Big Bog Stater Recreation Area Grand Opening

[Dr.Bob]

This is a DNR Report that is posted on the home page, but I thought it would go good here too .? I have used the park several times and it is awesome.? I can't wait to get back.

Here ya go:

Big Bog offers access to a seldom seen, rare resource (2006-05-24)
 
The public is invited to experience and explore a rare and fascinating place often described as "Minnesota's last true wilderness" at the dedication and grand opening of Big Bog State Recreation Area on Upper Red Lake in northwestern Minnesota on Sunday, June 4.

It is also Open House Sunday when no vehicle permit is required to enter the recreation area.

Local people have called it Big Bog for good reason. At 500 square miles, it is the largest peat bog in the lower 48 states and is one of the world's unique geological and ecological treasures. The recreation area's new mile-long boardwalk into the bog gives visitors a first-hand look at its unique plant and animal life.

"Walking along the boardwalk into the Big Bog, with its carpet of sphagnum moss and century old, stunted spruce, is a bit like stepping into an enchanted forest," according to Doug Easthouse, manager of Big Bog State Recreation Area, one of DNR's newest state park and recreation areas. "From orchids to carnivorous plants to rare birds, it is a mixture of fascinating and rare resources."

A RARE RESOURCE

"The Big Bog holds fascination for researchers as well as recreational visitors," said Easthouse. "Because Big Bog remains largely intact and is home to rare landforms found only in a few other places in the world, it interests scientists and visitors from around the world."

Easthouse said last fall, three visitors from Ireland who toured the bog were amazed at its pristine condition.

"In the part of Ireland they were from," said Easthouse, "the bogs have been harvested for fuel. As a result, the peat lands they see now are just small segments of what used to be. Their comment to me was that they had to come to Minnesota to see what it used to look like in Ireland."

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

The recreation area also includes a campground with 31 campsites including 26 electric sites, five winterized camper cabins, a sandy beach and shallow swimming area for kids, picnic grounds, two picnic shelters and walleye fishing. The boardwalk and other hiking trails also add to the attractions at this 9,400-acre recreation area. The Big Bog State Recreation Area is located in and near the historic town of Waskish, off Highway 72 between Baudette and Bemidji. Each of the Big Bog's two units, a northern and a southern unit, offers a distinct, and often surprising, recreational experience.

Most of the northern unit, which is much larger than the southern unit, is a wilderness of what is called patterned peat land. Its topography mimics the features of a streambed, including raised peat "islands" dotted with black spruce and tamarack, water tracks and pools. The patterns in this rare and fragile ecosystem, though most easily seen from the air, are also evident from the one-mile raised boardwalk.

A WALK IN THE BOG

Interpretive signs along the bog walk describe the peat bog itself and the vegetation, birds and animals that thrive there. Some of the bog plants such as the English sundew, and bird species like the yellow rail, are classified as rare. Benches in bump-outs along the walk are not just resting spots; but perches for gazing at the bog-loving orchids, spying on the carnivorous pitcher plants, and keeping a lookout for the occasional moose and great gray owl. At the boardwalk's end, facing west, the dark spruce and delicate tamarack are silhouetted against the vivid colors of the spectacular sunsets. The bog offers seasonal treats: bright pink rose pogonia orchids bloom in a cluster at the boardwalk's end in late May, and a profusion of showy lady's slippers and yellow moccasin flowers put on a display at Big Bog's entrance during June.

Nine miles south, the southern unit, by the shore of Upper Red Lake, has terrain and appeal of a different sort. The lake, rimmed by a sandy beach, is shallow for a long distance.

A modern campground, new shower building, five new camper cabins, a short bike path and a new fish cleaning shelter are adjacent to the lake, along the Tamarac River.

Campers can use the launch in the campground and dock a boat near their campsite. Fishing for walleye is possible again, after a population crash resulted in a ban on walleye fishing until recently.

The Big Bog State Recreation Area has an interesting human as well as natural history. In addition to the long-time Native American presence, voyageurs may have canoed the Tamarac River. Later, homesteaders tried in vain to drain the bog and farm it.

A GRAND OPENING

To celebrate this new facility and give visitors an opportunity to tour and learn about Big Bog, the public is invited to "Spend a Big Day at the Big Bog" on Open House Sunday, June 4. No vehicle permit is required to enter the park for this event.

[Outdoors Junkie]

My family and I went and explored the boardwalk at the Big Bog State park.  It was a nice walk with several informational signs to read.  There are tons of plants to see.  It was enjoyable for the whole family.  If you are up by Upper Red, stop at Big Bog and check it out.