Lutsen SNA 

About

This SNA is a rugged landscape with parts of two ridges of the Sawtooth Mountain Range. Eagle Mountain and Raven Ridge rise over a thousand feet above Lake Superior, about two miles to the southeast. The Minnesota Biological Survey has documented ten native plant communities on the 720-acre SNA, including 276 acres of old-growth northern hardwood forest and upland white cedar forest. Individual trees as of 2017 include a 213-year old white cedar, 135-year old yellow birch, and 123-year old white spruce.

Upland areas of the SNA are dominated by sugar maple forest, aspen-birch forest (balsam fir subtype) and white cedar – yellow birch forest. North and northwest-facing slopes of both ridges host upland white cedar forest, while the steeper, rocky slopes of Eagle Mountain support scrub talus (rocky slope at base of a cliff) and mafic (igneous rock rich in iron and magnesium) cliff communities. Lower elevations are occupied by lowland white cedar forest, black spruce swamp and part of a large beaver complex that extends onto adjacent land.

A ski trail and snowmobile trail pass through site. This site is in an Audubon Important Bird Area. This site is within the Superior National Forest.