Lake Bemidji State Park

 We enjoyed two nights at one of the camper cabins at Lake Bemidji State Park.  We had been there tent camping several years ago, so it was fun to visit again.  This is a great park, with lots of fun things to see and do.  When we arrived Monday, we got settled in our camper cabin, then checked out the playground and swimming beach area.  It was really windy, with lots of waves, but we enjoyed wading and playing in the sand.  We cooked hot dogs and s'mores over the fire for dinner, then took a bike ride/walk to Big Bog Lake.

On Tuesday, we got up and had pancakes and eggs for breakfast, then got ready to go biking.  The Paul Bunyan Bike Trail goes through the park, then around Lake Bemidji, and into town.  It's about 8.5 miles to get to downtown Bemidji, and the trail is nice and flat.  It was breezy, so that made for a perfect ride.  The girls enjoyed the playground at Paul Bunyan Park (plus a Dunkin' Donuts treat) before we turned around and headed back.  

After a walking taco lunch, we drove back into town to check out some shops and get some ice cream.  When we got back to the park, it felt great to swim/float at the swimming beach.  It's so nice that it's so sandy with no rocks/weeds.  After swimming and showers, we went to check out the visitors center and did a little loop hike with an overlook of the lake.  Then we headed back for a late supper of pie iron pizzas and s'mores.  Unfortunately, because it has been so dry, the bees were really bad anywhere there was any moisture, so the girls ate in the camper cabin.

We loaded up and headed for home Wednesday morning.  Thankfully, it was dry at the park and for the first half of the trip home, because the second half, it rained the whole way.  It was a great trip, and fun to revisit a park that we had enjoyed before!