Things to Do Around Little Falls, Minnesota
Past the county seat, Morrison County runs to trails, a military reservation, small-town festivals, golf, and river country. Here is what is worth the short drive out of Little Falls.
Within a short drive you can ride the Soo Line Trail from Bowlus to the Lake Wobegon Trail, tour Camp Ripley's Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum, catch the summer Pierz Freedom Fest or the Morrison County Fair, play a round of golf, or get on the Mississippi to paddle and fish. This page covers the wider county; for the county seat itself, see things to do in Little Falls.
Trails: the Soo Line and Lake Wobegon
The best outdoor draw in the area starts in Bowlus. The Soo Line Trail runs paved and flat for bikers, walkers, and rollerbladers in summer and snowmobilers in winter, and it links to the Lake Wobegon Trail in Stearns County over the Holdingford covered bridge across the Two Rivers, the longest in the state. Jordie's Trailside Cafe in Bowlus makes the natural turnaround, home-made pie included.
Camp Ripley and the military museum
North toward Randall lies Camp Ripley, the Minnesota National Guard's 53,000-acre training reservation on the Mississippi. It is an active military post, but two things are open to the public: the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum, with tens of thousands of artifacts from the Civil War to today, and an Environmental Education Center. Confirm current access and hours before you go.
Festivals worth the drive
The small towns punch above their weight in summer. Pierz lends its name to Pierz Freedom Fest, a two-day music festival that draws national acts (now held at the Morrison County Fairgrounds in Little Falls), and the Morrison County Fair runs in late June. Both sit on the wider Little Falls events calendar.
Golf, river, and open country
For a round, the Pierz Golf Course and Campground and Eagle's Landing near the Fort Ripley area both serve the county. For water, the Mississippi and its tributaries carry paddlers and anglers all season, and the surrounding woods and fields draw hunters in fall and snowmobilers in winter. This is working farm-and-forest country, and much of its appeal is simply being out in it.
A driving tour of the towns
| Bowlus | The Soo Line Trail, the covered bridge, and Jordie's Trailside Cafe |
|---|---|
| Pierz | St. Joseph's Church, Pierz Freedom Fest, and a golf course and campground |
| Randall | An active little downtown and the gateway to Camp Ripley |
| Sobieski | Polish Catholic heritage and St. Stanislaus Church |
| Flensburg | A quiet railroad-and-mill village southwest of Little Falls |
The county's historic churches make their own driving tour, and the cemeteries tell the same immigrant story for anyone tracing family. Start from the Little Falls guide.
Michael Paycer
Michael Paycer grew up in Little Falls, Minnesota. Today he is a Senior SQL Server Database Administrator Consultant based in Saint Cloud, and he keeps this Little Falls guide as a personal project about his hometown.
Sources & further reading
- Visit Little Falls — Things to Do
- City of Bowlus — Soo Line Trail
- Wikipedia — Camp Ripley
- Discover Pierz — Pierz Freedom Fest
External sites are provided for reference. Event dates, hours, and admission change annually — confirm current details with the official source before visiting.