Fort Snelling State Park is the only Minnesota State Park located in the heart of the Twin Cities. As a state park, it is managed by the DNR, however, the Minnesota Historical Society runs Historic Fort Snelling (and it has additional entrance fees) and the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board manages the golf course. The park has two lakes within it – Snelling Lake and Gun Club Lake. Families will find a Visitors Center, a beach, hiking and walking paths, a disc golf course and space to picnic. As with any Minnesota State Park, park patrons will need a vehicle pass – either for one day use or an annual permit – to enter the park. Families can hike, bike and ski trails that link to Minnehaha Park and the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. In the summer months they can also canoe and swim. Whether its our very first visit or you are a regular to this park, Fort Snelling offers plenty of park amenities to keep a family busy on any visit. By now most people know about the Aircraft Viewing Area set up by the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport. While this is a really awesome place to see aircraft take off up close, it does have some downsides – like no restrooms, no shade and it’s crowded at times. The beach at Fort Snelling is another option. While you won’t see the actual take-off, the aircraft take off directly over the beach, so you will see plenty of up close planes. The beach has restrooms, shade, and a play area. If the beach is crowded, families could hike a little further away to watch planes. The curious can find a photo guide to the various aircraft near the beach buildings. We visited the beach in early spring. This may not be on everyone’s favorite beach list because of its close proximity to the airport. At least in the spring, there was a lot of animal droppings in the sand. I’m curious to see if that is cleaned up in the summer. The positives are the nearby play structure, the shallow entry, the nice beach buildings, and the outdoor shower. Also, at least during our spring visit, we saw an amazing variety of animal tracks in the sand — several deer, raccoons, ducks and geese, coyote? (maybe a dog?). That may have been my favorite part of our visit. The Thomas C. Savage Visitor Center has films and and exhibits where families can learn about Minnesota history and natural resources. Kids can check out Kids Discovery Kits to explore the park. Fort Snelling joins 9 other Minnesota state parks in installing educational pollinator plantings and exhibits. Below is a transcript of the audio connected with the exhibit:. Welcome to our pollinator garden, be still here for a few moments. The plants and wildflowers all around you help pollinators, like monarchs and bumble bees, find food and shelter. Go ahead and get close to these plants. What do you smell? Do they all smell the same? Do you see any insects? What are they doing? These insects, or pollinators, need good food and habitat to survive. Gardens like these help them out. You can plant native wildflowers where you live and help pollinators thrive near you. Because this is a state park, adults and children can fish for free without license. Even better, loaner fishing kits can be checked out, so you don’t even need to own your own tackle. This park also has free birding kits and GPS units for patrons to borrow. Park Rangers are happy to give pointers and assistance. Birding Kits include binoculars, guide books and bird lists that are unique to each state park. While Fort Snelling is a State Park with a St. Paul address, the City of Minneapolis operates The Fort Snelling Golf Club within the park. Families may enjoy playing the 18-hole Disc Golf course during warm months. This is one of two pay disc golf courses that the City of Minneapolis operates. Adults cost $5.00 and children are $2.50. Season passes can also be purchased. Pay at the clubhouse. In the winter trails are groomed for cross-country skiing. Adult and older teen skiers are required to have a Minnesota Ski Pass.Related Articles:
10 Ideas for Family Fun at Fort Snelling Park
Airplane Viewing at Fort Snelling Park
Fort Snelling Beach
Visitor Center at Fort Snelling State Park
Fort Snelling Pollinator Exhibit
Fish for Free Without a License
Birding and Geocaching
Disc Golf
Cross Country Ski at Fort Snelling State Park
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