Iona’s Beach: the singing beach on Minnesota’s North Shore

2 min read

3 years ago Nathan

Minnesota, or the Land of 10,000 Lakes, boasts a lot of beaches to choose from, with their pictoresque rocky shores and beautiful sandy dunes alike await visitors every summer.
Each offers its own beauty, but there is one beach in particular that is truly unique.
It is Iona’s beach, unlike any other in the world as, instead of silky, golden sand, it is covered in smooth pink rocks that, if you know when to listen, sing.

The beach sings its signature song as the waves come in and disturb the rocks. When the stones resettle, they tinkle like millions of little bells. It’s a soft sound, so you have to be quiet to hear it.
However, the unusual musical concert isn’t the only thing intriguing about the beach. Even when Lake Superior is calm and the air is silent, the place feels magical.
The most obvious sign that Iona’s Beach is truly unique is its pink color. The rocks, which are an amazing sight on their own, come from a nearby pink rhyolite cliff that has been worn down over thousands of years. As storms rocked the choppy waters of Lake Superior, the rocks broke off the cliff. Then, the constant waves smoothed them into small pebbles, fairly uniform in size and color and wonderfully smooth to the touch.
The beach is also one of the three scientific and natural areas along the lake.
It was named after Iona Lind, who owned the resort that once stood on the spot where the beach’s parking area now is.
Iona, her husband John and their children ran the Twin Points Resort for over 50 years. Iona kept on for a short time after her husband passed away in the 1980’s but, when she died, she donated the land that ended up in the hands of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Author’s notes: the beach is located on the North Shore, but it’s a little hard to find. About three miles north of Gooseberry Falls, it is located right at mile marker 42 on Highway 61. It is a Scientific & Natural Area, which means it is not allowed to collect rocks, plants, animals, any kind of thing.