Most of Voyageurs National Park is only accessible by boat so we rented a canoe and took off for a day. The weather in the midwest at this time was awful so we didn't get a chance to see as much of the park as we had hoped but my kids love canoeing so it was a win! *Less the fact that we were tossed around during the start of a lightning storm and some pretty intense waves.* Lesson learned, check the forecast. You can explore more with tours but coming prior to the start of the tourist season really limited our ability to explore more of the park. In the end, we would definitely come back to this area- I'd recommend visiting in mid June- Labor Day.
The girls did a nature study and played with algae, water bugs and observed several loons on the lake. We paddled to Beaver Island as well as a few other smaller islands around. Athena really enjoyed the park and rates it on her top ten with Yellowstone and Arches.
What really stood out at Voyageurs and that really caught my attention was the visitor center at Rainy Lake! The visitor center has been set up to really engage kids and they celebrate Jr. Rangers. Not only did the kids receive a patch and a badge (which is pretty rare in the West unless NPS changed this) but they were also given a moose head eraser and a pencil. There were also crafts and drawing where the kids could make bracelets.
We also spent some time at the Duluth Children's Museum which is free with an ASTC membership. It's a nice museum and has a lot of science- hydraulics, lifts, tinkering and locks. Going into the Great Lake states it was a good first introduction to how the locks and shipping industry work together. It really helped A1 understand the transportation of food and goods in the Midwest.
The Duluth Children's Museum- is probably best for kids under the age of five, maybe up to seven if they enjoy tinkering or have a friend.
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