few pit toilets around if you don't want to walk "all the way" to the main bathhouse(s).

There are many trails, the source of the Mississippi - of course! - and also smaller lakes and streams abound. However, there are also many informative signs about the geology and history of the area, good driving roads for a drive around the park, many turn off areas like Preacher's Grove that have their own trails and sights, and the Gibbs Visitor Center. Sometimes, visitor centers are "just okay" and have a little gift shop. This is not that visitor center! Mary Gibbs Visitor Center is architecturally wonderful, and has may displays and activities: history of why it's called that and who she was, geological formation and history of the area, many displays about the history and current state and uses for the Mississippi, displays that appeal more to children and young families, information on birds and mammals in the area, and so much more. I even saw a Pileated Woodpecker close up for the first time; it was probably really young, as it just sat there pecking away for grubs and bugs in the dirt right next to our car, while we ooh-ed and ahh-ed at it for ten minutes! Itasca State park is remote, but that's part of why it's so amazing. It is a long drive for us from SE Minnesota, but we will be...

Today was my third time visiting Lake Itasca State Park , headwaters. I’m gonna start by saying the other two times I was here was off season in the fall months. My past experiences I would say they were 10/10. After today I can fully understand why my parents took me here in the fall. Today’s experience gets a big 0/10 for me. I highly recommend going in the fall vs the summer. Today, there were way too many people, very crowded. If you want the full experience at taking in the nature and the beauty of the headwaters, then go in the off seasons. BUT the most disappointing part of today’s visit was the amount of people swimming right at the start of the headwaters. Adults and children treating it like a water park. The amount of disrespect people have for a national landmark and the history this gorgeous park has. So many people there today have disrespect towards the people who came to see the parks natural beauty and those people just wanted to take pictures and capture it. This is an iconic landmark and it is tradition to walk across the rocks and say you have crossed the start of the Mississippi River but today I could not share in that tradition with my daughter due to the people swimming and children constantly going on and off the rocks just to continue swimming. I looked it up on MNDNR page if this was allowed and it is NOT! People are treating it like a public swimming pool! There are designated swimming areas and beaches all over the State Park, THIS IS NOT ONE OF THEM! The people in charge of maintaining and persevering this park need to do better. This park was never treated like this 20 years ago or even 10 years ago when I was last here. I’m very sad that people find this behavior acceptable. If you want to go swimming in the lake then please go swim at the designated swimming spots. I live in Minnesota and can travel to this part of the state anytime. I feel bad for the people out of state who came here to take in the beauty of a landmark just to find a bunch of people swimming there. Please do better! Please, Have respect for others and have respect for...