Surrounding the Grand Rapids, Minnesota area is over 1M publicly accessible forest acres with 2,000 miles of designated trails, and over 1,100 area lakes. Whatever type of outdoor recreation you enjoy, or have wanted to try, you can do it here in Minnesota’s nature. 

Grand Rapids, Minnesota has the best outdoor trails in Minnesota! There is 300+ miles of designated ATV and snowmobile trails. These trails are well groomed and maintained by Itasca County, the MN DNR, and the area outdoor recreation club volunteers. There are over 200KM of cross country ski trails that are well-groomed and maintained by Itasca County, the MN DNR, and the Northern Lights Nordic Ski Association volunteers. There are 25+ miles of professionally built and multi-level single track mountain bike trails located at Tioga Recreation Area and Legion Trail that are groomed and well-maintained by Grand Rapids and Itasca Mountain Bike Association. There are thousands of miles of hiking trails in the Grand Rapids, MN area that are well maintained by the Chippewa National Forest, Itasca County, the MN DNR, and the Northern Lights Nordic Ski Association volunteers. Snowshoers do not need designated trails, but starting from any of the cross country ski trail access points is a good idea for parking and access to the forest. Just be mindful to cross the trail at a 90 degree angle. 

And then there are over 1,100 area lakes to boat, catch fish, float, paddle, and swim. The Grand Rapids, Minnesota area is the best place to fish. You will find reclaimed mine pit lakes that were man made to the large lakes that are the backwater of the Mississippi and everything in between. Most of these lakes offer public access, but there are a few that are only accessible via private land. Just make sure that you check with the MN DNR Lake Finder, and type in Itasca in the County field, before you arrive. The lakes have a wide variety of fish species in them from panfish like bluegills, crappies and perch to trophy sport fish like walleye and northern pike. A good source for information on the bite, lakes to consider, and tips and techniques, head over to our Fishing and Ice Fishing page for report. Local bait and sporting good shops are also a great resource.