Take A Snow Day

WINTER WALK

A scenic half-hour drive up the Lake Superior shoreline will bring you to Gooseberry State Park. It’s breathtaking year-round, but winter is especially stunning, when the quiet woods are home to frozen waterfalls, active wildlife and cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. There’s a visitor center that’s open daily. One Christmas Day cross-country ski trip brought us to two cows browsing in the pine and birch; when we turned back to see them again, they had evaporated as quietly as the forest ghosts they’re known to be. dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks

SLEEPER CARS

Stay in an old railway boxcar renovated into bedrooms with modern amenities at Northern Rail Traincar Inn in Two Harbors. northernrail.net

SWEET TREATS

For the candy lovers who like their confections made the old-fashioned way, Great! Lakes Candy Kitchen is a must see. Here, third- and fourthgeneration candymakers create their traditional recipes by hand. greatlakescandy.com

MORE CHRISTMAS CHEER

If you’re looking for another outdoor holiday market—and you don’t mind bigger crowds—Duluth Winter Village is the place. Held the same weekend as the Julebyen, this market, on the grounds of the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center, offers local food, craft beer and spirits, live holiday entertainment, ice skating and more than 40 local vendors with arts, crafts and plenty of holiday gifts. duluthwintervillage.com