dock's orders

If you haven't vacationed in Minnesota's Brainerd Lakes area for a while, here are 10 reasons (plus, of course, the 400 lakes) to return.

- LISA MEYERS MCCLINTICK

Bonus content for select readers in ILLINOIS / INDIANA / MICHIGAN / MINNESOTA / WISCONSIN

WHEN MINNESOTANS SAY they're heading "up north"-uttered with a lilt of longing they often mean the Brainerd Lakes area, two hours from Minneapolis and St. Paul. More than 400 lakes, including the Gull and Whitefish chains, plus the Mississippi River, beckon visitors with glitters of blue peeking through lush pines. Families dip paddles and glide along shorelines, shriek and skip across waves on water skis and wakeboards, and cast fishing rods with soft, hopeful plunks of bobbers and bait.

Favorite attractions, such as Paul Bunyan Land's county-fair-style amusements or Brainerd International Raceway's bone-rumbling motorsports, still draw steady visitors. But a growing number of seasonal residents and remote workers relocating to lake country has helped stoke some new culinary energy. MN Traders Company in Pequot Lakes is a sunup-to-sundown coffee shop and craft cocktail bar. In Crosby, Victual sells cheeses, chocolate, spirits and (wild card) lactose-free ice cream.

And the changes aren't just in food and drink. A buzzy resort called Nature Link recently opened in Nisswa. Its minimalist modern cottages have floor-to-ceiling windows framing white pines and Clark Lake. Vacationers can borrow kayaks for paddling to a private island and bikes for pedaling on the nearby Paul Bunyan State Trail. What you won't find: TVs in the rooms. Guests are also encouraged to stash personal electronics. Director of Hospitality Jason Struthers says, "Our main goal is for people to disconnect from their devices and busy lives and to reconnect with each other and nature."