Visit William O’Brien State Park in Autumn

In Minnesota, when people talk about chasing the falls, they’re usually referring to waterfalls. But at William O’Brien State Park northeast of the Twin Cities, they could be referring to falls of the autumnal variety. Thanks to its nearly 2,000 acres of varied landscapes, the popular park eases into the season in three distinct phases.

Phase one—let’s call it “first fall”—is the big one, usually peaking around the first week in October. It’s a great time to hit the park’s Riverside Trail, where the high moisture content from the adjacent St. Croix River turns the maples a fiery orange and red. I like to go in the early morning, when a magical mist settles on the river as migratory birds glide noiselessly along the flyway. Nearby Lake Alice is often as still as Alice’s looking glass, with peaking maples and hundred-year-old pines on the far shore. Bring your camera and become part of the reflection. Or hike away from the river to the park’s 1,100 acres of restored prairies, where big bluestem, asters, coneflowers, and black-eyed Susans will be hitting their peak.

About two weeks later I’ll often return to the park to soak in more of those brilliant maples on the trails around the visitor center. During this “second fall” I also like to join in on one of the park’s public prairie seed collection events. (The next one is September 13; see mndnr.gov/williamobrien for details.)

It’s the third and final burst of autumn in late October that holds my heart, when the oaks and tamaracks turn yellow and gold. By now the ground has that impossible-to-describe late fall scent, which I wish I could bottle. The parking lots are emptier, as most leaf peepers have had their fill for the season. Anglers are still catching muskies in the river and panfish, bass, and northern pike in Lake Alice, but autumn in this park is finally winding down.

Access for All

• Thanks to recent renovations and additions, William O’Brien State Park now has numerous accessible campsites, restrooms, picnic shelters, trails, and more, so people of all abilities can connect with the outdoors.
• Rent a canoe or kayak from the ranger station and see how easy it is to use the accessible launch on Lake Alice.
• Take a stroll or a roll along the 1.6-mile Riverside Trail, with its easy grade and surface designed for mobility devices.
• Drop a line in the water from the accessible fishing pier or dip your toe in the water using the accessible beach route.
• Try one of the park’s two all-terrain electric track chairs. Free, but reservations required.
• For more information, visit mndnr.gov/williamobrien.

 The People of the River Valley

• Dakota and Anishinaabe peoples lived in the St. Croix riverway for centuries.
• Fur traders used the river in the 1600s, followed by loggers in the mid-1800s.
• William O’Brien was a lumber baron who purchased land for his personal estate from lumber companies after the valley’s pines had been cleared.
• In 1945, his daughter Alice O’Brien donated 180 riverfront acres to the state, to be developed as a state park in his memory. Two years later William O’Brien State Park opened to the public. At the time, there were no other state parks near the metro area. Lake Alice is named in her honor.