WELCOME TO AKELEY CITY PARK & CAMPGROUND
Akeley is located On the Lake Country Scenic Byway at the Junction of State Hwy. 34 and 64 about 2 hours east of Fargo, ND, or 2 1/2 hours west of Duluth, MN, or 3 1/2 hours north of Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN.
Birth Place of Paul Bunyan
America's Northwoods are home to many towering Paul Bunyan statues. But only Akeley, Minnesota, has a Bunyan who has dropped to one knee, inviting visitors to perch in his mighty palm, a perfect place to sit for a souvenir snapshot. In 1949 the town declared itself the Birthplace of Paul Bunyan and unveiled an oversized wooden baby cradle that sat in a park beneath a little-roofed shelter. As an attraction it was, well, okay -- but as time passed and competing towns built big Bunyan's, the cradle became a second- or third-tier Bunyan destination. So did Akeley. Dean Krotzer was struck by the unfairness of this claim's decline. Krotzer told the town that he could build a Bunyan worthy of his birthplace, bigger than all the rest. With the help of his six grown sons and a son-in-law, Krotzer spent months working on Paul.
Heartland Trail
The Heartland State Trail was one of the first rail-to-trail projects in the country. It is a 49 mile, multiple-use trail between Park Rapids and Cass Lake. The trail is located entirely on a level, abandoned, railroad grade, except for a four-mile segment north of Walker which is on a low-volume traffic road. Snowmobiles use the sharply rolling terrain in this area. Both the 27-mile segment between Park Rapids and Walker and the 22-mile segment between Walker and Cass Lake are paved. The Park Rapids to Walker segment also has a second grassy trail for horseback riding and mountain biking. The Heartland State Trail also connects with the Paul Bunyan State Trail system and other regional trail systems.