Enjoy The Fall Colors Of Lake Vermilion

Here are some suggestions for fall color drives surrounding Lake Vermilion

Echo Trail (some gravel)
From Cook, or the west end of the lake, travel north on Co Rd 24. 4 1/2 miles north of Buyck, turn right onto Co Rd 116 (Echo Trail). From Tower or the east end, travel east on St Hwy 169 through Ely. 1/2 mile east of Ely, turn left (north) onto Co Rd 88 (Grant McMahon Blvd) travel 2 1/2 miles and turn left onto Co Rd 116 (Echo Trail).

The Echo Trail winds its way through the Superior National Forest and is bordered on both sides by the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness.

For a side trip, you can travel north on Co Rd 24 to Crane Lake for a visit to the Vermilion Falls and/or Vermilion Gorge.

Over the Laurentian Divide (some gravel)
From Tower, take State Hwy 135 22 miles south to Aurora. You will cross over the Laurentian Divide. At Aurora, continue on 135 to the right for 2 1/2 miles to Co Rd 138 (Tower-Biwabik Rd). Turn right toward Giant's Ridge. You can ride the chair lifts at Giant's Ridge for an unrestricted view of the Divide. Continue north on 138 for a total of about 9 miles. Turn right onto Co Rd 21 for about 2 miles. That will bring you back to State Hwy 135 where you will turn left to go back to Tower.

Pfeiffer Lake Picnic (some gravel)
From Cook, travel south on US 53/1. Continue on US 1 where it turns left. From Tower, travel south on State Hwy 169/US 1. Continue on US 1 where it turns right. The road to Pfeiffer Lake is located about 9 miles from US 53 and 4 1/2 miles from Hwy 169.

The Pfeiffer Lake recreation area has a picnic ground. There are many choices of roads that will take you through the forest and back to US 53, Hwy 169, or Co Rd 115/77 which runs between Cook and Tower along the south shore of Lake Vermilion. Pick up a St. Louis County or Minnesota map and go exploring!