Small waterfall hidden along an upper trail at the wayside.
This little rest stop actually provided some value with some nice elevated hiking/picnic spots, a small view of a waterfall and what appeared to be some additional hiking space I didn't expect. Mostly I looked over the lake and found several duck species present at long range helping to add to my county list in this area. (Gadwall, American Wigeon, Greater Scaup, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead.)
By 7:30AM I was ready to go at Judge Magney State Park. I had a slower start with serious hikes under me from the day before and wanted to pace myself at least a little bit.
Ready for some serious Devil's Kettle hiking.
A few cars in the lot indicated some overnight camping likely as I found the trails that would take me in the direction of Devil's Kettle. (The famous waterfall that splits in half with one half going underground never to be seen again. I'm pretty sure efforts to find the end point for the water have turned up very little.) I recalled from Bob Janssen's book that the parking lot traditionally had a number of Northern Parula on territory and that was indeed the case as I had a couple singing immediately upon getting out of the car and would end my visit with 13 challenged only by the 13 Black-throated Green Warblers I noted during my hikes.
This park is focused on the Brule River and The Superior Hiking Trail cuts through overlapping a large portion of the trail space. The hike out and back from both Upper Falls and Devil's Kettle were excellent elevation hikes and I can only imagine what the full swath of trails can give you on a full day of hiking. My out and back to the falls was loaded with stairs and root laden trails I had become used to at this point. I really do like these kinds of hikes that give great views, elevation changes, and the sounds of rushing water. Though the water suppressed a lot of bird noise I was still able to get a few really nice pictures including a singing Magnolia Warbler that has been set on my phone desktop background now for a while.
I'm sure the best photo and look I will get of a Magnolia Warbler. Really a stunning bird.
Upper Falls presented a set of stairs down to the bottom of the falls with a heavy mist washing over the viewing area making things slick and a bit dangerous for those not so sure footed. This falls was very nice and I suspect the higher water flow rate for the time of year helped a lot also. I quickly snagged some pics and moved back up the stairway towards Devil's Kettle.
The Upper Falls, I did not linger long as the rocks were slick and I had no interest in slipping in some way and ending my hiking early.
If you are not ready for a lot of this, then some of these waterfall hikes are not for you. The stairs make it a very hikable trail and much safer, but this many stairways can be a daunting effort for those not in great condition.
I soon found the viewing areas around the Kettle were getting overgrown enough that a direct unobstructed view doesn't seem possible any longer. From a photographic standpoint a direct iconic view wasn't easy to come by so I did the best I could and found myself marveling at the distant half of the falls that simply took in every drop of water it could and sent it underground. Even with the obstructed looks this falls was worth the effort and something I'd recommend for anyone that has the juice to take such a trail. It will wear you out and challenge the average person, but the payoff is something you won't soon forget.
An early view of Devil's Kettle with the Kettle itself showing half the falls just disappearing for the most part and the other half continuing down river.
Several views looked like this. The rushing water was great soundscape, but views were a bit rough.
Right before the plunge into the Kettle.
On my direct return I paused only briefly covering the same ground twice and got myself back to the parking lot and looked to take another trail segment. I picked up the interpretive trail loop and enjoyed a less elevation intense location as it stayed far enough from the river to produce excellent listening space. At one point a downed spruce tree showed fresh signs of Black-backed Woodpecker use, but I was not able to track down the culprit by sight or sound. At just 22 species identified I knew I was getting out past the bulk of migrants and was only really experiencing the earlier warbler species on territory while missing many of the migrant sparrows that have vacated further north.
Back at the car I ran into a fellow birder from Washington County (John Z) as he was in the area birding while his wife hiked the Superior Trail. We chatted for a bit and I directed him towards the great views along the Devil's Kettle hike. Amazing who you can run into while birding in far flung places.
The Great: A couple of outstanding waterfalls along with Northern Parula ground zero made this park a win for me. I liked the elevation changes and the landscape was excellent as well.
The Meh: Another in the chain of arriving a bit early even showed me Marsh Marigold that were still many days away from blooming. This is one of the early bloomers for really wet areas often fed by springs. I had seen this plant complete it's bloom in the far south and most were done in the cities already so this was a certain sign that the seasons change very differently this far north in the state.
The Verdict: I would love to spend the day at this park and really hike some of the spaces all day. Though the trail offerings are seriously limited I see some extra long hikes that are out and back type of efforts that one would need the whole day to accomplish properly. Given maybe another week or two forward in time I would like to do one of those big hikes again and see what kind of number I can put up for bird species. True wilderness really awaits the further down the trail you get.
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