The best cycling routes around North Long Lake

For those who have watched the Cohen brothers' film Fargo, you may recognize certain scenes from this 1996 cinematic hit in Brainerd. I long thought that it was largely filmed in North Dakota in unaware that the film's urban scenes were largely created here. Brainerd, which has a population of 14,400, is crossed by the Mississippi River. The old part of the city which is located east of the river has some interesting buildings.

Taken from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website: "The Paul Bunyan State Trail is 115 miles long, not including a couple of short on-road connections through the cities of Baxter and Bemidji. Extending all the the way from Crow Wing State Park to Lake Bemidji State Park, it is the longest of Minnesota's state trails and the longest continuously paved rail-trail in the country. It connects with the 8 mile Heartland State Trail, and at Lake Bemidji State Park it connects to the Blue Ox Trail, an unpaved motorized trail for snowmobiling and off-highway vehicle riding that extends northeast to International Falls."