Stunning! Climb This 100-Year-Old Fire Tower In Minnesota For Amazing View Of Fall Colors

Fire Towers have always fascinated me. Growing up I remember there being several across Northern Minnesota. One of them on Rudy Perpich Memorial Drive (St. Louis County Highway 4), marked the halfway point from our house on the Iron Range to Duluth, Minnesota.

I always wanted to climb one of them, but as you can imagine they generally aren't open to the public. Fire Towers aren't really needed anymore with new technology, so most of them have been decommissioned or scrapped.

Related: Beautiful 20-Mile Trail In Minnesota Has Stunning Views

However, I did a little looking and I need to set up a road trip for our family. There's a fire tower that is open to the public and you can even climb to the very top of it.

It's located outside of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota in Crow Wing County.

This fire tower was built in 1935 and was operated by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for decades. There was a fire tower built before in the same location out of wood. It was then replaced with the current steel structure.

In 2018, Crow County had the idea of utilizing the structure. The steel was in good shape, all they needed was a new floor in the lookout area, new windows, and a coat of paint.

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The tower is open to the public but closed in the winter months due to safety concerns.

The Paul M. Thiede Fire Tower Park contains more than just the tower. There are also 3,000 feet of walking trails on the 40-acre county park. The trails have interpretive signs along the way.

It looks like a fun day trip, but hurry before the leaves all fall!