Lake Carlos State Park, a Minnesota State Park located near Alexandria

LAKE CARLOS STATE PARK

LAKE CARLOS STATE PARK
2601 County Road 38 Northeast
Carlos, Minnesota 56319

Phone: 320-852-7200
Toll Free: 888-646-6367
Reservations: 866-857-2757

Email:

Sculpted by ancient glaciers, Lake Carlos State Park contains a tamarack bog, marshes, woodland ponds, and lakes. A variety of recreational activities revolve around the lake. Clear and deep, Lake Carlos offers visitors a perfect setting for swimming, fishing, boating, camping, hiking and horseback riding. In the winter, ski from the tamarack bog to a maple-basswood forest.

History of the Area

Early settlers drifted into the area after the signing of the Traverse des Sioux treaty in 1851. This treaty opened much of central Minnesota to white settlement. Alexander and William Kinkaid settled at the junction between Lake Agnes and Lake Winona, the area that was to become the town of Alexandria. During the U.S./Dakota conflict of 1862, most of the settlers moved east to Sauk Centre and St. Cloud, but returned to the area later that year. During the Great Depression, the state purchased the land that became Lake Carlos State Park in 1937.

Location

Lake Carlos State Park is located near Alexandria

Nearby Parks

Hartfiel State Wildlife Management Area

Belle River State Wildlife Management Area

Big Spruce State Wildlife Management Area

Spruce Creek State Wildlife Management Area

LaGrand State Wildlife Management Area

Hollister State Wildlife Management Area

Volkmann State Wildlife Management Area

Eastern Township State Wildlife Management Area

Burleele State Wildlife Management Area

Osakis State Wildlife Management Area

Nature Programs

The park's 1,305 acres lie within a hardwood transition zone between the prairies to the southwest and the coniferous forest to the northeast. The park's glacial moraine topography is dotted with woodland ponds, marshes, wet meadows, and lakes cradled among the hills. Visitors can hike or ski from a tamarack bog to a maple-basswood stand, or from open grassland to forested ridges...all within minutes.

Receding glaciers left most of Douglas County blanketed with layers of gravel and sand. This "drift"contains pebbles and round stones of all sizes. Retreating glaciers also left huge chunks of broken ice. When these blocks melted, they formed the area's lakes. Lake Carlos is 150 feet deep in places. The outlet at the northeast corner is thesource of the Long Prairie River. Although no rock outcrops occur in this area, boulders taken from glacial drift supplied farmers in the area with building blocks for the foundations and walls of their homes and barns. This granite masonry can also be seen in the park's beach house and pump station.

One third of Minnesota's 80 mammals and over 150 species of birds inhabit the park seasonally or year around. Visitors often see beaver, deer, loons, grebes, ducks and heron.

Visitor Comments, Memories and Reviews