Gunflint Trail Scenic Byway

A cross-country skier glides through a forest full of trees and shrub branches, heavy with new fallen, pure white snow.

A dogsled travels through a dense forest on pristine white snow.

A USDA Forest Service yellow and brown interpretative sign stands at the entrance to the Laurentian Divide Overlook on the Gunflint Trail.

The two-laned paved roadway winds its way through deep conifer and birch forests, in fall colors of green and yellow. Rolling hills and a sky blue river frame the photo.

One of the Gunflint Trail Scenic Byway signs tops a route marker and a speed limit sign along the byway.

A large wooden sign found at the intersection of Highway 61 and the Gunflint Trail welcomes visitors to the byway.

The Henry Mayhew interpretive sign stands near a wildlife pond along the Gunflint Trail. Mayhew was a late 1800s pioneer along the Gunflint Trail.

Two cross-country skiers glide along a groomed and tracked trail, surrounded by dense, snow-covered conifer forest. Snow depth on the trail is about 18 inches.

Wood Lily wildflower, a deep orange lily, blooms among ferns on the Magnetic Rock Trail.

Trees frame a foggy morning view of a small island on Seagull Lake.

The North Brule River in high water flows between alder and spruce trees on its bank. A series of shallow rapids form ripples on the river.

A USDA sign informs the visitor that the river which is surrounded by a spruce, pines, and cedar forest on the Gunflint Trail is the North Brule River.

Rapids rush along the Seagull River as it descends from Seagull Lake to Gull Lake.

A yellow canoe sits on a calm, deep-blue lake surrounded by a ledge-rock shoreline and pine forest.

Three 2nd and 3rd grade Girl Scouts in brightly-colored jackets and yellow hard hats head through a burned forest with their leader to plant tree seedlings during Gunflint Green Up.

The Luna moth, a large pale green moth with elongated double tail and white spots, sits on some ferns.

Two snowmobilers ride on a groomed and snowy trail through a conifer and birch forest in northern Minnesota in winter.

A gray timber wolf stands in the shoulder of the paved roadway of the Gunflint Trail, looking at the photographer.

A bull moose in spring stands proudly with a new velvet fur coat and a large antler rack.

A bull moose, with antlers just beginning to grow in the spring, stands in tall pale green grass, looking at the photographer.

The Gunflint Trail Scenic Byway sign is found near the intersection of County Road 15 and the Gunflint Trail in Grand Marais.

Gunflint Lake, Gunflint Narrows, and Canada can be seen in the distance on a clear day from Gunflint Lake Scenic Overlook .

Majestic Eastern white pines stand on either side of the Gunflint Trail.

Three people dressed for the cold and sunny winter day help carve a Scandinavian Dalma horse from a large block of snow.

A historic black and white photo shows white pine trees towering over the Gunflint Trail, as it appeared in the 1920s and 30s. The roadway winds between the base of the trees.

A rounded hill in a forest shows light and green shades in spring on the Gunflint Trail. Light green are new leaves appearing; dark green are conifer trees. Grasses are tan, still in winter color.

Towering 350-year-old Eastern white pine grace either side of the Gunflint Trail.

Two hikers enjoy the view of Seagull River, white pine, and pine-needle covered forest floor at Trail’s End Campground.

Tall wildflowers, violet Joe Pye Weed and bright yellow goldenrod grow in the Ham Lake Fire area near Kekekabic Trail. Charred pine trees are seen in the background.

A moose feeds in a swampy area near the Gunflint Trail. Vegetation is thick, and water is ankle-deep to a moose.

This historic black and white photo of Grand Marais, circa 1890 approx, shows Henry Mayhew and a dog. Four frame buildings appear in the photo, with the Sawtooth Mountain Ridgeline in the distance.

Chik-Wauk is a stone lodge built in 1935. It has a bright red roof with copper facing. The building is on the National Historic Register. It sits atop a rock overlooking Saganaga Lake. Boreal forest is visible along the shoreline.

The small town of Grand Marais (population 1100) lies 1000 feet below this overlook perched on a steep hillside. The natural and man-made breakwaters and two lighthouses of Grand Marais gracefully embrace the entrance to the harbor. The deep blue of Lake Superior makes up the background.

Planters of all ages and from many areas help in reforestation efforts after the Ham Lake Fire planting white, red, and jack pine trees. The event is called Gunflint Green Up.

A round-faced, tan, fuzzy-furred moose calf looks at the photographer.

The water tower is painted to welcome travelers to the Gunflint Trail Scenic Byway. The Scenic Byway logo pictures a moose standing on a lakeshore.

A fox with reddish coat and white neck stands poised to spring on its prey in the tall grass along the Gunflint Trail.

A family gleefully enjoys canoeing a lake near the Gunflint Trail in the woods of northern Minnesota.

A deep pink moccasin flower, with long green leaves and stem, sits amidst a moss and wildflower-covered forest floor.