Details 👨👩👧👦❤️👨🦼
7110 County Rd 110 Ext W Minnetrista, MN 55364
Hours: 9:00 AM – Sunset, 7 days a week
Last time I went: May2025
Cost: $0-14 (cash only)
Bottom Line
I love this place! It’s a great way to spend a few hours outdoors in the summer with friends, family, kids, a date, or anyone else you can think of.
TIPS:
- You can still have an incredible (and completely free) time without playing mini-golf.
- There are bathrooms on site.
- Bring some water and possibly a cooler of food in your car.
- There is a fire and free marshmallows. Bring your own graham crackers and chocolate.
Key notes
- Great way to spend a few hours in the summer
- Lots to see and do (animals, art, golf, stuff)
Background:
Big Stone is combination outdoor museum, mini-golf, petting zoo. It was started – and is still run and maintained – by Bruce Stillman. As I understand it, Bruce was trying to find municipalities to sponsor an artist-designed mini-golf course. After being rejected by all the city officials he spoke with, he bought 17 acres in Minntrista and did it on his own in 2004. What a savage. It’s now a sprawling fusion of art, nature, and recreation, where you can see and pet animals, play mini-golf, enjoy the sickest sculptures, and more. You can usually see Bruce around the property doing maintenance. Talk to him if you do, he’s super friendly and has a lot to share!
Things to do While You’re There
Mini-Golf ($14 for adults and $12 for kids 8 and under)
I’ve never actually played the mini-golf course there (I’ll update this when I do). I’ve walked around all the holes though, and each one is a literal work of art, which is super cool. MUCH better than the artist designed mini-golf they put up at the Walker Art Center each year. I think the fee lets you play as much as you want, as long as you want. All the money goes towards supporting the owner’s art non-profit. Worth it probably.
Sculptures (free)
The sculptures are AWESOME. You just have to walk around to see and touch them all yourself. A lot of them are made out of scrap metal, some from stone, some from things I can’t determine. Some are kinetic and can be gently moved by you. Many are made from tires!! There is this random Russian guy there named Alexander Nikolaevich who makes them all. I talked to him once a long time ago and if I recall correctly, he isn’t an artist by training (not that training is always necessary). He just likes messing around with tires.
Animals (free)
They have:
- Goats that you can pet through the fence (there is a sink nearby to wash your hands). Last time I was there they had babies.
- Chickens wandering the grounds.
- Ducks usually seen in the pond.
- Fish in the pond.
- Turtles in the pond.
- Scottish Highland Cow named Rosie. She’s usually in an enclosure near the North side of the property, but can sometimes be found in a different enclosure south of the pond. You have to go on a driveway to see it, and I’m pretty sure that’s the owner’s House.
- Mule that is very nice
I’ve also been told (but haven’t seen) that they have a horse and potbelly pig.
Roast Marshmallows (free)
In the middle of the the stone-henge looking structure, there is a fire with free marshmallows and metal skewers you can use to roast them.
Other
There’s also a giant chessboard you can play on, a regular size stone checkers setup, and a stone table-tennis you can play! At various points, I have seen them offer spin-art stations. I think they were like $4, but I don’t really remember.
Try This Itinerary:
Total time: 3 Hours
Pro tip: pack a cooler with some water, sandwiches, wet-wipes, chocolate, and graham crackers in your car.
- Mini-Golf (~1 hour probably)
Start out with some mini-golf. Take your time and enjoy the art of the holes (that’s what she said). - Walk the grounds (~1 hour)
Walk around and take in all the sculptures and animals. Take photos with them! My favorite photo op is with the giant ostrich sculpture. Pretend you’re stealing one of its eggs. - Sit by the pond (~ 1 hour)
Hit the bathrooms, go to your car, grab your food/water, and sit in the adirondack chairs by the pond. You can do this without food too, obviously. Just sit back and take in the serenity of it all. Listen to the trickling water. Watch the ducks, fish, and turtles in the pond, and enjoy life! I could do this for hours. - Grab a marshmallow (15-30 minute)
Go back to your car and grab your chocolate, graham crackers, and wet-wipes. Go over to the fire and make some smores for desert before you go 🙂
Other Information
Logistics
Activity time: 1-3 hours
Activity season: Spring, Summer, Fall
Location: Outdoors
Recommended gear/attire: comfortable shoes, water
Value: excellent!
Safety: safe
Accessibility: can probably get around on wheelchair if it can go on grass
Pets: probably can’t bring pets, but I’m not sure.
Family: very family friendly
Dating: Good place for a date (even a 1st date)
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