Buffalo River State Park

About Buffalo River State Park

Prairie lovers, this park is for you, prairie lovers, to listen to the bobby-tailed, marbled godwits of the Buffalo River Highlands National Wildlife Refuge. The trail leads from the main entrance of the park at the northern end to its entrance at the southern end.

Picnic area, swimming area and campsite are located in the hardwood forest on the Buffalo River. Both campsites have picnic and bathing areas and a picnic table at the entrance to the park.

The Buffalo River that runs through the park is lined with riverbed forests and the landscape contains more than 250 species of wildflowers and grasses, including plants that are rare in Minnesota today. The park is located on the west bank of the Buffalo River, north of St. Paul, and is considered a protected area under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Park Service.

Lake Agassiz covers more than 200,000 square miles, including more than 17,500 acres of Lake Superior and over 18,800 acres in Minnesota and Wisconsin, as well as a small portion of the Great Lakes.

The rise and fall of this ancient lake is the dominant feature of the park, and not only for wild river enthusiasts. When Lake Agassiz began to dry up, it left behind a series of streams and rivers, interrupted only by a few miles of shoreline along the eastern shore of Lake Superior. One of these banks, the lake, runs from the western edge of Buffalo River State Park through northern Minnesota and Wisconsin to eastern Wisconsin and runs along a park on the eastern edge.

In spring, the song of the Bobolink brings the prairie to life, and the tails also belong to the grassland community. There is also a wide variety of birds to see and hear, such as the Great Blue Heron, Black-tailed Owls, White Owls and many other species.

Attentive observers could also spot the blue heron, the black-tailed owl and other birds of prey such as the red-footed falcon and the blue-nosed falcon.

The deciduous forests of the park are home to many bird species, such as comb-catchers, white-legged owls, black-tailed falcons and other birds of prey. Along the river you can see beavers and elks moving through the area and hikers often encounter deer. In total, about 2,000 to 3,500 people from the Buffalo area use the park every year.

It became home to nomadic hunters and herds of bison, but when the water of Lake Agassiz receded, it was replaced by as much water as our eyes could see.

It was this fertile lowland that attracted the attention of European settlers, who tilled the land and turned the prairie into farmland. A path ran parallel to the Buffalo River through the park and served to transport fur, skin, tallow and other goods from St. Paul and Pembina, North Dakota. Later, the area led to a series of hiking trails along the western edge of the national park and into the city of Buffalo, Minnesota.

Efforts to restore the prairie ecosystem did not begin until 1979, but the goal was to create bathing and other recreational opportunities. From Moorhead, drive 14 miles east on US Highway 10 and follow the signs to the park.