Judge C. R. Magney State Park

Location

4051 East Highway 61
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Policies

Max stay

14 nights

About

The park offers camping, picnicking and hiking. Come for the quiet, the solitude, and the famous Devil's Kettle waterfall! The most popular hike leads from the trailhead upstream along the Brule River to Devil's Kettle, where the river splits around a mass of volcanic rock. Half of the river plunges 50 feet into a pool, while the rest pours into a huge pothole. Anglers can catch brook and rainbow trout in the Brule River or its tributary, Gauthier Creek. Geology The bedrock exposed along Lake Superior's North Shore has a geologic history that goes back some 1.1 billion years. During the dramatic volcanic activity of that time, molten lava poured through great fissures that developed in the Earth’s crust. One particular flow complex, the Devil’s Kettle rhyolite flow, visible along the Brule River, is thought to be as much as 770 feet thick. As these flows accumulated, the land along the rift zone sank to form a great basin, into which huge volumes of sediment were deposited after volcanic activity ended. A long period of erosion followed. The local Sawtooth Mountains of the Grand Marais area are the remnants of these great, tilted lava flows. Much more recently, glaciers took their toll on the area as massive ice sheets gouged out the Lake Superior basin, mainly from the post-volcanic sediments, and scoured the bedrock surface. In Cook County, where the park is located, the glacial action eroded more earth and bedrock than it deposited. Naturalist Check at the park office for a schedule of programs. Landscape The vast open waters of Lake Superior moderate the area climate. Summers are generally cool and winters are usually mild with abundant snowfall. The scenic Brule River races through the park, forming whitewater rapids and waterfalls on its way to Lake Superior. Along the lower stretches of the river are a series of spectacular waterfalls. Birdwatchers will find a bonanza of warblers during the nesting months of May, June, and July. Early fall is a good time to observe migrating hawks as they congregate along the shore of Lake Superior. Large white spruce grace the campground and other upland areas. The forested areas are dominated by birch and aspen stands. Wildflowers begin to show in early spring with the marsh marigold, wood anemone, and violet. In summer, look for the rose, thimbleberry, moccasin flower, coral root, clintonia, wild sarsaparilla, and fireweed. Asters and goldenrod add to the fiery colors of autumn. Wildlife Moose, white-tailed deer, black bears, and timber wolves are among the larger animals that inhabit the park. Smaller mammals include woodchuck, snowshoe hare, red squirrel, and chipmunk. In the spring and summer, listen for the songs of warblers. All year round, chickadees, nuthatches, jays, woodpeckers, and ruffed grouse can be seen in the park. History In 1957, a 940-acre parcel of forest along the Brule River was set aside as Brule River State Park. The park became Judge C.R. Magney State Park in 1963 when the Minnesota legislature selected this park as a memorial to the late Judge Magney. Over the years, additional parcels of land have been added, and today the park totals 4,642 acres. Judge Magney was a lawyer, mayor of Duluth, justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, and a strong advocate of Minnesota state parks - particularly those along the North Shore. He was instrumental in establishing 11 state parks and waysides along Lake Superior. The concrete foundations in the park's campground and picnic areas are remnants of a transient work camp built by the State in 1934 to provide work and lodging for men displaced during the Depression years. In addition to building trails, logging, and completing public service projects, these men helped fight a fire in 1935 that burned more than 10,000 acres in the area. Later, the men set up a sawmill and began to salvage fire-damaged wood.