“Camp in the Big Woods!”
Enjoy this park on foot, any season of the year. In the spring, the park is a wildflower garden where hepatica, bloodroot, Dutchman's breeches, and the dwarf trout lily bloom. The dwarf trout lily is only found here. Relax by Hidden Falls in the summer. The autumn brings a burst of red, orange, and gold in the maple-basswood forest, one of the last extensive stands of the "Big Woods." When winter comes, ski or snowmobile the trails through picturesque woods. Red and hoary woodland bats, raccoon, fox, deer, and red-bellied garter snakes are just a few of the residents in the park. Bird watchers will enjoy viewing scarlet tanagers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, indigo buntings, bobolinks, meadowlarks, and seven species of woodpeckers, including the "Species of Special Concern" red-headed woodpecker. When the first settlers arrived in 1854, they discovered an island of woods in the vast oak savanna prairie which now makes up Nerstrand Big Woods State Park. Sugar maple, basswood, oak, hickory, aspen, elm, ash, and ironwood trees shade the land. Over 200 varieties of wildflowers, along with countless varieties of ferns and mushrooms grew in the Big Woods. Nerstrand Big Woods State Park is comprised of two, nearly horizontal, layers: a layer of glacial drift about 150 feet thick overlying a layer of Platteville Limestone. The limestone is visible only where the drift has been eroded away at Hidden Falls and along Prairie Creek. Nerstrand Big Woods State Park is spectacular for wildflower viewing in the spring. Feast your eyes on sharp-lobed hepatica and the dwarf trout lily which blooms in April, and the dwarf trout lily, which is a federally-listed endangered wildflower.
Reviews of Nerstrand Big Woods State Park
4 people have reviewed this location
Ratings Summary
Cell Coverage
Verizon 4G
Confirmed by 2 users | Last reported on April 11, 2021State park with great hiking trails, not too far away from the Twin Cities. 51 sites, 27 of them are electric 30A/15A. Sadly, none of the outer ring sites have electric, so you're forced into the inner ring where the spaces are a bit more crowded. Still, with trees, there's a little bit of privacy. I think 52e or 51e might be the best spots, but none are perfect.
Nightly Rate: $26.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 52e
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
There are nice hiking trails, no bicycles allowed, & a beautiful waterfall. Lots of wild flowers, including the Dwarf Trout Lilly, which only grows in 3 counties of MN, & no where else in the world. The camping sites are smaller & less private than some of the other st parks we have stayed at.
Nightly Rate: $34.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 46e
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
Waterfall in park is nice, but DNR lady was a Nazi.
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Nerstrand Big Woods State Park
Hours
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Parking
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Pets Allowed
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Restrooms
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Wifi
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Wheelchair Accessible
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Credit Cards Accepted
- Affiliation
- State park or forest
- Back In RV Sites Count
- 15
- Last Nightly Rate
- 34.0
- Lowest Nightly Rate
- 24.0
- Max Length
- 45 ft
- Max Stay
- 14
- Season End
- Year Round
- Season Start
- Year Round
- Sites Count
- 51
- Standard Tent Sites Count
- 51
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Paved Sites
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Fifty Amp
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Full Hookup
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Pull Through
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Tent Sites
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Dump Station
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Big Rigs
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Open Seasonally
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Age Restricted
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Back In RV Sites
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Boondock
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Cabin Sites
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Dispersed Sites
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Firewood
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Fulltime Residents
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Group Tent Sites
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Laundry
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Mobile Homes
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Permit Required
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Potable Water
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Propane
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Public Water
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Pull Through RV Sites
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Reservations
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Sewer Hookup
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Showers
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Sites
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Standard Tent Sites
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Vehicle Wash Permitted
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Water Hookup
Campground, Restrooms
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