Blue Mounds State Park

Overview
Photos
Slideshows
Videos
Sightings


	About

	Ownership


	Links
	Minnesota DNR

	Overview


	History


	Management


	Comments


	Location

	Maps
	climbing areas map all season map

	Printable Map(s) with GPS coordinates


	Size
	1,830 acres statutory, 1,579 owned

	Parking
	1410 161st Street Luverne, MN 56156 N43 43.062, W96 11.565

	Hours
	Daily from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m.

	Fees
	Daily park permit: $7 Annual park permit: $35


	Driving Directions
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					Rock County
					Southwest Minnesota


	Activities

	Hiking Trails
	13 miles 1 mile interpretive trail

	Hunting
	The park may hold one or more managed hunts in the fall.


	Ecology

	Ecological Classification
	Ecological Province			Prairie Parkland Province
	Ecological Section			North Central Glaciated Plains
	Ecological Subsection			Inner Coteau
	Land Type Association			Blue Mounds Luverne Alluvial Plain Trosky Till Plain

	Native Plant Communities*
	Basswood - Bur Oak - (Green Ash) Forest Cattail - Sedge Marsh (Prairie) Crystalline Bedrock Outcrop (Prairie): Sioux Quartzite Subtype Dry Hill Prairie (Southern) Elm - Basswood - Black Ash - (Hackberry) Forest Mesic Prairie (Southern) Seepage Meadow/Carr: Tussock Sedge Subtype Southern Dry Savanna Spikerush - Bur Reed Marsh (Prairie) Wet Prairie (Southern)
	* Source: The Minnesota Biological Survey, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Ecological Resources

	Natural Features

Eagle Rock

Eagle Rock, the high point in the park at 1,683 feet, provides a spectacular 360-degree panoramic view that includes three states.


	Visitor Photos

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	MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos

	Park Entrance




	Parking


	Lakebed, Formerly Lower Mound Lake


	Dam and Spillway, Damaged in 2014




	Intermittent Pond


	Crystalline Bedrock Outcrop (Prairie), Sioux Quartzite Subtype


	Other Prairie


	View from Eagle Rock


	Lower Cliffline Trail


	Sioux Quartzite Cliffs


	Rock Climbers

Camera


	Slideshows


	Blue Mounds St Pk R1 R2 Restoration Evaluation




	Blue Mounds St Pk R3 R4 Restoration Evaluation




	Blue Mounds State Park Richard Sanders

	About Blue Mounds State Park, MN



	Blue Mounds State Park, A photo essay Schnellphoto

	About Published on Sep 7, 2012 A Photo Essay of Blue Mounds State Park, Minnesota. A film by Joel Schnell. www.schnellphoto.com



	"Blue Mounds State Park" Lahardee's photos around Luverne, United States (luverne park sd) TripAdvisorTRIPWOWu

	About Uploaded on Dec 19, 2010 Preview of Lahardee's blog at TravelPod. Read the full blog here: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.travelpod.com%2Ftravel-blog-entries%2Flahardee%2F1%2F1245449492%2Ftpod.html&session_token=H4jM6cagZGTP-EGys9FwxOIsRT58MTM5MzYwODUxMEAxMzkzNTIyMTEw This blog preview was made by TravelPod using the TripAdvisor™ TripWow slideshow creator. Learn more about these videos: http://www.travelpod.com/help/faq#youtube



	Blue Mounds State Park, Minnesota campsitephotosdotcom

	About Published on Oct 28, 2013 Favorite Sites: 2, 5, 13, 15, 29, 31, 40, 42, 47, 50, 66, 67



	Blue Mounds State park Minnesota Chris Kratzke

	About Published on Feb 10, 2014 I created this video with the YouTube Slideshow Creator

slideshow


	Visitor Videos

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	Other Videos


	New bison calves, at Blue Mounds State Park! MinnesotaDNR

	About Published on May 15, 2012 New bison calves have been born on the Minnesota prairie at Blue Mounds State Park. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/blue_mounds



	A walk/hike through Blue Mounds state park. GoPro Jason Bechler

	About Published on Jul 3, 2013 A walk/hike through Blue Mounds state park. GoPro head mount



	Blue mounds state park - Luverne MN Jason Bechler

	About Uploaded on May 29, 2011 I take you on a journy where my feet have never been before LOL.. its nature.



	Blue Mounds State Park Single Track Ryan Hagen

	About Published on Aug 21, 2013 No description available.



