Maplewood State Park

Park Entrance Drive

The park entrance drive begins in the north of the park and winds past prairies and lakes down to the park office. Be sure to watch out your window as soon as you enter the park: along the wildflower and grass-lined roads, you may catch sight of the many white-tailed deer that wander through Maplewood State Park!

Trail Center

The Trail Center is positioned on a wooden platform with picnic tables and trails right out the door. Located on the north side of Cataract Lake and just south of the park office, the center is the starting point for the Hiking Club Trail.

Beaver Lake Wildlife Blind

A rustic wildlife blind sits on the southern edge of Beaver Lake amidst a variety of trees and brush. As a result of the diverse landscape, the park hosts 150 species of birds, 50 species of mammals and 25 kinds of reptiles and amphibians. Watch carefully and perhaps you'll see raccoons, squirrels, swallows, kingbirds, or hunting birds of prey.

Trail Along Little Grass Lake

A horseback rider travels along the packed trail next to Little Grass Lake. Look for beavers making dams in the water, or watch for raccoons trudging along in the underbrush. These combined horseback and hiker trails run for over 20 miles throughout the park.

Trail Overlooking Bass Lake

Bass Lake can be seen beyond the trees and prairies from this trail overlook. The series of hills are part of the Leaf Hills Landscape Region on the eastern edge of the Red River Valley and can change in altitude by 300 feet in the course of one mile.

South Lida Lake Shelter 1

The open shelter at South Lida Lake is surrounded by a large patio with benches, picnic tables and a flag pole. Get a group together to enjoy the outdoors, with access to parking and hiking. The shelter can be reserved for the day by calling the park.

South Lida Lake Shelter 2

Inside the shelter, picnic tables are covered by a beautiful planked ceiling. There is a small kitchen and staging area within the shelter for groups to use.

Beers Lake Fishing Pier

The long wooden fishing pier extends out into the clear water of Beers Lake near the group campground and boat ramp. Anglers can cast a line or watch the shallows and skies for wading birds and birds of prey looking for their next meal beneath the surface of the water.

Beers Lake Boat Ramp

The concrete boat ramp disappears into the water next to a wooden dock on Beers Lake. Down the road from the group campground and main campground, park visitors can get their boat on the water for fishing or wildlife watching.

South Lida Lake Boat Ramp

A concrete boat ramp extends into the water next to a dock on South Lida Lake in the northwestern part of the park. This lake basin was most likely formed 20,000 years ago, when the retreating glaciers left ice stranded in the valley. When the ice melted, it filled the basin to form the lake we see today.

Hallaway Hill

Wildflowers cover Hallaway Hill overlooking South Lida Lake in the northwestern part of the park. Though the park is surrounded by farmland, this hilly and lake-dotted terrain was deemed to be better suited for recreation than farming. Maplewood State Park was established in 1963, preserving beautiful hills—like this one—and promising future generations the same spectacular view.

Hallaway Hill Overlook

An interpretive sign is attached to a bench on the top of Hallaway Hill. Formed from sediment deposited during the last ice age, these hills are part of the Alexandria Glacial Moraine and characterize the landscape of Maplewood State Park.

Lida Lake Campground 1

A picnic table and fire ring rest in the middle of a campsite on the edge of South Lida Lake. Campsites at Maplewood State Park have fire rings and picnic tables and offer access to many of the park's lakes and hiking trails.

Lida Lake Campground 2

Two campers sit at the picnic table outside their tent with their dog at their feet in a partially shaded campsite along South Lida Lake. Maplewood State Park has 71 drive-in sites and 3 backpack sites, with 32 sites offering electricity.

Overlooking Beaver Lake

On a hill overlooking Beaver Lake, wildflowers cover the ground. Maplewood State Park is located in a transition area between the western prairies and the eastern forests. Because of this, it boasts plants and animals from both areas in a triumphant display of natural splendor. From spring through fall, wildflower lovers can find trillium, yellow lady's slipper, prairie rose, and showy milkweed, as well as many other flora of significant beauty.

Main Loop Campground

A fire ring with grill and picnic table are provided at this campsite in the Main Loop Campground. The campground is located on the eastern edge of Grass Lake and has an accessible shower building and two accessible campsites.

Hollow Loop Campground

A picnic table and fire ring are surrounded by forest at this campsite. Nestled amidst Maplewood's characteristic sugar maple, basswood and oak tree forest, the Hollow Loop Campground is a great place for a night in the wilderness. In autumn, these trees burst into a stunning display of fall colors, changing the already beautiful landscape into an artist's canvas.

Horse Campground

Horseback riders line up for a trail ride at the Equestrian Campground. Each site is equipped with a space for camping, a picnic table, a fire ring with grill, and access to Maplewood's extensive horse trails. Reserve your site ahead of time or make use of several sites that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Knoll Loop Camper Cabin

A picnic table sits outside a camper cabin, nestled in the middle of the forest. For campers who would prefer to leave the tent behind, Maplewood State Park's five camper cabins are an exciting alternative. All cabins have wooden bunk-beds with mattresses, picnic tables, benches and a fire ring with grill, and some are heated for year-round use.

Maplewood Church

The white-sided Maplewood Church stands on a grassy knoll in the southern section of the park. Human habitation of the Maplewood area dates back over 6000 years, but modern habitation did not begin until the 1880s. The Maplewood Church is evidence of this recent habitation.

Prescribe Burn Field Lake

An interpretive display sits at the edge of the prescribed burn site above Field Lake. The grasslands you see today in Maplewood State Park are the product of thousands of years of natural destruction and reconstruction. Fire is a crucial part of this grassland ecology and can be a great tool for wilderness specialists.