we heart duluth

Duluth is probably my all time favorite city in Minnesota. We've visited at least once a year since the girls were really little, and most of those trips were over Memorial Day weekend in the bus. Since we've been on the boat we haven't been up here since 2022.

We didn't use the bus all summer and we were all feeling like it was time to take a little trip... so we packed up the bus and headed north.

This is our favorite campground in Duluth - the marina parking lot. We were lucky enough to be able to get our favorite spot on the end with views of the lift bridge and plenty of room to hang out in the evening.

We came with a list of all the things we wanted to do. We only had a couple days, so even though we tried to fit it all in we had to leave some things for the next trip. First up was a drive farther north to Split Rock Lighthouse and Gooseberry Falls. The last time we were here was in 2019, so the girls didn't remember either one.

On the girls list was swimming in the lake. In May we're lucky if the air temperature is in the 50s. In September it was still in the upper 70s. The girls were excited to swim in Lake Superior where the water temperature was a whopping 65 degrees.

Emma certainly got her love of beach combing from me. We took a couple trips to look for lake glass. It isn't always super easy to find, but that's all part of the fun.

She got her love of walking and climbing rocks from Braden.

This year we tried something new and took a boat tour. Highly recommend if you're ever in Duluth. We went under the bridge into Lake Superior and then down the St. Louis River to check out the loading docks.

As a special bonus we got to pass right next to the largest ship on the Great Lakes as it was coming in to pick up a load of coal. Fun fact for Austin - the Queen of the Lakes title is given to the longest ship currently on the Great Lakes - a title the 1,013 foot long Paul R. Tregurtha has held for 40 years.

On our way back we even got to see our 40 foot bus.

Of course a visit to Duluth isn't complete without spending a day at the aquarium.

Last but not least... we squeezed in some of our favorite restaurants and shopping before heading back home. The girls have already asked if we can go back again next week, so apparently they love Duluth too.