SHT001
Location: 47.265739, -91.309687
Lax Lake Rd trailhead and parking, .8 miles west of Hwy 61. Take off on a single-plank boardwalk through aromatic balsam forest. Lake Superior flashes through the trees.
SHT002
Location: 47.261347, -91.321261
Classic northern boreal forest: A radiant maple-birch-aspen stand
SHT003
Location: 47.258022, -91.330183
Cove Point spur: Drop your pack and climb 200 yards to big lake views from atop a lichen-stained basalt dome.
SHT004
Location: 47.259486, -91.339297
Great views of the Beaver River Valley and northern expanse of forest
SHT005
Location: 47.258664, -91.347174
Fault Line Ridge offers edge-to-edge views of the 300-foot-deep valley. Feast on trailside blueberries (July and August) as you descend.
SHT006
Location: 47.252678, -91.346382
Wild blueberries introduce a rugged and steep drop in the ridge
SHT007
Location: 47.244571, -91.347705
Follow a soggy section of trail past beaver pond
SHT008
Location: 47.239398, -91.361554
Panoramic views of conifer-dotted boreal forest
SHT009
Location: 47.235579, -91.367023
A steep drop leads past the Beaver Pond campsite. Keep going to better camping in less than two miles.
SHT010
Location: 47.233383, -91.375863
Christmas Tree Ridge offers horizon-stretching views of Lake Superior's ocean-worthy expanse. Spot raptors like broad-winged harks and bald easgles gliding updrafts near shoreside cliffs in the foreground
SHT011
Location: 47.225877, -91.383371
Steadily drop through aspen woods to Chapins Creek and pond.
SHT012
Location: 47.22267, -91.380562
Camp at Chapins Ridge in the shelter of 90-foot pines on the ridge high above Chapins Creek.
SHT013
Location: 47.220475, -91.387035
Next morning, continue south along a sidewalk-like, exposed basalt escarpment, concealed in places by a six-inch-deep carpet of emerald-green moss.
SHT014
Location: 47.210047, -91.394826
Junction with spur trail to Split Rock Lighthouse SP. Continue southbound.
SHT015
Location: 47.210018, -91.39661
Long, flat stretch along historic Merrill Grade railroad corridor
SHT016
Location: 47.19846, -91.397605
Cross Split Rock Creek via a wooden bridge and continue on a grassy ski trail, short-cutting the main SHT (which meanders several miles inland).
SHT017
Location: 47.186083, -91.403772
Trail meets and parallels Hwy 61
SHT018
Location: 47.182207, -91.409775
Head back inland from wayside parking area, with Split Rock River in the valley to the north
SHT019
Location: 47.18746, -91.416099
Rejoin the SHT at an idyllic grotto where soaring cedars surround a 20-foot waterfall.
SHT020
Location: 47.177988, -91.42814
Score the trip's best panoramas on Bread Loaf Ridge, an open, weather-beaten rim of rock with clear-day views of the Apostle Islands, 30 miles away.
SHT021
Location: 47.173899, -91.443675
Descend past Blueberry Hill campsite and cross into an immense birch forest.
SHT022
Location: 47.15389, -91.458664
Pass through a clearcut area (private property) and into Gooseberry Falls State Park.
SHT023
Location: 47.144586, -91.467401
Reach Hwy 61 at the park's former visitor center. Cross a pedestrian bridge over 80-foot Middle and Lower Gooseberry Falls. Continue .3 mile to the new visitor center. Bonus: The beach at the lower parking area offers easy access to a post-hike swim.
SHT024
Location: 47.140969, -91.469483
Trail's end
Trail view
Location: 47.25861, -91.335359
View of the inland valley, from Fault Line Ridge
Location: 47.258554, -91.347032
Valley view with Beaver River below
Location: 47.258262, -91.346769
Valley view
Location: 47.257855, -91.346604
SW view from ridge
Location: 47.253777, -91.346467
Along the trail, near the Beaver Pond campsite
Location: 47.236031, -91.365912
Cedars
Location: 47.187346, -91.41634
View of the lake from Bread Loaf Ridge
Location: 47.178282, -91.428567
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