Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area is a state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

 unit of Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

, USA, being developed to rehabilitate a portion of the Cuyuna Range

Cuyuna Range

The Cuyuna Range is an iron range to the southwest of the Mesabi Range, largely within Crow Wing County, Minnesota. It lies along a line between Brainerd and Aitkin, although those communities are not mining towns....

 where mining pits and piles of waste rock were left behind after decades of open-pit mining

Open-pit mining

Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....

 for iron ore. Abandoned by mining companies more than 20 years ago, the state recreation area consists of regenerated vegetation and clear lakes that draw a wide range of recreation enthusiasts. The park is located off Minnesota State Highway 210

Minnesota State Highway 210

Minnesota State Highway 210 is a highway in west-central, central, and northeast Minnesota, which runs from North Dakota Highway 210 at the North Dakota state line , and continues east to its eastern terminus at its intersection with State Highway 23 in Duluth near the Saint Louis River.The route...

, northeast of Brainerd

Brainerd, Minnesota

Brainerd is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 13,590 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Crow Wing County and one of the largest cities in Central Minnesota...

. The Croft Mine Historical Park, formerly city-run, is now part of the state recreation area.

The Cuyuna Lakes State Trail is a paved 6.1 miles (9.8 km) path that stretches through the multi-unit Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area. In June 2011 30 miles (48.3 km) of single track

Single track (mountain biking)

Single track or singletrack is a narrow mountain biking trail that is approximately the width of the bike. It contrasts with double track or fire road which is wide enough for four-wheeled off-road vehicles...

 trails for mountain biking

Mountain biking

Mountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...

 officially opened to the public. The Cuyuna Lakes Mountain Bike Park has been designed for both recreational and experienced mountain bikers. This park is endorsed by the International Mountain Bicycling Association

International Mountain Bicycling Association

The International Mountain Bicycling Association is a non-profit educational association whose mission is to create, enhance and preserve trail opportunities for mountain bikers worldwide....

, who describe it as "the pinnacle of purpose-built off-road cycling trails."

The mine pits have naturally filled with water and one, Portsmouth Mine Pit Lake

Portsmouth Mine Pit Lake

Portsmouth Mine Pit Lake, sometimes called the Portsmouth Pit, is the deepest lake in Minnesota at over 450 feet , according to the most recent Minnesota DNR data. The artificial lake is a former iron mining pit in the Cuyuna Range that has since filled with water.The Portsmouth Mine Pit is...

, is considered the deepest lake in Minnesota.

External links

• Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area