Falls Creek Scientific and Natural Area — Attraction in Scandia

One of my favorite MN DNR SNA’s for hiking so far! We probably did a total of ~2-2.5 miles of hiking today. I will caution that the map signage is hardly the most helpful. Very few points of reference and could be easy to get confused about where you’re going as a result, but it’s also wonderful to just wander through a pine forest with a wide variety of terrain - get ready for some somewhat steeper climbs mixed with flat grassy areas, flat areas along the creek and at least at one point we had to cross the creek. The pine needle-laden paths help to make those much softer on your feet, and once you’re far enough into the SNA, you can just stare up into the swaying tree branches and just relax and soak in the utter peacefulness of it too. We only encountered two others on the trails today, and while it was early in the season there was at least one kind of native flower I could identify blooming. Lots of ferns, mosses and pines throughout! I’d love to check this SNA out in other seasons too. My guess is this would get pretty mosquito-filled given the presence of the creek later in the spring, in case that helps...

Stunning area, but be careful where you hike. I'm not new to hiking and exploring SNA's. My group of three came across an old wire fence that had since fallen into the duff on the ground. Thinking we may have somehow crossed into unmarked private land, we decided to head back and toward what we thought was safe land. Apparently this part of the land was also private property and we happened to run into the property owner sitting by a stream. He was not thrilled to see us. I quickly apologized, explained our route to that point, and then he pointed to the quickest way to exit his land...which was about 50 yard north of our current position. He seemed like a decent guy and was reasonable with us, but I had the impression that he was extremely tired of this sort of thing happening. If you come from Wind of the Pines Preserve to the south, there is signage everywhere and it's easy to avoid private land. As far as the SNA goes, I don't think I'll visit this...

Trail hasn't been maintained in awhile and the cold spring is now on private property, but its still a nice forest hike. The main stream seems lower than my last visit 5 years ago, but still great for kids (and adults) to splash in! Terrain is a bit rough, some downed trees to navigate. Pants are a good idea due to the raspberry plants along the trail. Be prepared to rock hop or for the possibility of wet feet, we made several stream crossings...