Exploration begins at new central Minnesota children's museum

Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch By Theresa Bourke Today at 12:30 PM Listen Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? BAXTER, Minn. — “Let’s play!” Peter Olson let kids loose to explore the brand new WonderTrek Children’s Museum in Baxter on Thursday, Nov. 5. ADVERTISEMENT They made mud pies, roasted marshmallows and used the natural world as their playground, which is the exact intent behind the museum. “From the very beginning, children have been at the very heart of shaping WonderTrek,” Olson, executive director of the museum, said before cutting the ribbon to open the facility Thursday. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch While far from finished, the museum is ready to welcome children to the exhibits that are open, like the mud pie station and the Robert and Rachel Nystrom Trail system, which leads to the various Roots and Rigging sites, full of possibilities for kids to build their own contraptions with tools provided by nature. Unstructured, free play is at the heart of WonderTrek and among the most important and exciting aspects for parents like Shannon Wheeler. A board member and one of the museum’s visionaries from the beginning, Wheeler spoke of the unique approach WonderTrek takes. “We’re always investigating, observing, watching children to learn from them to know how to tweak the environment and what’s offered,” she said. And those offerings are there to serve those of all ages, which is great news for Wheeler, whose kids are 12, 10, 6 and 3. “For my family, it’s a place that I know I can come, and all of my kids will have a way to engage and play for hours,” she said. ADVERTISEMENT The day’s activities were a culmination of more than a decade of work. It started with a magazine article about the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota in Mankato. Sourcewell CEO Chad Coauette read that article in 2015 and wondered if the Brainerd lakes area could do something similar. “There’s a saying that says, ‘If you have a vision and nobody else sees it, that is not a vision; that’s a hallucination,’” Coauette said. Fortunately, he had colleagues who could see his vision and got on board with the project. “The Sourcewell Board came along with that vision, and today we have made that vision a reality,” he said. A $5 million investment from the Sourcewell Board got the project rolling, creating momentum to grow it into what it is today. And with more community support, it can keep growing even bigger. About $400,000 is still needed to finish the first phase, which includes a 36-foot-tall treehouse with six different levels and a play pavilion that would function like an outdoor classroom. “With a 9-acre campus, there really is no end to the possibilities of what we can keep adding as long as the community keeps showing up with their support,” Olson said. ADVERTISEMENT 1 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 2 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 3 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 4 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 5 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 6 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 7 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 8 / 29: The WonderTrek Children’s Museum on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 9 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 10 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 11 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 12 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 13 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 14 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 15 / 29: Founders, fundraisers, volunteers and kids come out to the WonderTrek Children’s Museum ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 16 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 17 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 18 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 19 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 20 / 29: One little adventurer enjoys the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 21 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 22 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 23 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 24 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 25 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 26 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 27 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 28 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch 29 / 29: Families and their kids enjoy the WonderTrek Children’s Museum after the ribbon cutting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch Seeing WonderTrek finally open Thursday was an emotional day for Wheeler as she watched her kids take full advantage. “I knew it would happen, but I didn’t envision it happening on this level right away,” she said. “To be opening our doors to this beautiful site, and the facilities and the exhibits that we’re able to do right now blows my mind.” The WonderTrek Children’s museum is at 12170 Ironwood Drive in Baxter. To donate or become a sponsor, visit wondertrekmuseum.org/donate. Comments Share Share this article News Reporting