Schmidt Farm: an interactive farm experience bordering Forestville State Park

Find a connection with nature. Enjoy the serenity and beautiful natural scenery while staying in a newly renovated 1890's home, comfortable and modesty appointed in a 1930's farm house style.

Named one of Minnesota's best Farm Stays by Explorer Minnesota 2024!

Schmidt Farm is a visitor friendly family farm with a passion of sharing our experiences with others, bringing you closer to our roots in agriculture.

Located in the beautiful hills of the Driftless Region in Southeast Minnesota, this property is available for you to enjoy a hands on farm experience or a secluded get-away. We welcome families, friend groups and special interest groups looking for a unique rural experience.

We share our farm with a variety of species including horses, donkeys, Icelandic sheep, rabbits, goats, chickens, alpaca & llama, cats & dogs. Each of these animals provide for the farm a specific function helping add to the sustainability of the farming system.

Schmidt Farm tends to be a destination location. Our farm borders the east side of Forestville State Park in an area abundant with wildlife and outdoor recreational opportunities. If you are interested in exploring the local communities, we can also point you in the right direction. Our farm is located just 6 miles from Preston and 12 miles from Lanesboro.

Our guests find we are much more than a farm. You can experience a connection with nature, the forest, the wildflowers, the wildlife, all in a safe and rewarding place. As hosts, we are here to guide you to find that experience and connection.

Guests enjoy dark skies at night, amazing for star gazing. An abundance of fireflies light up the summer evenings. Be sure to end the evening at the sunset bench that overlooks our valley and Forestville State Park. It's an amazing family photo op!

Our guests frequently mention how well stocked the kitchen is for their cooking needs, including a large propane Weber grill. You just need to provide the food, everything else is there. Leave your bottled water behind. Our fresh well water may just be the best tasting water you have encountered. Several of our local restaurants serve our Schmidt Farm produce while in season. We are happy to recommend these great places to eat!

Hosts Paul & Karen live on the home farm which borders the property, a 10 minute scenic walk along the woods and across an organic hay field or short drive from the guest house.

Schmidt Farm is a honored to be recognized as a Century Farm having been continuously farmed by the Schmidt family since 1901, when the first immigrant generation of our Schmidt family moved here.

Miles of well maintained private hiking trails are available for your exploration on your access to 60 acres of woodland and native prairie & wildflower areas of Schmidt Farm. You will also have direct hike-in access to Forestville State Park.

The property is an excellent space for deepening your connection with nature through meditation or Shinrin-Yoku (forest bathing). Small group retreats are encouraged.

Learn about organic vegetable growing with our large garlic and asparagus market gardens. Visit with Paul about our experience off-setting electrical usage through our solar panel arrays. Fossil hunting is a rewarding experience on the farm. Wildlife watching doesn't get any easier right out your window.

Karen is a fiber artist and loves to share this passion with guests. Our fiber flock includes Icelandic sheep, llama & alpaca. We do all of the fiber processing on farm from hand shearing our own animals to selling the final product.

Paul is a musician and you are often able to catch him playing at a local venue during your stay.

You choose your level of involvement with the hosts. Animal care always takes priority in our schedule. We will introduce you to the animals that share our farms and teach you about proper animal interaction and appropriate behavior expectations with them. You must provide proper supervision of children. Mistreatment of animals or property will not be tolerated.

We will provide guided tours of the home farm. No two stays at Schmidt Farm will look the same. Experience opportunities vary day to day.

We have a small farm store featuring products we produce here on the farm and also some additional necessities you may find a need for during your stay.

Some of our private trails may be shared with tent campers during the months of May, September and October.

Fall is a great time to enjoy the farm. Experience the beautiful fall colors, watch the harvest activity and sheep shearing, enjoy cool evenings by the campfire & explore the openness of the forest in the fall.

As we move into the fall season, the farm animals will start to move to our home farm as the pasture slows down for the year. All animals are moved to the home farm for winter shelter.

Although we can not allow visiting dogs on our property, we do have a local option for boarding your dog while you visit Schmidt Farm. Carla offers boarding about a mile from our farm. This allows you to take your dog with you on day trips off the farm if you like. www.laddk9.com

Follow us @SchmidtFarm19499 on Facebook to meet the animals see what is going on here this week!

*Open May-October
* Please contact us about potential off season rental
*Full site rental
*This property is not available for hunting.
*Motorized recreational vehicles are not allowed.
*Pets & Service Animals: Unfortunately, our farm is NOT a safe place for guests to bring their animals. We have livestock guardian animals that live with our pastured animals who protect specifically against canine predation. They are only allowed to see our own specifically trained farm dogs and all others are considered predators to these animals. For the safety of our animals and yours, thanks for your understanding.