Fall in Love with Lanesboro During Every Season

WINTER

A snowy afternoon in Lanesboro is so beautiful and serene, you may think you’ve stepped into a snow globe. As fields, trees and lawns go dormant, our streets see fewer visitors. The locals lovingly call it “The Quiet Season,” but that quiet provides an opportunity for unplugging and seeking out unique indoor and outdoor adventures that only winter can offer.

With good snowfall, portions of the Root River and Harmony-Preston Valley State Trails are groomed for cross-country skiing, or bring your snowshoes to hike around Sylvan Park and other nearby trails. The Bass Pond on Highway 8 provides an opportunity to ice skate, and anglers even enjoy trekking through some snow to catch and release fish under the winter sun. Weekends provide time to shop and dine in downtown Lanesboro, or just kick back by the fire in your historic Bed and Breakfast. There are many extended-stay lodging options if you want to plan a workcation to accomplish projects and after work be able to easily access the great outdoors and small town winter charms.

SPRING

April’s arrival brings snow melt (or sometimes more snow), a rise in the river, bud break, awakening green colors, and the promise of warmth to come. Wildlife is stirring, and you are certain to enjoy the sounds of many birds returning north. You may even catch a glimpse of a newborn fawn!

Lanesboro is also starting to awaken, as its retail, dining, lodging and other businesses extend their hours and prepare to greet another busy season with warm hospitality and excitement. Anxious anglers are ready for the trout opener in April and a chance to catch rainbow, brook and brown trout in some of the best streams in the country. Other species in the river include smallmouth bass, sunfish, crappies, channel catfish and more. Bicyclers arrive to move their legs after winter and see which early native wildflowers may be blooming along the bike trails. Spring here also brings the season opener of live, professional theatre at The Commonweal Theatre Company, which provides entertainment and thought-provoking art as they tell their stories on the stage.

SUMMER

All of a sudden summer is here and Lanesboro is hopping with visitors, warm temperatures, river activities, vibrant energy and pandemic-adapted festivals! We Minnesotans know that summer is the time to enjoy as many days as possible outdoors on the bike trails, hiking at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center and canoeing, tubing or kayaking the scenic Root River. Sylvan Park is a great place to play basketball, tennis or pickleball, get some energy out at the playground, fish the pond or enjoy a picnic under beautiful deciduous trees. The Lanesboro Golf Course and Rivers Bend Golf Course are waiting for you to practice your game along gorgeous views of limestone bluffs and rolling hills.

There are many front porches from which to watch the world go by and various outdoor venues to dine al fresco and delight in seasonal flavors, made-from-scratch delicacies, unique cocktails and local beers or wines. Many regular events, like Art in the Park and Buffalo Bill Days, will be adapted this year with appropriate and careful Covid-19 considerations. Visit Lanesboro in the summer to enjoy all we have to offer: natural beauty, outdoor recreation, fishing, art, theatre, history, shopping, dining and a time to truly unwind.

FALL

In September, anticipation for the coming leaf change is seen in the way our streets are lined with corn stalks, mums and pumpkins. The Fall colors are reason alone to visit Lanesboro in October. Catch a glimpse of sugar and red maples, burr, red and white oaks, aspen, birch and other hardwood species. There are plenty of opportunities on the bike trail, hiking trails, and river as you fish or kayak to enjoy the fall colors and more than 40 species of birds that call this area home. Art, history and beauty lovers flock to Lanesboro in the Fall for the Taste of the Trail events, the Lanesboro Area Art Trail and to check out the Lanesboro Historical Museum.