	Dave Stone's YouTube Page Blue Mounds State Park

	About Published on Aug 17, 2012 This video displays some of the breathtaking views at Blue Mounds State Park in Luverne, Minnesota - a state park in the Southwestern part of the state. This state park is known for its beautiful landscapes and protected herd of bison.

Camcorder

Visitor Sightings

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MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings


Visits
8/1/1999	8/28/2005	6/21/2017

Amphibians

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Amphibians and Reptiles List

American toad (Anaxyrus americanus)

Birds


Twenty bird species with conservation status in Minnesota have been seen here:
Endangered	Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) Chestnut-collared Longspur (Calcarius ornatus) Henslow’s Sparrow (Centronyx henslowii) Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus) Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii)
Threatened	Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) Wilson’s Phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor)
Special Concern	American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) Bell’s Vireo (Vireo bellii) Cerulean Warbler (Setophaga cerulea) Forster’s Tern (Sterna forsteri) Franklin’s Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) Lark Sparrow (Chondestes grammacus) Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) Nelson’s Sparrow (Ammospiza nelsoni) Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) Purple Martin (Progne subis) Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus)

Minnesota DNR Bird Checklist

eBird Field Checklist (Complete)

eBird Field Checklist (Campground Area)

eBird Field Checklist (Interpretive Center)

eBird Field Checklist (Mound and Cliffline trails)

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)

American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)

Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus)

Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota)

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)

Dickcissel (Spiza americana)

Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)

Eastern Wood-peewee (Contopus virens)

Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla)

Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum)

Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)

Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)

Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)

Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)

Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)

Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)

Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta)

Fungi and Lichens


One lichen species with conservation status in Minnesota has been seen here:
Special Concern	Black Disc Lichen (Buellia nigra)

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Fungi List

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Lichens List

Black Knot (Apiosporina morbosa)

Crown Rust (Puccinia coronata)

Scarlet Cup (Sarcoscypha austriaca)

Insects and Arachnids

Two insect and arachnid species with conservation status in Minnesota have been seen here:

Special Concern

regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia)

Whitney“s underwing (Catocala whitneyi)

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Insects List

American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis)

chokecherry finger gall mite (Eriophyes emarginatae)

common buckeye (Junonia coenia)

common green darner (Anax junius)

common whitetail (Plathemis lydia)

deer fly (Chrysops spp.)

eastern tent caterpillar moth (Malacosoma americanum)

goldenrod bunch gall midge (Rhopalomyia solidaginis)

goldenrod gall fly (Eurosta solidaginis)

goldenrod soldier beetle (Chauliognathus pennsylvanicus)

long dash (Polites mystic)

monarch (Danaus plexippus)

orange sulphur (Colias eurytheme)

painted lady (Vanessa cardui)

red admiral (Vanessa atalanta)

regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia)

seven-spotted lady beetle (Coccinella septempunctata)

spongy oak apple gall wasp (Amphibolips confluenta)

spring azure (Celastrina ladon)

striped horse fly (Tabanus lineola)

twelve-spotted skimmer (Libellula pulchella)

twice-stabbed stink bug (Cosmopepla lintneriana)

white snakeroot leaf miner (Liriomyza eupatoriella)

widow skimmer (Libellula luctuosa)

Mammals


One mammal species with conservation status in Minnesota have been seen here:
Special Concern	Dyche’s harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis dychei)

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Mammals List

American bison (Bison bison)

eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus)

plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius)

thirteen-lined ground squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus)

whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Plants


Twenty plant species with conservation status in Minnesota are found here:
Endangered	blackfoot quillwort (Isoetes melanopoda) hairy waterclover (Marsilea vestita) western prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara) Wolf’s spikerush (Eleocharis wolfii)
Threatened	blue mudplantain (Heteranthera limosa) disk water-hyssop (Bacopa rotundifolia) tapertip flatsedge (Cyperus acuminatus) two-headed water starwort (Callitriche heterophylla var. heterophylla)
Special Concern	buffalo grass (Buchloë dactyloides) cutleaf waterparsnip (Berula erecta) narrow-leaved vervain (Verbena simplex) Oregon woodsia (Woodsia oregana ssp. cathcartiana) plains prickly pear (Opuntia macrorhiza) Scouler’s popcorn flower (Plagiobothrys scouleri var. hispidulus) Scouler’s popcorn flower (Plagiobothrys scouleri var. penicillatus) slender plantain (Plantago elongata) small white lady’s slipper (Cypripedium candidum) three-stamened waterwort (Elatine triandra) tumblegrass (Schedonnardus paniculatus) water mudwort (Limosella aquatica)