Big Bog State Recreation Area Southern Unit — Hotel in Baudette

History- The Big Bog sits on the southeast side of glacial Lake Agassiz, formed during the last ice age. This former lake bottom is quite flat, with occasional hills of gravel deposits or rock. As the lake drained, this area slowly filled in with wetland plants and animals. The Anishinaabe gathered blueberries, fished, and hunted game here until the late 19th century. In the 1920s and 1930s virtually all areas in the vicinity had their majestic old growth pine trees cut down as a massive logging effort swept through, but because of the swampy nature and lack of large stands of mature pines, the Big Bog area was relatively untouched. (Also see the Lost Forty in the Chippewa National Forest). Some efforts have been made to drain portions or harvest the peat, but met with little success. Scattered communities of mixed farming were relocated from some of the more remote areas during rural reform as part of the Rural Electrification Act during the 1930s and 1940s. The fishing-dependent community suffered after a disastrous fall in walleyed pike or walleye (Sander vitreus) population in both basins of Upper and Lower Red Lakes during the 1990s. In 2002 members of the Upper Red Lake Area Association pushed the idea of a new state park, soon after nearly 10,000 acres (40 km2) were classified as the Big Bog State Recreation...

This area of Minnesota is absolutely stunning and worth a visit. Visited on warm late September day, and the water at the beach on Upper Red Lake was calm and still very warm...and great for wading.

Climbed the fire tower for amazing views. Strongly recommend it for the views if you're not squeamish about heights; it is something to remember for sure. The views and fresh breezes give you the feeling of being in another world.

It was late in the day so our visit to the north unit (Big Bog) had to be truncated. But, we were still able to walk a length of the bogwalk and it was mostly bug free in late Sept; interesting looking funghi growing everywhere-numerous varieties to my eye- in the bog. Evidently some badly needed rain had fallen just a day or so before so all of these cool looking mushrooms had just popped out.

Plan to return and look forward to taking time to walk entire length of...

Let's start by saying that the Recreation Area deserves 5 stars because the campground is well managed, the bathrooms are clean, easily accessible drinking water, and friendly staff. It's clearly an area focused on the fishing public, so the campground is noisy and with a lot of traffic. If you are looking for a hiking/nature oriented trip, you may get restricted to the Boardwalk at the Big Bog. That part for us was the highlight of the trip. It's beautiful, pristine and very different than you will find in other areas of the country. It's the largest bog in the nation, and mostly untouched. It's worth the visit. Also the beach at Red Lake across the Visitors Center is perfect for an afternoon with the family. We really...