3 Tips on Visiting Afton State Park

Only a mere 40 minutes from Minneapolis, Afton State Park has several beautiful trails along the St. Croix River. The park has a lot of variety and options for activities! Read my tips for visiting Afton State Park below.

1. Spend a few hours on the trails.

Afton State Park has a very nice variety of trails – the North and South River Trails, as well as the Interpretive Loop near the visitor’s center, are very flat, prairie-like trails with beautiful views.

The North River Trail has two pretty picturesque railroad bridges that are fun to walk across.

When I visited, we’d just had quite a few days of rain, and as a result, the park was incredibly green, and the St. Croix was pretty high. From the bridges, I could see that the water had risen up, covering parts of the beaches Afton State Park also has to offer. Higher parts of the beach were still accessible, however, and there was a family grilling a picnic lunch for themselves.

Along the North and South River Trails, the St. Croix is a constant, glittering presence. Aside from the slightly flooded beaches, all along the trail one can see the beautiful St. Croix.

There were quite a few people boating along the river, but for the most part, it’s a pretty peaceful section of the river. When on the North and South River Trails, make sure you’re paying attention to which trails you need to transition to – the trail back to the visitor’s center is easy to miss on your return back, so make sure you’re keeping an eye out for where the trails diverge. Otherwise, you’ll end up walking to the end of the park, which I *cough cough* would never do by accident.

The interior trails at Afton are great for a more challenging hike – they’re more hilly, and you have to work a little harder to get up the inclines than when strolling along the river trails.

The best part about stairs like this is knowing you’ll have to climb up them on your return trip.

There were a few staircases that wrapped themselves around the hills, but for the most part, the interior trails are hiking straight up the hills.

The prairie-like views at the top were worth it, though – even if it was a bit gloomy out.

2. Check out the Oliver Charlie site.

If you’ve ever lived in – or quite frankly, driven through a rural area, you definitely know that many farmers have a strange affinity for collecting old pieces of equipment or junk cars, which inevitably settle in some large section of their property, collecting in growing heaps.

That’s why I found the Oliver Charlie site so hilarious – as with many farmers, he just left his equipment on his farm.

It wouldn’t be uncommon to find this along any trail or piece of land in Minnesota in which a farm used to be. But here, they had the equipment sectioned off as part of the presentation.

The Oliver Charlie site is at the very top of the hill. All that remains of it are two stone pillars where the gate to his farm used to be, as well as some of his equipment that he simply left.

It was fascinating to hike up the hill, and consider that someone used to inhabit that space, that it was the place they called home. I enjoyed imaging Oliver traveling up and down the hill, tending to his fields, watching the sun set and rise. He once owned 96 acres in the park, and it was interesting to see the remnants of his life there.

If you’re not looking for a lengthy hike, this site can definitely be skipped, but it added some interest and history to the beautiful hike.

3. Visit an overlook.

Naturally, there’s an overlook at the top of the hill.

It was average, if we’re being honest.

I’ve definitely seen better outlooks. Don’t get me wrong, it was beautiful, but don’t make the hike just for this – it’s not quite worth it.

Along the river trails, there is an outlook at the beginning of the hike, which is optimal for people looking for a shorter trek through the park, or who don’t want to climb the hills.

I felt that the view was just as good there as it was on the top of the hill.

For me, it’s all about the water, so I enjoyed having a closer view of the river, rather than getting a distant glimpse at it through heavily wooded hills.

Overall, the park has lots of beautiful trails – I’d recommend checking it out if you’re looking for a park to visit!