Bean Lake - Lake Superior Trail

The 1st day of hiking, we went to an unknown trail of the Superior Hiking Trail.  We don't have map or guide, the only reason we were here because my husband was motivated by the photo he seen on-line. "The photo was so cool!"  After walking the first hour, I started to have doubt about the so called cool photos.  I become agitated and very annoyed.  Rule #1, anyone who wants to go on a hike, please bring a map or at least have some idea how far the destination is.

It has been countless time I just stop and almost give up, the hike was tiring and the heat just blazing over my head.  The trail ran up the hill, down the valley and going up again for at least 5 peaks.  This certainly doesn't improve my mood.  But at the end, you can actually see the light in the end of the tunnel.  There is actually a pretty view of Bean Lake instead of the dried out marsh land we saw and hour earlier. We actually met an Indian lady with her 2 year old boy hiking on barefoot.  They told us there were many trails to Bean Lake overlook and another to Bean Lake Access to the water. She walked basically daily and now she's training her 2 year old too.  My husband keep pushing me by saying, " If a two year old can do it in barefoot, so can you!" 

My shoes pinched and I slipped few times as we go on the rough trail.  So if you decided to go on a hike, it is better to invest on a decent hiking shoes.  They may be expensive but it worth every cent.  My husband bought me a good hiking shoes, which I wore the second day, it cushion every step and I couldn't feel any sharp stone like I did wearing the beat up tennis shoes.  Don't forget insect repellent, the mosquitoes are horrendous in the jungle.

We noticed few campsite available along the trail, so it is a good choice to stay at camp ground.  It is either free or charge just a minimal permit fees to stay at any of the state park.  All you need is bring the camping tent, camp stoves and some food. If you intended to bring dogs, make sure you keep them in the lease.  They will chased after small critters like squirrel and chipmunks that would show up at the campsite for bits of crumbs.

We brought two small water bottles and some snacks, we packed light, so it wasn't too bad.  Word of advice, just bring more water on your packs to keep you hydrated. Also we kept some vitamin water, soda and energy drinks in the cooler in the trunk of the car.  So it keep us motivated to get back and just quench our thirst with delicious cold root beer and Gatorade.