Staying at Minnesota’s Gunflint Lodge
Welcome to Gunflint Lodge, a cozy property full of private rental cabins perfectly situated for Northern Lights viewing and outdoor adventures. Whether you’re hiking the trails, sunbathing by the lake or roasting s’mores by the campfire, this place is a definite bucket list destination in Minnesota!
Where is Gunflint Lodge located?
This gorgeous property is located far north in Minnesota on Gunflint Lake which is half in Canada and half in the USA.
It’s a 5 hour and 30 minute drive from Minneapolis or a little over 3 hours from Duluth.
But the long drive is worth it! Even as you drive north, you will be driving along Minnesota’s gorgeous North Shore and the scenic byway, Gunflint Trail.
Accommodation
Plan to stay for at least a few nights, we stayed 3. There is so much to do, you’ll easily fill a weekend’s worth of activities.
The property is made up of private cabins with rustic charm but complete with modern amenities like strong Wifi, TV with DVD Player, daily housekeeping & a kitchen.
The Classic Cabins, Lake Homes and Romantic Cottages all have a stone fireplace and many have a private sauna, hot tub or jacuzzi and washer/dryer.
Firewood is stacked by the door and each cabin has a grill outside!
If you’re coming with a large group, check out the Pow Wow Lodge. This rental has 5 bedrooms, 3 baths, a game room, a BBQ porch, a rock garden and more. It easily fits 12 people!
Check out the cabins here.
What To Do at Gunflint Lodge
There is no shortage of Minnesota bucket list adventures at the Gunflint Lodge!
If you want an active trip, there is A LOT of jaw-dropping hikes that aren’t very difficult. And if you want a more relaxing vacation, you can hang out and have a few drinks on the pontoon. If you’re into photography, you could join a guided photo walk with a member of the staff.
So let’s break down your options!
Hike The Stunning Trails
There are a lot of trails both on the Gunflint Lodge property and nearby. When you arrive, ask the front desk for a map of the trails. They all can be accessed from just behind the Boundary Waters Outfitter onsite.
Additional nearby trailheads are just a short drive away.
Best Hiking Trails On The Property:
- Lookout Point
- Lost Cliff Overlook
- High Cliffs Overlook
Easiest Hike With Best Views: Lookout Point
This hike has a great view point but without the steep terrain & difficulty of High Cliffs Overlook. It’s an easy hike with a big payoff. And since it’s located right on the property, you don’t need to drive to a trail head.
Pro tip: This is an awesome place to watch sunset! It perfectly faces the setting sun and the rocks almost form a bench at the top for a front row seat.
Another great but more challenging hike on property: Lost Cliffs Overlook
This hike is blast and the lookout is amazing. But it is very steep and the terrain is rough. Expect a work out and to be scrambling over rocks.
But prepare to be dazzled by the views!
Make sure you visit Lonely Lake as well!
This remote lake is also on the Gunflint Lodge property and super easy to get to following the signage. Bring a picnic or a book, they have a nice little birch bench tucked off to the side you can use.
Best Hike Off The Property: Magnetic Rock
The hike to Magnetic Rock was one of my favorites! However you’ll have to drive a short distance to the start of the trailhead.
This gigantic rock towering at 30 feet high contains magnetite, and as the name suggests, it is magnetic. If you bring a compass, you can actually test the magnetism of the rock. Normally the needle in the compass points north but if you place it near the rock, it will spin.
It sound so science fiction, a giant magnet rock sticking out of the earth that is literally as tall as a house, I love it! And the hike is easy and very enjoyable.
How To Get To Magnetic Rock:
- Drive for 10 minutes down Gunflint Trail, the main highway you took to get to the lodge. Go in the opposite direction as Grand Marais.
- You will see a sign on the right hand side for Magnetic Rock. Then there is free parking at the trailhead which will also be on your right hand side.
- Once you park, the trail is easy to spot and follow. It’s about 1.5 miles until you reach Magnetic Rock, you can’t miss it! The trail leads directly to it and it’s a 30 foot tall rock sticking straight out of the earth. If you haven’t seen it, you probably just haven’t gone far enough. Enjoy the views along the way!
- 3 miles round trip
Try to Spot Wildlife: Moose, Fox and Black Bears
One of the best ways to spot wildlife near Gunflint Lodge is to continue your drive up the highway. Instead of heading back towards Grand Marais, drive down Gunflint Trail the other way. We did this each night and every time we saw black bears!
While there’s no guarantee, other guests said they saw moose from the highway as well. We never saw moose but it was fun to sit and watch a family of black bears play and graze on the side of the road from our car.
Canoe Into Canada To Visit Little Rock Falls
You can use a canoe and simply paddle around the lake for some awesome views! But if you want to go on a little day adventure, why not make the trek into Canada and see Little Rock Falls?
It’s not a massive waterfall by any means but it’s fun to say you crossed the international border into Canada via canoe. And once you arrive, there is a short but very scenic hike to the falls.
Canoes and kayaks are free if you’re staying on property! Otherwise it’s only $5 an hour to rent for non-guests.
Route to Little Rock Falls:
- When you leave from Gunflint Lodge, paddle straight across through the canal
- Paddle all the way across Magnetic Lake- you will see an island on the far side of the lake with cabin on it, paddle to the right of this island
- As you continue forward out of Magnetic Lake, you’ll see small rapids on your left
- Up ahead you’ll see a small patch of land where you can dock your canoe
- Once you land, and pull your canoe up, just follow the path to the falls! You’ll be able to hear them as you go. The trail isn’t super well maintained but that’s part of the fun! Plan to crawl over some rocks and under a few branches. At one point you’ll climb down a ladder they’ve built.
