I recently got the chance to visit Great River Bluffs State Park, which is located just south of Winona. I camped at the park with a few friends (and one dog). We all had a pretty good time, seeing some great fall colors and wonderful views of the Mississippi river. It was a cold weekend, though, so having the appropriate clothing made the trip comfortable.
We arrived in the early afternoon on a Saturday and set up our tent right away. The dog being just a puppy, we tied his leash to a picnic table (park rules, and for our own sanity). We set up the sleeping arrangements so we wouldn't have to in the cold night, and had some lunch.
After that, we went on a short hike to check out some of the views. The first overlook we went to was about a quarter mile from our campsite, named "The Hill of many Timbers". It is the southern-most overlook in the park. Next, we went to the "East Overlook", which is about a half mile from the Hill of Many Timbers. Both of these overlooks provided nice views. The Hill of Many Timbers primary views were of the hills in Minnesota and some of the park roads. The East Overlook had views of the Mississippi river and of Wisconsin in the distance.
After checking out those views, we decided to head back to camp and get some dinner going. We made hobo hot dish this time around and had some chips as well. We got a solid fire going, though we were careful that it didn't get too big as it had been a really dry season and didn't want the fire to spread. We put the fire out and went to sleep, the puppy joining us in the tent. It was a little under 30, which was a bit cold for this dog, but he stayed warm by sneaking himself in betweeen two of us.
The next day we walked over to the North and South Overlooks, which are a little over a mile from the campground, but only .2 miles from eachother. The trail over there runs through the woods, and there is an minor overlook on the way there as well. These overlooks both had great views of the Mississippi and Wisconsin as well, and made for a rewarding hike. We didn't make our way over to the other overlooks, which include "King's Bluff", as the puppy was a little too tired. We still had a good time, though, and having a sleeping dog on the way home is better than having a dog with energy in the car!
