Mille Lacs Moraine SNA
About • Location • Activities • Ecology
About |
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Ownership |
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Links |
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Overview |
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History |
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This site was designated a Scientific and Natural area on October 8, 2012. |
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Management |
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Comments |
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Location |
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Maps |
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Printable Map(s) with GPS coordinates |
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Size |
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320 acres |
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Parking |
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From County Road 26 turn north on South Tower Road. Park on the shoulder of the road near the gate. Do not block the gate. Hike 0.54 mile north and west on South Tower Road, a minimum maintenance road. Bear north on an unmaintained road (Tower Road), and hike 260 yards to the gate at the SNA boundary. N46 16.329, W93 51.265 |
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Driving Directions |
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| Crow Wing County | ||||||
| Northwest Minnesota | ||||||
Activities |
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Hiking Trails |
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South Tower Road, an unmaintained road, passes through the site from north to south. A hiking trail passes through the site from west to east. It ends abruptly at a channel near the northeast shore of Sunfish Lake. |
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Hunting |
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All hunting. See Hunting and Trapping Regulations (MN DNR) for details. |
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Ecology |
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Ecological Classification |
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| Ecological Province | Laurentian Mixed Forest Province |
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| Ecological Section | Western Superior Uplands |
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| Ecological Subsection | Mille Lacs Uplands |
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| Land Type Association | Mille Lacs Moraine |
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Native Plant Communities* |
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Alder - (Maple - Loosestrife) Swamp Graminoid Poor Fen (Basin) Low Shrub Poor Fen Marsh System, Northern Floristic Region Northern Mixed Cattail Marsh Northern Wet Ash Swamp Poor Black Spruce Swamp Red Oak - Sugar Maple - Basswood - (Large-Flowered Trillium) Forest Red Oak-Basswood Forest (Non-calcareous Till) Rich Tamarack Swamp (Eastcentral) Sedge Meadow Willow-Dogwood Shrub Swamp |
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| * Source: The Minnesota Biological Survey, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Ecological Resources | |||||||
Natural Features |
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Mosquito headnet recommended
Deer flies (Chrysops sp.) can be bothersome here in June and July. They certainly were during my visit on July 20, 2013. After a few minutes on South Tower Road, I returned to the car to retrieve a mosquito headnet. The deer flies stayed with me for the duration of the visit. The mosquito headnet, worn over a hat, kept the flies off my neck and ears. Only a few times was it necessary to pull it down over my face. I did not suffer a single bite, even on my unprotected (but DEET sprayed) arms. Without the headnet the flies would have made the trip a very unpleasant experience. With the headnet they were a minor annoyance.
Visitor Photos |
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Gregg Rutter |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Parking |
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South Tower Road (Approach) |
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Site Entrance |
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Tower Road |
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Sunfish Lake |
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Island in Sunfish Lake |
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Mixed Hardwood Forest |
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West Trail |
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Slideshows |
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| Mille Lacs Moraine SNA minnesota_snas |
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About
Steep hills punctuated by small lakes and wetlands characterize the landscape known as the Mille Lacs Moraine. |
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Visitor Videos |
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Share your video of this destination. |
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Other Videos |
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| Mille Lacs Moraine Dale Bohlke |
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About
Oct 18, 2018 This large Scientific and Natural Area is spectacular at peak color. I couldn't get there at peak but this shows a hint of things to come when it is at peak, early October this year. Multiple ridge lines below the forest canopy make this an area that must be walked to be appreciated. SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Jas... Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 United States— CC BY 3.0 US http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/4M9Puanhdac |
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| Mille Lacs Moraine Scientific and Natural Area Virtual Hike Minnesota Department of Natural Resources |
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About
Apr 2, 2020 At Mille Lacs Moraine SNA, walk through a mature hardwood forest to the edge of Sunfish Lake, and look out to the little island of pines. In the winter, you can snowshoe through the hilly, silent forest, and in the spring, you can expect a splendid show of wildflowers. mndnr.gov/snas/sna02060 |
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_05.jpg "blue vervain")
_02.jpg "bur oak (var. macrocarpa)")
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