- From there the falls are just up ahead! Bring a picnic or a book and enjoy the scenery 🙂
- It took us one hour to paddle to the Little Rock Falls portage and an hour and a half to paddle back since the wind was against us. Round trip was 3 hours for us! It might take you more or less time depending on the wind and how quickly you canoe. Overall, it’s an awesome work out and a lot of fun. Paddling back against the wind was very challenging but enjoyable. (Just consider the wind conditions before you go!)
Marvel At the Northern Lights
Did you know you can see the Northern Lights in Minnesota? Well when you are this far north you can! Of course spotting this natural phenomenon can’t be guaranteed.
But if you’re lucky enough to be visiting on a night with activity, the cabins face north so you can not only see them perfectly from the end of the dock but even spot them from your cabin’s window!
The most accurate resource for tracking the upcoming Aurora is SpaceWeather.com. You can sign up for text message alerts for when they will be visible in your area/a certain destination.
And Gunflint Lodge offers Northern Lights Packages for dates when activity is predicted to be high.
Read: WHERE TO SEE THE NORTHERN LIGHTS IN MINNESOTA
Make S’mores At The Campfire
Each cabin comes fully stocked with wood for fire so pack the ingredients for s’mores! Or else you can order a s’more kit with homemade bourbon marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate for 4 from the kitchen for $12.
Go Fishing Solo Or With A Guide
Fishing in northern Minnesota is incredibly popular and it’s a great way to enjoy the lake.
You can get rods, tackle, live bait and even a guide to go with you!
Best of all, you can have the kitchen prepare and fillet your catch for dinner that night!
Watch The Sunset From The Dock
I was totally blown away by the sunsets over Gunflint Lake. The main dock is perfectly positioned to face the setting sun, as is the private lawn chairs for each cabin.
You can also do the easy hike up to Lookout Point for an epic front row seat for sunset from high above.
Soar Above The Trees on The Zipline
The zipline track hadn’t open for the season during our stay but we saw the track and it looked EPIC. There are some particularly high drop offs on the course.
They also offer a night zipline under the stars. Check it out here.
Go Horseback Riding
This is a popular activity for honeymooners at Gunflint! The horseriding season is from May to October.
Friendly Jaunt 3-4 mi (moderate)- $65.00
Scenic Adventure 6-7 mi (challenging)- $89.00
1/2 Day Lunch Ride16 mi (rugged)- $135.00
Dinner Trail Ride $99.00
Get A Massage
If you’re looking to relax or simply work out some sore muscles after a hike, they have an onsite massage therapist.
30 minutes $45 | 60 minutes $95 | 90 minutes $120
Curl Up At The Fireplace With A Good Book
In the gift shop, you can find a number of great books about the history of Gunflint Lodge written by Justine Kerfoot, the woman who owned and operated the lodge for 51 years.
I recommend Gunflint and Woman of the Boundary Waters, both by Justine Kerfoot.
You can also check out movies and books for free from the front desk!
Attend a Naturalist Event
Throughout your stay you can also attended guided photography walks, presentations about the Northern Lights or group hikes.
There will be a schedule posted for the week at the front desk.
In the winter try dog sledding, snowshoeing & snowmobiling!
Dining at Gunflint Lodge
Feel free to bring your own food since each cabin has a kitchen. Some of the more basic cabins only have kitchenettes but that still includes a fridge, coffee maker, microwave, sink and dishes.
There are also grills available for use!
Justine’s Restaraunt
You can also eat at the restaurant right at the lake and just have your meals billed to your room. If you book a package, your meals will be included during your stay.
And now in the wake of Covid-19 you can text for contactless delivery straight to your cabin free of charge!
I was so pleasantly surprised by the variety of options and the quality of food!
The beer battered walleye with sweet & sour mango sauce is truly mouthwatering. I highly recommend it and it’s a quintessential meal here in Minnesota.
People also go crazy over the walleye chowder, it’s the most popular item on the menu.
Another Minnesota cuisine can be ordered family style, try the tater tot hotdish for the ultimate Midwest experience. If you don’t know what this dish is, check out a guest blog post I wrote with the recipe. But think casserole covered in tater tots!
Check out their take out menu here.
A Minnesota Bucket List Destination!
Overall, I was incredibly impressed by Gunflint Lodge. The wilderness and wildlife surrounding the property make the trip worthwhile. But then when you add on the water activities, attentive staff and charming cabins, this place completely won me over!
Check out the video of my stay!
Thank you to Gunflint Lodge for hosting me during my stay. As always, thoughts and opinions expressed here are entirely my own.
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I loved following your stories on this trip, so fun!! I’m dying to go here now and this article is super informative. Thanks Emily!
Of course Julie! I’m so glad you found this article helpful 🙂 I appreciate your support!!
Magnetic Rock isn’t from a meteorite impact. It’s from the Gunflint Iron Formation, a rock you can find in Minnesota & Canada. It contains magnetite, which is a magnetic mineral. If you have a magnet with you on the hike you’ll notice that a lot of rocks found along the path are the same as the large one.
There’s a meteor impact crater in Sudbury, Ontario. The impact sent a tsunami of debris across the landscape, and some evidence for it was found near Gunflint Lake. That may be what you heard about, but it’s unrelated to Magnetic Rock. The fireplace at Gunflint Lodge is actually made of the tsunami debris, called impact breccia, and it contains some of the Gunflint Iron Formation.
Hi Nicole!! Thanks for reading 🙂 AWESOME info!! I so appreciate that. While we were there we did attended a naturalist class and perhaps some information got confused. Thanks for sharing this info!! Super informative!