I'm not much of a golfer. I find it sort of long and dull, but appreciate the social aspect of it,…read moreincluding making deals and fellowship at the 19th Hole. The Loon Lake Golf Course is a family favourite, mostly because it's reasonable close to the cottage, it has a interesting hilly and woodsy layout, it's only 9 holes, and it's relatively cheap. The course is Par 36 and 3037 Yards long. It's also worth a trip if you want to stay at the lake, but not deal with some aspects of the associated resort experience.

What an awesome 9 hole course! Great greens, great service, great people. I have golfed 200 courses…read morein Minnesota and this is among the best 9 hole experiences available.

Fun place to golf, right on west lake greens and Fareway's keep in good condition and when playing…read morethere good pace of play. Always a treat to golf here. When around the area.

A fun and more challenging course than some others in the area. Elevation changes and water come…read moreinto play on a few holes.

The Spirit Lake Fish Hatchery is located between East Lake Okoboji and Spirit Lake. This facility…read morecollects, spawns, incubates, and raises walleye for use throughout the state. Each year between 60 and 70 million walleye fry are hatched at this facility. My son and I love to come here every year. There's a neat aquarium in the lobby that's stocked with a variety of local fish. And depending on what's going on, many of the fish tanks on the floor are fully accessible for viewing. The DNR staff has always been very friendly and willing to explain almost anything about their jobs. Of course in a resort area such as this, there are many other options, such as Arnold's Amusement Park, swimming at Pikes Point, etc. But also this area is about the Lakes as natural resources and this place kind of grounds our entire experience here.

Memorial Park is the one you see on your right as you first drive into Spirit Lake from…read moreEstherville. This is perhaps one of Spirit Lake's larger parks and perhaps its best. There's also a long and scenic walking path along East Lake Okoboji as you also approach the park from that direction. One of my fondest childhood memories was the old toboggan run that you could take from the park to the lake in the winter. Public safety standards would never allow that today, and I'm no worse for wear from my experiences. Besides great lake access, views, and lots of walking opportunities, Memorial park features a shelter house, pedestrian access under the highway, a horseshoe court, playground equipment, 2 handicap-accessible piers, park benches, picnic tables, grills, basketball court, and handicap-accessible restrooms.

Can not recommend this place enough! Their Barre classes are out of this world, Alma is the best! I…read morerecently started going to their reformer Pilates classes and they are extraordinary. They only have 4 reformers in the class so it feels like a private class for every lesson.

If you are curious about Yoga, or have been practicing for years, you will love the offerings of…read morethis studio. My favorite class is with Amanda on Wednesday nights. Come join me on the mat, for an experience you will love. This is for any fitness level, Amanda will help make it personal for you. They also have a studio in Spencer, IA too... Namaste!!

