Pigeon River Cliffs

 

 

     
 
About
 
 

Ownership

 
 

The Nature Conservancy logo

 
     
 

Links

 
 

The Nature Conservancy

 
     
 

Overview

 
 

Pigeon River Cliffs lies within the Grand Portage State Forest.

 
     
 

History

 
 

 

 
     
 

Management

 
 

 

 
     
 

Comments

 
 

 

 
     
 
Location
 
 

Maps

 
 

Grand Portage State Forest Map

 
         
 

Printable Map(s) with GPS coordinates

 
 

Pigeon River Cliffs

 

Approach

 
  Printable map   Printable map  
         
 

Size

 
 

103 acres

 
         
 

Parking

 
 

Park at the end of South Fowl Road. Follow the narrow, unimproved road north 0.3 miles (540 yards) to the Border Route Trail. The road continues north to South Fowl Lake and is heavily used by OHVs. The trail crossing is easy to miss. It is unmarked and, depending on the time of year, overgrown. Look for a blaze in the form of two pieces of surveyor’s tape, one blue and one pink, hanging from a branch of a quaking aspen sapling on the east side of the road. See the map for the GPS coordinates of this trail crossing.

N48 2.182, W90 0.721

 
         
 

Driving Directions

  Area and County  
 

Get driving directions from Google Maps to this destination from any address, and send those directions to your phone.

   
          Cook County  
          Northeast Minnesota  
     
 
Activities
 
 

Hiking Trails

 
 

The Border Route Trail passes through this preserve. The Border Route Trail is flagged with blue, sometimes pink, surveyor’s tape. In a few places there is a pile of stones (cairn) marking the trail. Visitors are asked to stay on the trail to avoid trampling endangered plant species. The North Country Trail has been routed onto the Border Route Trail for 65 miles.

 
     
 

Hunting

 
 

Contact NE MN Program Office (218) 727-6119 for more information.

 
     
 
Ecology
 
 

Ecological Classification

  Ecological Classification  
  Ecological Province    

Laurentian Mixed Forest

   
  Ecological Section    

Northern Superior Uplands

   
  Ecological Subsection    

Border Lakes

   
  Land Type Association    

Rove Slate Bedrock Complex

   
             
 

Native Plant Communities*

   
 

Aspen - Birch Forest, Balsam Fir Subtype

Black Spruce - Jack Pine Woodland, Jack Pine - Black Spruce - Aspen Subtype

Crystalline Bedrock Outcrop (Northern)

Leatherleaf - Sweet Gale Shore Fen

Mesic Open Talus (Northern)

Mesic Rove Cliff (Northern)

   
  * Source: The Minnesota Biological Survey, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Ecological Resources      
         
 

Natural Features

     
 

Rove Slate Hills

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GPS recommended

A GPS unit and detailed map are highly recommended.

 

 

 

 

           
 
Visitor Photos
 
           
 

Share your photo of this destination.

 
  This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach one or more photos and, if you like, a caption.
 
 

 

 
 

 

 
           
           
 
MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos
 
 

The Approach

 
 

Parking

 
    Pigeon River Cliffs      
           
 

Trail Blazes and Cairns

 
    Pigeon River Cliffs   Pigeon River Cliffs  
           
 

The Preserve

 
    Pigeon River Cliffs   Pigeon River Cliffs  
           
    Pigeon River Cliffs   Pigeon River Cliffs  
           
 

The View

 
 

South Fowl Lake

 
    Pigeon River Cliffs      

 

Camera

     
 
Slideshows
 
 
     
     

 

slideshow

       
 
Visitor Videos
 
       
 

Share your video of this destination.

 
  This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach a video, a YouTube link, or a cloud storage link.
 
 

 

 
     
     
       
       
 
Other Videos
 
     
     
     

 

Camcorder

           
 
Visitor Sightings
 
           
 

Share your sightings or comments about of this destination.

 
  This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
 
 

 

 
 

 

 
         
           
 
MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings
 
 

Visits

8/12/2011                
 
 

Birds

 
 

One bird species with conservation status in Minnesota has been seen here:

Special Concern

Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)

 
 

eBird Field Checklist

 
 

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

  Black-capped Chickadee  
 

Fungi and Lichens

 
 

Black Knot (Apiosporina morbosa)

Cavern Beard Lichen (Usnea cavernosa)

Lobster Mushroom (Hypomyces lactifluorum)

  Black Knot  
 

Insects and Arachnids

 
  white admiral (Limenitis arthemis arthemis)   white admiral  
 

Mammals

 
 

Two mammal species with conservation status in Minnesota have been seen here:

Special Concern

Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis)

moose (Alces americanus)

 
  American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus)   American red squirrel  
 

Plants

 
 

Nine plant species with conservation status in Minnesota are found here:

Endangered

rough-fruited fairybells (Prosartes trachycarpa)

sticky locoweed (Oxytropis borealis var. viscida)

Threatened

Franklin’s phacelia (Phacelia franklinii)

large-leaved sandwort (Moehringia macrophylla)

Laurent’s cliff fern (Woodsia scopulina ssp. laurentiana)

Ross’ sedge (Carex rossii)

Special Concern

blunt-fruited sweet cicely (Osmorhiza depauperata)

rock whitlow-grass (Draba arabisans)

White Mountain saxifrage (Saxifraga paniculata)

 
 

Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas and Minnesota Biological Survey Vegetation Releves Plant List

 
 

Plants frequently found in:

Aspen - Birch Forest: Balsam Fir Subtype FDn43b1

Black Spruce - Jack Pine Woodland, Jack Pine - Black Spruce - Aspen Subtype FDn32c3

Crystalline Bedrock Outcrop (Northern) ROn12b

Leatherleaf - Sweet Gale Shore Fen OPn81b

Mesic Open Talus (Northern) CTn12b

Mesic Rove Cliff (Northern) CTn32b

 
   

balsam fir

chokecherry

common mullein

common strawberry

common yarrow

prickly rose

spreading dogbane

veiny pea

 

 

 

Binoculars

 

Created:

Last Updated:

© MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved.

About Us

Privacy Policy

Contact Us