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Best of summer

The season is short, so make the most of it.

At the North West Co. Fur Post, children are inducted as sol

At the North West Co. Fur Post near Pine City, children get a taste of living history.

You probably think summer is a time to relax and enjoy the nice weather.

Wrong! It's the time to pick up the pace and make up for the months we sat around thinking about what we could be doing — hiking, biking, camping — if only we lived in Arizona or Florida.

By May, those places are sweatboxes and our time in the sun has arrived. We’ve got Lake Superior at our doorstep, rivers and lakes everywhere and the best bicycle trails in the nation. So go!

Here are my picks for the best things to do this summer.

Best hiking: Trails in deep forest are cool and shady, but if you don’t like deerflies in your hair, pick somewhere open and breezy. Trails along the Mississippi River fit the bill — try Barn Bluff in Red Wing and, across the river near Trempealeau, Brady’s Bluff in Perrot State Park. 888-999-2619, www.Mississippi-river.org.

Best trail bicycling: On a hot summer day, every bicycle trail should have a swimming beach. In Wisconsin, the paved, 17-mile Old Abe State Trail has one on each end, in Lake Wissota State Park and Brunet Island State Park. Bicycling the trail also is a great way to see wildlife; get a map from 888-723-0024, www.chippewachamber.org. In Minnesota, the 46-mile Lake Wobegon Trail passes the Avon city beach on Middlespunk Lake, 320-255-6172, www.lakewobegontrails.com.

Best road bicycling: Across from Winona, along the Mississippi between the Trempealeau and Black rivers and reaching north to Osseo, Trempealeau County is a bicyclist’s dream — gorgeous coulees, river bottoms, vistas and picturesque villages. The county is bicycle-friendly, too — for its free Trempealeau Bicycle Trails guidebook, which maps 14 loops, including 382 miles on paved roads, call 715-538-2311, Ext. 205, www.trempealeaucountytours.com/bicycling.htm.

Best camping: How does mosquito-free camping sound? The state parks of southeast Minnesota don’t guarantee it, but they’re not above some bragging at Forestville, Whitewater and Beaver Creek Valley, which are in well-drained areas with few, if any, lakes. 651-296-6157, www.dnr.state.mn.us; for reservations, call 866-857-2757, www.stayatmnparks.com.

Best shopping: Madison’s Art Fair on the Square and Art Fair Off the Square draw 200,000 people to town the second weekend of July, 800-373-6376, www.visitmadison.com. In Minnesota, six miles north of Rochester, treasure-hunters will head to the smaller Oronoco Gold Rush, an antiques show and flea market on the banks of the Zumbro River. It's the third weekend in August, www.oronoco.com/cultural0003.asp.

Best flora: In the first half of May, go to bluff country in southeast Minnesota and southwest Wisconsin to see shady hillsides and river banks covered with spring ephemerals and goat prairies dotted with prairie flowers. In Minnesota, try Mound Prairie SNA just west of Hokah, www.dnr.state.mn.us/snas. Then head across the Mississippi to Perrot State Park on the edge of Trempealeau, to gaze upon thousands of jeweled shooting stars and other spring wildflowers, www.wiparks.net.

Wisconsin state parks and many Minnesota state parks hold an open house in early June; in 2008, it's June 1 in Minnesota and June 8 in Wisconsin.

Best fauna: Isle Royale National Park affords the best chance of seeing a moose, and spotting a "wild'' fox is almost a sure thing. Closer to home, try any bicycle trail for deer and bunnies; for birds, try the Mississippi River bottoms between Trempealeau and Onalaska, Wis., and the Great River State Trail in particular, 800-873-1901, www.bike4trails.com.

Best canoeing: National Geographic Adventure magazine lists canoeing the Upper Iowa River near Decorah as one of its America’s Best Adventure 100, along with rafting the Grand Canyon and climbing Yosemite’s El Capitan. If you’re saying, “Huh?’’ check out the photo at www.bluffcountry.com/randy.htm; 800-463-4692, www.decoraharea.com.

Best kayaking: The Bois Brule in northwest Wisconsin is called the River of Presidents, but hordes of ordinary folks paddle its rapids in summer. Scenery is non-stop: bald eagles, deer, wildflowers and turn-of-the-century cabins and boathouses, all in pristine condition. Water levels can be low, so bring a kayak or rent one from Brule River Canoe Rental, 715-372-4983, www.brulerivercanoerental.com. It’s wise to make reservations for weekends.

Best tubing: Around Lanesboro, floaters can luxuriate in the cold waters of the South Branch of the Root River on hot days, and stick to the warmer main river when air temperatures are cooler. Outfitters rent tubes and run shuttles, 800-944-2670, www.Lanesboro.com.

Best cruising: From its port in La Crosse, the lovely, steam-powered Julia Belle Swain cruises up and down the Mississippi River, on sightseeing trips and overnights to Winona and Prairie du Chien, 800-815-1005, www.juliabelle.com.

Best living history: Take a quick trip back to 1804 and have a chat with English fur trader John Sayer, French-Canadian voyageur guide Francois Boucher and Ojibwe woman Benakwe at the North West Co. Fur Post, a reconstructed post on the Snake River near Pine City. Admission is $7, $4 for children 6-12, and free on the first Sunday in June, when the Minnesota Historical Society holds its statewide open house. Check for the many festivals and special events, 320-629-6356, www.mnhs.org.

Best train ride: They're all good (see 5 great/train rides). But try one of the least-known: The volunteer-run Lake Superior & Mississippi Railroad, which travels along Duluth's St. Louis River for 12-mile narrated tours on weekends from mid-June to early October, $9.25, $6.25 for children 12 and younger. 218-624-7549, www.lsmrr.org.

Last updated on August 4, 2008

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Best of summer

The season is short, so make the most of it.