Sunrise Prairie Trail

Description: The Sunrise Prairie Trail runs north and south along the abandoned Burlington Northern Railway bed between I-35 and Highway 61. The trail starts in Hugo as the Hardwood Creek Trail and becomes the Sunrise Prairie Trail at the Chisago County line in Forest Lake. It ends at Highway 95 in North Branch.

Meeting location: We will meet at the Wyoming trailhead.

Getting there: Take I-35 North from the Twin Cities to the Wyoming Exit (Exit 135, Forest Boulevard / CR 23). Turn right at the light (E Viking Blvd). Turn left on Forest Boulevard / County 30 and in approximately 300 feet the trail parking lot is on left.

There is parking along the trail in Hugo, Wyoming, Stacy, and North Branch. A big oversight in the Forest Lake planning is the lack of trail head parking.

To Hugo from the metro area, take I-35 north to the Hugo exit (#123). Go east 1.8 miles to Highway 61. The trail head is at the northwest corner of this intersection. Turn left onto Highway 61 and take the first left into the entrance of the Hugo Feed Mill & Hardware store. Take an immediate left into the gravel parking lot.

To Forest Lake from the metro area, take I-35 north to the respective city exit. THEN: At the Forest Lake exit (#131), go east .8 miles to the trail. Highway 61 is one-half block ahead of you. A municipal parking lot is straight across Highway 61. If you park there, you will have to cross busy Highway 61 on your skates. Look for a spot on the side streets or an underused business parking lot.

To Stacy get off I-35 at the Stacy exit (#139), go east .3 miles and turn right (before the trail crossing) into the entrance of the trail parking lot. There is a city park there also.

To North Branch get off I-35 at the North Branch exit (#147), go east .5 miles to County Road 30 (formerly known as Highway 61). Turn right onto CR-30 and take the second right into the entrance of the trail parking lot.

Length: Total length is 23 miles. Hugo to Forest Lake is 7 miles, Forest Lake to Wyoming is 4 miles, Wyoming to Stacy is 4 miles, Stacy to North Branch is 8 miles.

Links: Hardwood Creek Regional Trail (Washington County)

Sunrise Prairie Regional Trail - Wyoming Trail Head (Chisago County)

Sunrise Prairie Trail (Chisago County)