Minnesota Offers Yurts For New Camping Experience

CROSBY (AP) - Minnesota officials are planning to offer yurts as new shelters for campers looking for a different state park experience.

The state Department of Natural Resources will open the nomadic shelters in September as part of a pilot program. Three yurts at Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area and two each at Glendalough and Afton state parks will be equipped with woodstoves for year-round use. The dwellings look like a cross between a tent and a tepee.

The Colorado Yurt Co. shelters cost $13,000 each. The pilot program's cost so far is nearly $570,000.

The cost of renting a yurt will be about the same as a cabin, around $45-$65. A DNR operations manager says visitors can hike, bike or paddle to the sites.