Lake Country Scenic Byway
Lake Country Scenic Byway is a State Scenic Byway in Minnesota. Within Minnesota it covers roughly 65 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Lake Country Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
The Lake Country Scenic Byway is an 88-mile Minnesota state byway, designated in 1999, linking the towns of Detroit Lakes, Park Rapids, and Walker along State Highways 34 and 71. The drive crosses a stretch of the Pine to Prairie Birding Trail and passes through more than a thousand of Minnesota's clearest lakes, with the landscape shifting noticeably from prairie grassland in the west to deciduous and then coniferous forest heading east. Along the way it borders Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge, Chippewa National Forest, six state forests, and the North Country National Scenic Trail, and ends at Itasca State Park, Minnesota's oldest state park and the only major park sitting at the headwaters of the Mississippi River. Fishing, canoeing, and swimming are the main draws in summer, with cross-country skiing and other winter recreation taking over once the lakes freeze. About three and a half hours north of the Twin Cities, it makes for a full weekend of lake-country exploring.
- 88 miles, Detroit Lakes to Park Rapids to Walker
- state byway designated 1999
- prairie-to-forest landscape transition
- Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge
- ends at Itasca State Park, Mississippi headwaters
Plan a drive on Lake Country Scenic Byway →
What is a State Scenic Byway?
State Scenic Byways are roads a state has formally recognized for their scenic, natural, historic or cultural value — each state's own curated collection of drives worth taking slowly.
Where to Stay along Lake Country Scenic Byway
3 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Lake Country Scenic Byway.
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