Carley State Park

Carly State Park; Wildflower Trail (daily or annual park permit required)
Plainview, Wabasha county, MN
209 acres; Bluffland landscape, river valley floors, Algific Talus Slopes*, hardwood forest

Park/Area Notes

Carley is known for its profusion of Virginia Bluebells as well as numerous other wildflowers. The north branch of the Whitewater River, a designated trout stream, winds through the park creating a tight oxbow. A grove of tall White Pines prompted the creation of this park and numerous bird species can be found throughout the area. A rough iNat bounding box shows a current species count for: plants-127, fungi-41, insects-32, birds-22, common lichen-6, mammals-5, spiders-4, turtles-2

Park literature warns that some areas of the park have steep drop offs and one should wear good hiking shoes and keep children close at hand. There are picnic tables and a pit toilet in the picnic area as well as a few benches.

*Although literature for Carley State Park mentions it is home to Algific Talus Slopes, I can't find any iNat observations of any of the rare organisms that can be found in these habitats. This might be because hiking on Algific Talus Slopes is highly discouraged if not outright banned in many places. Or it could be that, even if not banned, the terrain is too difficult for most people to traverse. I don't know where one might find these slopes at Carley nor if they are accessible to the public.

Wildflower Trail
Although the park literature mentions a 'Wildflower Trail', it's not clear to me what exactly constitutes the full length of the Wildflower Trail. I know that it travels on north side of the park and along the inside of an oxbow created by the Whitewater River. That trail section is part of the designated Hiking Club trail and it's possible the entire length of the Hiking Club Trail (shown on this trail map as a shaded dotted link) is also the Wildflower loop or it's possible only that inner part of the oxbow section is considered the Wildflower Loop. You can access the trail at either end (north or south) of the picnic area at the inner east bank of the oxbow.

Terrain: I can only speak to the trail along the inner side of the oxbow. The trail, heading north from the picnic area was very level and easy footed. There's a T-intersection on the western inner bank of the trail where one can turn west/southwest, cross the river and loop north to traverse the outer edge of the oxbow or turn east/southeast and stay closer to the road leading into the picnic area. The terrain on that turn towards the east climbs quite a bit. I took a path connecting the trail to the road that was likely the steepest climb one could choose. I did not choose this knowingly and the climb was difficult for me (an aging person with poor knees and a hearty fear of heights). I made it. But I wouldn't choose that path again. Instead, I would travel the path as described till I got to the steeper terrain and then double back on the section I had just traveled to return to the picnic area. My hiking partner (ahead of me on the trail) made the choice to stay on the trail a bit longer and came up on the road further south than I did. Their climb was not as steep.

The trail at the south end of the picnic area is also level for a little ways before it crosses the river. There was a lot of a bird activity there and we wished we'd budgeted more time to spend there. If we revisit, we would.

From what I can tell, the trail on the outer banks of the oxbow - which sits higher up on a ridge - is likely a more challenging hike than staying on the flat part of the inner bow would be. I don't think it's as well traveled and trail conditions might be a bit rougher or less maintained and would include changes in elevation and two river crossings.

At 209 acres, Carley is one of the smaller state parks in the state. But it is quite close to Oronoco Prairie SNA and Whitewater State Park so one could combine a hike on the Wildflower Trail with visits to those locations. And the trout stream could be an added bonus for anyone who wants to fish.

Visits

May 22, 2023; mid to late afternoon, temp: ~ 80 degrees
After visiting Oronoco Prairie SNA [journal post] in the morning, we headed to Carley State Park to check out the Wildflower Trail.

Traveling along the level part of the Wildflower Trail (as described above) was very pleasant. The sun filtered through the trees, the river babbled alongside the path, the birds twittered, flowers were blooming. It was warm but not overwhelming so and there were no nuisance insects. That's as close to idyllic as I tend to experience. I don't think we saw anything especially unique but we did see a nice variety of plants and birds. I'm guessing hitting the peak of spring wildflowers and/or spring bird migration would be even more fruitful. I'm not sure I'd drive to this park solely for the Wildlife Trail but it is close to other natural areas and, if one is in the area, I could highly recommend it as a stop.