Need to know:

Where: 4279 County Rd U, South Range, WI 54874

https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/parks/amnicon

Was it worth it? Yes, I give it a 10/10

Highlight: The 1.5 mile snowshoe trail loop

Suggested time here: 2-4+ hours (overnight camping would be fantastic)

When we visited: December 2020

Scenic Falls in a Quiet State Park!

Amnicon Falls is another Wisconsin state park I hadn’t heard of before this winter. Geez, and I lived in Duluth for three years, what the?!! It’s a short 30 min drive from Duluth and is DEFINITELY worth the visit. We came here on day 2 of an overnight trip up north (see my post on Pattison State Park).


As with Pattison, our car was the only one in the parking lot. We had the entire park to ourselves! It really just added to the gloriousness of this place!

The Waterfalls

There are four falls here, Upper, Lower, Snake Pit and Now & Then Falls. We only ended up seeing three of the four on the day we visited. The falls were almost completely covered in snow but since the water contains tannin, it had a nice contrast so you could see it peek out in a few spots.


The boys weren’t too interested in hanging by the falls. They think once you’ve seen one frozen waterfall you’ve seen them all. Unlike me, I am amazed by each one and could sit and watch them for hours… but I’m not a 9 year old boy with tons of energy to burn!


After a few obligatory pics with the cute covered walking bridge we went across the parking lot to find Now and Then Falls. We didn’t actually see these falls because it was totally covered with 9 inches of fresh snow. Of course there was some kind of dad joke in there with the “Now and Then Falls” name. But WOW, was the snow gorgeous!

OMG the SNOW!

After continuing on the short trail and having to slide down a short but fairly steep icy/snowy hill we came out into a picnic area. We could’ve stayed here all day! We had a total blast playing in the snow! When was the last time you ran and jumped around in the snow like a kid!?

Snowshoeing!

I had read that there was a great snowshoeing trail here so we drove over to the campground area to find the trail and set off on our snowshoeing quest. We were loaded up with handwarmers in our boots and mittens because it was about a high of 9 degrees.



I’m not going to sugar coat anything…getting the kids out and snowshoe ready in the freezing cold sucks! We had to walk across the paved lot to the start of the trail and after fumbling around with the latches and boots, our hands were numb and our kids were crabby. My attempt to get them pumped up, in true fitness instructor fashion still didn’t help.

Plan on it being imperfect!

Andrew and I were in awe of how stunning this place was! If it wasn’t for our super unhappy tween it would’ve been perfection. His snowpant strap was all wrong. His hands were cold. He didn’t like the handwarmers. His legs were tired. Really he was just a crab! About halfway through, I made the call for a mandatory snack break. After some food and listening to me lay down the law about not ruining this for the rest of us, he turned his little ‘tude right around!

When you gotta go, you gotta go!

Do you know the easiest way to pee while you’re in snowshoes and snowpants in the deep snow? Drop your drawers and grab onto a tree…that way you won’t pee on your legs or you won’t fall over (in the puddle of your own pee)!

Andrew was like ‘You are not asking me to take this picture?!?!’ Ha, oh but yes I am! When something works you’ve gotta pass it onto others!

Great snowshoe Trail!

We wrapped up our 1.5 mile trek with a smile on our faces. The combo of a lot of hills and a lot of snow left us with tired legs but it was totally worth it! In spite of a somewhat rocky start, the boys ended up loving it, even though it took them awhile to realize!

We will definitely plan a return trip here in the summer! Can’t wait to see how different it looks!

Wisconsin Point – One of the Largest Freshwater Sandbars in the World!

On the way back towards Duluth we made a pit stop at Wisconsin Point. I’d been to Park Point on the Minnesota side but I’d never even heard of this one! There are over two miles of sandy beach here and everything was blanketed in thick ice.

We didn’t stick around long because the wind was FREEZING (if you can’t tell by our selfie). On a mild day (or summer), this would be the perfect spot to spend a whole day!

Tip: On the way back through Duluth, order a Fitger’s Brewhouse wild rice burger and you’ll be hooked forevermore!


Have you been to Amnicon Falls State Park before? How about Wisconsin Point?


Happy Exploring!

More Info for Amnicon State Park:

• Wisconsin State Park fees apply
• Seasonal camping
• Restrooms & office were closed (for winter & COVID)
• Trail Map