Take a hike in the city for fall colors

October 26, 5:32 PMSouth St. Paul ExaminerRob Shirk

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                   Summit Avenue in St. Paul

There is a tradition during the autumn in the Twin Cities of gathering up the family and heading out of town in the family truckster to see the leaves. There are a myriad of options for trees and destinations, not the least of which is right out your door and my best  guess to see the autumn is on Summit Avenue in St. Paul

A friend of mine who lives outside the metro area has always been stumped at this time of year. His incredulous look of amusement saddens and deepens as he sees the flocks of otherwise normal people gather the family for an outing to look at... leaves. He argues that the leaves have always turned annually and there is nothing new from year to year. Furthermore, it screws up his traffic. If you and your Harley-Davidson, on one of the last good riding days, are stuck behind a ten car trail of slow, slower, and slowest cars whose occupants are dazzled at the foliage, the chance of being happy being zero.

Minnesota has such a variety of geography and the landscape and trees are as different as can be. On the North Shore of Lake Superior the yellows of aspen and birch contrast vividly with the dark green of The north woods' pine and the thousands of blue lakes where Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox live. There lies Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the word, intimidating in size and threatening by it's nature.

Hardwood forests dominate the lower two thirds of Minnesota and the rolling hills on the banks of the Canon or Zumbro River make for a surprising trip for those who have locked themselves in to the Up North trek. The St. Croix and Mississippi Rivers are stunning during the autumn and a person could go a lot of miles doing the "oohs and ahhs" of trees and their colors.

Why would you, though? Unless there are relatives there or some event is involved, I guess I would stay here, in the city. Contrary to some who believe that we, in the urban core, don't deserve trees, I'll take the position that a lot of the hikes around here are just as lovely if not more so than the vaunted North Shore.

If you feel the need for nature it is not much of an effort to get to the lake system of Minneapolis that goes on for miles and miles alomg Minnehaha Creek. Park the car, and take off. You can be anywhere in Minneapolis and not be but a few minutes away. Sure, there are houses along the way, people do live here, of course, but it's probably more quiet as getting the teenagers and the toddler to quit fighting and crying as they look into the forest of the trees Up North that they were bored with shortly after you left the city. Here, at least, you're not too far from a saloon.

Summit Avenue in St. Paul may not be the best kept secret but a secret, it is. The wide streets and boulevard separating the traffic lanes make for a leisurely stroll, the mansions lining the sides that speak of the early, preposterosly wealthy, captains of industry. Huge, fully mature trees are everywhere. There are loads of places to sit or lie down, even walk the dog. Summit Avenue might be the best walk to see the colors in the city, county, or, for that matter, the state. Being only one block away from Grand Avenue means retaurants, bistros, ice cream, and so on. That's the best part. It won't take hours to get home from seeing what is right before you to begin with.

For a an extensive look at Minnesota out of the Twin Cities, Marie Malinowski, the Minneapolis Outdoor Recreation Examiner,  has done a wonderful piece with loads of pictures of out of the way places.