The setting and surroundings of Olson Park are absolutely fantastic!…read more I tell ya...for just quickly visiting and hanging out here for a couple of hours, this Olson Park was so well maintained! I'll say it again, lol, very well maintained!! The park is flush with green grass and is situated right by a scenic lake. Too bad I wasn't spending the night here because they offer camping. And...I am a camping enthusiast! I was here at Olson Park back at the end of June 2021 and the conditions were truly pleasant. I honestly felt like taking a blanket out of my car and having a midday nap underneath a tree, lol. I really can't say enough good things about this park. Before I do...I'll just provide some insight and details about where Olson Park is located and some of the worthwhile benefits it offers that make it such a worthwhile destination for enjoying nature and the outdoors. Olson Park is located in the town of Worthington, Minnesota. Worthington sits about 175 miles southwest of Minneapolis and only 10 miles north from the border with Iowa. It's situated about 3 miles outside downtown Worthington. I was traveling down through Minnesota along my 2021 cross country road trip. Eventually I was heading into Sioux Falls, South Dakota and further west towards Badlands National Park and the Mount Rushmore area. Along my driving for half the day, I was just a little fatigued and pulled off Interstate 90 and figured why not take some time to relax at a park and rest up before continuing on my journey. I discovered Olson Park through the wonderful app on my phone called Campendium. Upon arriving here, I was surprised they offered camping. I just figured this place was a quiet town park where you could come play some ball, have a picnic or just simply go fishing by the lake. Well cool...this Olson Park was perfect and ideal for camping! The best part being that you can set up your tent along all the fluffy and lush green grass which definitely make a for comfortable night sleep. Plus...I can't tell you enough how clean this park was! Seriously it was like out of a fresh springtime catalogue for a photo album! Lol, just reflecting back on my pictures invoke warm memories. Too bad...I should have just camped out for the night. But instead, I took it easy for a few hours before returning back to Interstate 90. Also...there wasn't a cloud in the sky during my time here. The sun reflected down on the lake's waters making for a wonderful ambiance. The campsites located next to the lake were efficiently set up. Just taking pictures of the park with the lake in the background was beautiful. For camping... - Campsites 1 - 12 w/ electric hook-up was $33 for the night. - Campsites 13 - 63 w/ electric hook-up was $28 per night. - Campsites 64 - 68 without electric hook-up was only $22 per night. All these sites were very reasonable and fairly priced for camping out at such a well-maintained park! You can book a reservation by calling 507-372-8600 Monday thru Friday. If there isn't a campsite occupied, then it's first come, first served. For spontaneous campers coming here on a whim, once you find an unoccupied site, simply claim it and then drop the fee into the courtesy box on the east side of the office if no attendant is around. And that's it, you're good to go! Here are some other terrific amenities about Olson Park... - They have a shower house with flush toilets, so no vault toilets are always a good thing, lol. - Cell phone reception worked perfectly here. - You can bring swimming apparel to enjoy the waters of the lake. - There were picnic tables situated all around. During my visit here on June 30, the park was empty. It was so quiet for such a picturesque park. And btw, it's always a benefit not having too many campers occupying the grounds. Overall...having tons of green grass, trees situated all around, good shade and a calm setting made this Olson Park to be an absolute winner in my book. I can't remember finding a better campground along my entire 5-month journey across the United States! For those who happen to be driving Interstate 90 and or making their way through the southern portion of Minnesota during their travels, I can't recommend Olson Park enough, so refreshing to discover this hidden gem of a park and campground.

Beautiful park and very nice for camping. Stayed here on our way out to South Dakota. Will…read moredefinitely stay again.

Great club, bar and terrific restaurant. Warm and welcoming staff & members. Every hole has…read morechallenges with trees lined fairways, water and sand in play. Highly recommend the Labor Day Classic which is a three day tournament open to all. Fantastic format and a blast to play.

Regarding the golf, this is a nice old country course. Lots of large trees, water and sand to test…read moreyour game. Decent conditions, but be sure to have them check your cart before you start. Ours ran out of gas - dead dry - on the 17th hole. Not good. After your round, I'd consider heading downtown. for food or drinks. The clubhouse staff had a pretty difficult time handling orders for such complex items as Diet Coke, Miller Lite or a cold sandwich. The golf - good The clubhouse - ok The service - not so good

This place was an awesome kayaking spot. A bit windy for Spirit Lake so we looked for other…read moreoptions. The DNR was No help. Looked for a map, nada. Not like Wisco there's a map for everything on the DNR website. So we decided to head to the office. Closed but the road led us to this spot. We glamped at Marble Beach and the road I think it's 125th street is right up the road on the left. Pack some cold ones and enjoy.

One evening a few week ago, Gayle and the Kid stayed at home, while I was given permission to…read morewander around to various Iowa Great Lakes sites. I toured around the Lakeside Lab, stopped in at Vic's Corner and then decided to explore the back country a little bit. After you move beyond the major lakes here, there are a lot of small prairie lakes and associated wet lands. And since I didn't hunt or really fish growing up, I actually missed a lot of this cultural territory. It really was a pretty drive, especially late in the day. I went North on Highway 86 and turned right towards Welsh Lake. After that, I angled up to Kettleson Hogsback, and the spine road that travels between Hottes and Marble Lake. There's also a DNR Wildlife HQ (including home and corporate yard) and lots of bird houses. It was fun to pause and look, and then wander on somewhere else. And since Iowa's roads pretty much run on a square grid system, there's at least a gravel road every mile, and very little chance of getting lost. The name Hogsback comes from the linear and glacial plateau which resembles the ridge between the shoulders of a hog. This hogsback rises 40 feet and separates Marble Lake from Hottes Lake and can be seen from the access road. This area has shallow lakes, marshes, uplands, and woods, making it a great wildlife viewing site due to its variety. Hottes Lake is also an excellent site for canoeing and kayaking, and an opportunity to get closer to wildlife. And in the winter, a brisk cross country skiing trip, would complete the 4 season perspective on this hidden backwater jewel of the Iowa Great Lakes Region.