Travel North to Winnipeg along the Great River Road National Scenic Byway. Take a naturalist tour to cross the Mississippi headwaters at Itasca State Park. Get a taste of pioneer life shaped by the mighty river with tours at Bemidji Woolen Mills, Buena Vista Logging Village and don’t forget to take your photo with Paul and Babe!

Featured stops include…

Day One
9:00am	Depart Minneapolis
OPTION 1	St. Cloud
10:00am	Munsinger Gardens, Flower Pot Lunch
OPTION 2	Little Falls
10:30am	St. Francis Convent or Charles Lindberg Home
11:30am	Restaurant Lunch
12:30pm	Depart for Itasca State Park
3:30pm	Step-on Naturalist Tour
5:00pm	Depart for Bemidji
5:45pm	Lodging Check-in
6:30pm	Dinner
8:00pm	Entertainment
Day Two
8:00am	Photo stop with Paul & Babe
8:30am	Bemidji Woolen Mills Factory & Store
10:00am	Headwaters Science Center
11:45am	Lunch at the Buena Vista Logging Village
2:00pm	Depart for Winnipeg

Munsinger & Clemens Gardens • ST. CLOUD

Garden lovers and photographers alike will enjoy this garden on the east bank of the Mississippi River. Enjoy a flowerpot lunch while taking in the beauty of Clemens Rose Garden, which has more than 1,000 rose bushes. Gift shop.

Charles A. Lindbergh Historic Site • LITTLE FALLS

Charles Lindbergh’s 1927 flight from New York to Paris launched an aviation revolution. Tour his boyhood home, explore the Visitor Center exhibits, including a “Spirit of St. Louis” flight simulator. Walk an interpretive trail along the river.

St. Francis Convent & Campus • LITTLE FALLS

For 124 years, the convent has distributed altar breads to churches throughout Minnesota, and across the United States. A Romanesque influence can be seen in the building’s pillars, rounded arches and the symbolism of the stained glass windows. Visitors are welcome to tour the campus and Sacred Heart Chapel, Franciscan Gift Shop and Candle Shop. Food and beverage service is available.

Paul Bunyan and Babe his Blue Ox • Bemidji

Stop for a photo opportunity with the legendary lumberjack statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe his Blue Ox. Visit the Tourist Information Center for Paul’s memorabilia and view the Fireplace of States.

Itasca State Park • Bemidji

Stop at the Visitors Center to see interpretive displays and exhibits on the history of the forest and wildlife. “Step on” tour with the park naturalist along Wilderness Drive with a stop at the Headwaters area. Board the “Chester Charles” for a narrated tour of Lake Itasca, where the Mississippi River springs from. Restroom equipped and lunch cruise available. Other dining options include the historic Douglas Lodge with dining room or catered picnic lunch at one of the picnic shelters. The Headwaters Café is a cafeteria-style restaurant located in the Mary Gibbs Mississippi Headwaters Center.

Headwaters Science Center • Bemidji

Explore the sciences through 70 self-guided, hands-on activities and interactive exhibits. Hold a snake or bunny, make a harmonograph picture, watch the kinetic sculpture, have fun at the popular bubble wall or echo tube, and spend a moment contemplating the beauty of our 210-gallon salt water aquarium. Tots-in-Science is a program available for young scientists, and Science After Dark are programs designed for adults. Unique gift shop.

Bemidji Woolen Mills & Outlet Store • Bemidji

Part of a long and rich tradition, Bemidji Woolen Mills & Outlet Store is a 5 generation operation home to the Bemidji Paul Bunyan Plaid. Individually made, high-quality woolen clothing, garments and blankets have been made here in Bemidji for nearly 100 years. Originallly producing outdoor apparel for the early logging era, the company continues to produce garments for outdoor enthusiasts. See the products being made, and learn the history behind the original processing machines while you shop a host of Bemidji’s famous Paul Bunyan Plaid items.

Buena Vista Logging Village • Bemidji

Board horse-drawn covered wagons at the Lumberjack Hall of Fame building in the Buena Vista Village to ride to the “Top of the World.” The narrated tour follows the Leech Lake – Red Lake Trail, the same route traveled by Native Americans, early explorers and pioneers. From the top of the Continental Divide, you will see where waters flow in one direction to the Hudson Bay and on the other side of the ridge where the waters flow south to the Gulf of Mexico. Other attractions at the Buena Vista Logging Village include a working sawmill, train cars, 1900’s schoolhouse and log church. A chuckwagon style lunch is available.

Bemidji Evening Entertainment Options

Paul Bunyan Playhouse Live theatre productions June through Mid-August.
Native American Flute Performance and narrative on the history of flutes.
Timeless Traditions An ensemble that blends the Native American flute and Celtic folk harp in ethnic and contemporary music.
Alabaster Falls An acoustic “folkgrass” band. Dinner performances or evening entertainment.