Voyageurs National Park: Only accessible by boat

Kirsti Marohn | USA TODAY

Imagine a national park with no roads, and where the only way to get to your campsite is by boat.

Voyageurs National Park, a series of connected lakes and rivers along Minnesota's border with Canada, offers a unique wilderness experience. But that doesn't you have to give up all the creature comforts.

The park is named for the French-Canadian fur traders who traveled in birch bark canoes. The modes of transportation are a little more modern now. Unlike in Minnesota's nearby Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, motorboats and houseboats are allowed in Voyageurs, along with canoes and kayaks.

"For me, Voyageurs National Park encapsulates everything that's iconic Minnesotan: the big water, the walleye fishing, the family houseboat trip, the kayak trip, the loons, the wolves," says Christina Hausman, executive director of the Voyageurs National Park Association.

Among national parks, Voyageurs stands out because you can't drive through it, Hausman says. "You have to get out of your car to experience it."

The park is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a new reservation system for campsites, which reduces the chances of getting stranded if all campsites are full.

That's good news for kayakers like Linda Pascoe of Maple Grove, Minn., who takes annual trips to Voyageurs with a group from the Twin Cities. Because the campsites are scattered around the lakes, kayakers were at a disadvantage in grabbing good spots. "We're just never going to beat out the motorboat," she says.

Spencer Smith, 25, of St. Paul, started coming to Voyageurs with his parents when he was a year old. Now he brings his friends to experience what he calls real camping.

"Camping is getting away, getting completely immersed in the wilderness," he says.

Marohn also reports for the St. Cloud (Minn.) Times.

About the park

Size: 218,200 acres

Visitors: 239,160 in 2014

Established: 1975

History: Voyageurs is a collection of interconnected waterways along Minnesota's border with Canada. It's named for the French-Canadian fur traders who traveled through the lakes and rivers in birch bark canoes.

When visiting: 360 Minnesota Highway 11, International Falls. Visitor information: 218-286-5258.

Of note: Voyageurs is a water-based park, so you'll need to leave your car behind and travel by boat, kayak, canoe or, in the winter, snowmobile.

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