Mountain Biking in Cuyuna State Park With My Boys!

My boys and I took off for 3 days last week to hit the trails in Cuyuna State Park in central Minnesota. Here are some pics from our trip (many of which come from from my Instagram posts, but with more photos peppered in as well).

On the red dirt trails in Cuyuna!


Charlie pointing to his tires which have just been turned red. They LOVED the "skills loops" at the park!


After mountain biking for an hour or 2, we all went for a swim in Huntington Mine:
a SUPER clear lake that was a former mine and is 258 feet deep in the middle!




Goofing around by the bike stands.


Cleaned up back in our room at Crosby Lofts.

For $100/night ($235 total with taxes and fees for 2 nights), we had this modern little hotel room in an 8-room hotel above a wood-fire pizza place in Crosby (just a half mile from the bike trails!). The boys loved this, and it was all we needed. It also had a locked bike storage room on the first floor behind the pizza place:

Our 3 bikes locked up on the left.


Bike maintenance stand in the bike room (with a washer and dryer off-camera as well!).


Eating at Rafferty's Woodfire Pizza right under our hotel room!


Heading down the stairs with my car visible right through that window. #RockstarParking


That evening, we biked around a skate park and playground just 3 blocks from our hotel.


Bed time!

There's video of the "more advanced" loop with the downhill rollers in this Instagram post.

On the morning of day 2 (our full day there), I got up early for an easy run. I ran to the State Park and ran a nice out-and-back on this paved trail running through the park:

A view as the sun came up.


The pizza place with our 2 windows on the left (above the word "Original") after my run.

We got geared up, we packed the cooler with food for lunch, I filled my bike jersey pockets with extra snacks and water bottles, and we hit the trails for our longest route of the trip: we were hoping to bike around Huntington Mine, which would be well over 5 miles of mountain biking.

On the trails!


Selfie at an overlook along the lake (same vantage point as 2 years ago with Henry!).


Down to the water's edge. CLEAR and RED!


Snack break after a tricky set of trails on the SW corner of the lake.


Charlie found a bone, so that rode with me in my "snack pocket" for the rest of the ride. Gross.


Climbing higher!


Red puddles from the iron-rich dirt!

Charlie got a little frustrated by the harder trails on the SW corner of the lake, but then we got a break taking a gravel road for a few minutes. Suddenly, we felt like we were closer to the finish, and his mood improved. (And fruit snacks helped his mood as well.) So we skipped some mountain bike trails on the NW corner of the lake as we opted for the gravel road in that section, but it kept everyone in better spirits, and then we were able to finish on mountain bike trails again for the last mile. Soon, we were spit out at the "skills loops" and the boys were happy to be back home!

Henry and I actually rode a bit more to check out a "more advanced" loop called the "demo loop," and he liked doing that! We both agreed that Charlie would have just been upset doing it, but Henry was glad he tackled it! And we saw 6-8 grouse on that loop. Overall, that was 8 miles of mountain biking in the morning.

We got meat, cheese, crackers, and some fruit from the cooler and had a picnic lunch in the shade:

DIRTY. Awesome.


We saw LOTS of sunnies (and some largemouth bass) in the CLEAR lake.


Post-lunch swimming.


More mountain biking on the "skills loop" after swimming!


Red shoes.


After biking, swimming, and biking, we swam some more. When we
got back to our room, Charlie found a TINY leech on top of his foot.


A simplified version of Crosby's history: "ore to oar" and "steel to wheel."


A DELICIOUS patio supper at Iron Range on the same block where we were staying.


Getting some ice cream (and fancy chocolates for Mama) before bed.

And in this Instagram post, there are 2 videos, both from our lap around the lake.

On our 3rd day, I again got up early (just after 5:00) to go for a bike ride. I was itching to do something at MY speed. No offense, boys. So I started on that paved trail because I wasn't about to hop onto single-track trails before it was light enough to see what was ahead. I startled a raccoon off the trail, and came across nearly a dozen deer all in groups of 1 or 2:

Morning riding.


Pink morning sky above a nearby lake (about 8 or 9 miles into my ride).


A funny thing I noticed: "clean" asphalt turning off the highway,
and "Cuyuna red" stained asphalt leaving the dirt roads.

I did 18 miles of mostly paved trail with my first three 5 mile splits being very consistent at 18:30, 18:27, and 18:41 (16.0 to 16.2 mph on my mountain bike). Near the end, I felt like taking some single track for a while, and I found a fun easy trail near Crosby: my average was 10.0 mph for that section. I got back to our room just minutes after 7:00 a.m. and the boys had just woke up and turned on some cartoons. We quick got our bikes ready to go out and bike a BIT more before having to come back to check out:

On the top of Miner's Mountain just above the "skills loops" that the boys loved so much.


Charlie had 2 spills that broke some skin and 2 more minor spills.
He ended with a minor one that just covered him in red.


Red bikes loaded up.


Showered, checked out, and at North Country Cafe (again, on the
same block where we stayed) for a HUGE and delicious brunch.

I think I'll have another post about our trip with some maps of our loops. The boys CAN NOT WAIT to go back and ride some more!