3/6/20-3/8/20. Cart-in 4

Split Rock Lighthouse State Park is situated on Lake Superior in Two Harbors. It’s a backpacker’s paradise! They are open year-round and have 20 secluded Cart-In campsites within 2000 feet of the parking lot. They have wheeled carts available to move your camping gear to your campsite - or in the winter you could sled-in like we did. Each site has a fire ring, picnic bench and a bear locker for your food or gear. They also have 4 backpack sites with their own vault toilets and are 1/2 mile to 2 mile hike from the parking lot.. The sites are all nicely spaced with some close to the water with gorgeous views of Lake Superior, some of the lighthouse and others wooded. We got to scope out almost every one of them, as only one other person was camping here this weekend. You really can’t go wrong with any site at Split Rock as they were all beautiful and have their own little something to offer. Their showers are not open in the winter but they do have vault toilets throughout

They have 12 miles of hiking trails that run along Lake Superior and double back on the Gitchi-Gami trail. The Gitchi-Gami trail is a paved trail in summer which boasts biking or hiking and unplowed hiking in the winter. In the winter the park has hiking, snowshoeing and xcountry ski trails. .

The big draw is their historic lighthouse in which they charge a separate fee to enter. For all the times I have visited Split Rock, I have honestly never been to the light house. There is also river/stream fishing and access to several rock beaches. We hiked ALL the trails during our stay. They are diverse and beautiful! We particularly enjoyed the Day Hill trail which leads up to an overlook and gives you panoramic views of Lake Superior, the lighthouse and Split Rock Point.

This state park fills up very fast and is reservable, so we opted to visit in the winter. We chose site 4 which is close to the parking lot, next to Lake Superior and has views of the lighthouse. Our site was beautiful nestled among birch and pine (which most are), with waves crashing in the background. There is a short path that leads to a private bench that provides stunning views of the lighthouse and cliff views of the lake. We had clear skies and very little wind in our campsite. Highs in the 40s - low of 15 Friday, 28 Saturday. It was perfect winter camping weather!

I highly recommend a visit to this state park!