Gooseberry Falls State Park
3206 Highway 61 East, Two Harbors, MN 55616
About Gooseberry Falls State Park
Gooseberry Falls is the gateway park of the North Shore and consistently one of Minnesota's most-visited state parks, about 13 miles northeast of Two Harbors on MN 61. The Gooseberry River drops through a series of falls in a basalt gorge within a few minutes' walk of the parking lot, which is why it draws the crowds it does.
The stonework is part of the appeal. Civilian Conservation Corps crews built the walls, stairs, and the Castle Danger stone structures here in the 1930s, and the craftsmanship holds up ninety years later.
Beyond the falls, the park runs down to Lake Superior shoreline, carries a substantial hiking network, a campground, and cross-country ski trails, and connects to both the Superior Hiking Trail on the ridge and the paved Gitchi-Gami State Trail along the shore. For Two Harbors residents it is an after-work walk rather than a destination, which is a meaningful part of the case for living here. A Minnesota state park vehicle permit is required.
Good to know: Upper Middle and Lower falls, river gorge, CCC-era stonework, visitor center, hiking trails, Gitchi-Gami State Trail, Superior Hiking Trail, Lake Superior shoreline, camping, cross-country skiing.
Neighborhoods it serves
The North Shore's working town: ore docks, a lighthouse, and a real grocery store.
Silver BayA whole town built at once in 1954, with the best cliffs on the North Shore behind it.
Knife River212 people, a working harbor, and the smokehouse that has been curing fish here since 1908.
North Shore (Duluth)Duluth's last two miles: lakefront on one side of the road, woods on the other.
Where these facts come from
- Minnesota DNR, Gooseberry Falls State Park accessed 2026-08-13
Last reviewed 2026-08-13 by Guide editorial.