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News and Notes from The Great River Road
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Selena Diggs
Editor
(608) 267-2094 office
Selena.diggs (at) dot.wi.gov
Ken Harwood
Publisher
Congratulations to our Great River Road Photo Contest winners!
Ken Notes: The Wisconsin Great River Road folks would like to congratulate Jeff Winkler’s awe-inspiring panorama highlights from Brady’s Bluff, an iconic natural attraction at Perrot State Park near Trempealeau along the Wisconsin Great River Road...
...Full Story Here
These Are the 12 Best State Parks in Wisconsin
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Our list spans some of Wisconsin`s most well-known parks as well as a few hidden gems for hiking, camping, paddling, and more.
Wyalusing State Park, Bagley...
Perrot State Park, Trempealeau...
...Full Story Here
A modern Stonehenge is hidden in the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River in Wisconsin
- Kinstone, which overlooks the Mississippi River in Fountain
City, Wisconsin, is home to giant stone structures that often remind
visitors of Stonehenge.
- The land has been in founder and creator Kristine Beck`s family for generations. She brought in the stones to inspire connection between earth and sky.
- The heaviest stone on the property weighs 70,000 pounds. The tallest is more than 31 feet.
- Kinstone`s regular hours end Oct. 31, but it is open by appointment in the off-season. There is a small fee for entry.
She wanted "a place to be," to escape the stressors and the daily grind of work and life.
Today, between 5,000 and 6,000 visitors annually make the trek to Kinstone for a self-guided tour, some from nearby and others from around the globe. The commanding stones — the largest weighing 70,000 pounds and the tallest reaching 31 feet — are placed with intention to celebrate solstices and equinoxes, which mark the changing of seasons. Other installations on the property include a labyrinth and a nondenominational chapel, whose thatched roof is made of reeds from the river below.
Beck is still adding to what she`s created, which she describes as a modern megalithic garden — megalith referring to the large, rough stones.
Though its regular hours end Oct. 31, Kinstone is open with reduced hours through Nov. 15 and can be visited by appointment in the wintertime, in addition to a sunrise winter solstice event Dec. 21. Its regular season begins again May 1. An admission fee of $10 for people 16 and older and $8 for those 6 to 15 is required... ...Full Story Here
Ken Notes: The original article was in the Milwaukee Journal which is behind a paywall.
Between Minneapolis And Madison Is Wisconsin`s Underrated Scenic Village With A Unique Mountain Island And Outdoor Fun
The Midwest is much more than flyover states, and you`ll find plenty of hidden gems when you travel around Wisconsin. Visit Trempealeau, on the Mississippi River, and discover a thriving small town with plenty of outdoor attractions. Located between Minneapolis, the most bikeable city in the country, and Madison, Trempealeau is on the Great River Road, a scenic driving route.
Trempealeau is a short half-hour drive upriver from the riverside college city of La Crosse, while it`s about a 2.5-hour drive to get to Trempealeau from either Minneapolis or Madison. It`s best to have your own car to get around here...
...Full Story Here
Black Hawk / Lansing Bridge
Project Updates and Notes
Barge traffic resumes on Mississippi River after railway bridge closure
LA CROSSE, Wis. (WKBT) - Barge traffic resumed along the Mississippi River near La Crosse Tuesday after a mechanical failure forced the closure of a critical railroad bridge for nearly 48 hours.The La Crosse railroad bridge became stuck in the closed position Sunday due to a mechanical failure, bringing river traffic to a complete halt. The bridge reopened earlier Tuesday, allowing vessels that had been waiting to finally continue their journeys.
The Great River Road Theatre of Prescott Wisconsin
The Great River Road Theatre of Prescott Wisconsin has been producing plays for the enjoyment of the community since 1992. Previous to 2017, shows were staged every summer in the Prescott City Park. Since the opening of the new Prescott High School, we have been fortunate enough to have an indoor venue for our productions - a beautiful, new state-of-the-art auditorium.The Great River Road Theatre is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing classic musicals and comedies to the Prescott area. We are alway looking for people to join our group as actors, directors, costume design, stage design and construction, promotion, etc.
...Full Story Here
5 Great Towns in the Midwest for Smallmouth Bass Anglers
Awesome places where you can catch a trophy, then enjoy local flavors.
This is a golden age for smallmouth bass fishing. There are more and bigger fish across more waters than at any time in the last half-century. Conservation and catch-and-release ethics have helped, but so has modern technology—particularly forward-facing sonar, which has revealed fish we once never knew were there.
Still, while good smallmouth water can be found from Kansas to Ontario, a handful of Midwestern towns stand apart. These are the places that pair exceptional fishing with real small-town character—where you can spend the morning chasing five-pound bronzebacks and the evening listening to loons or live music on the dock...
...Full Story Here
54 Mississippi River duck hunts and counting
Hello friends
We call it “The Mississippi.” This trip is actually like a religion for the 15 to 23 of us that make it each year and it is all about comradery, adventure and hopefully shooting ducks.
My first time to the islands across from Ferryville, was in 1971, about 54 hunts ago. There is no way I can miss this trip unless there is flooding or maybe if I die...
...Full Story Here
The Great River Road
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Here`s to Being Here: Great River Road | Sights to See Along the Mississippi |
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Drought is shrinking Mississippi River levels — again. That’s a big problem for farmers.
The Mississippi River is again facing low water levels — pushing up barge rates and making it more expensive for farmers to export crops and import fertilizer.
Stretched out over 2,000 miles, the Mississippi is essential for farmers to sell their crops. Nearly half of all U.S. corn, soybeans and wheat exports travel down the waterway to the Gulf of Mexico...
... “The less product you take, they got to make more trips to get ‘X’ amount of product from point A to B,” said Napper, who currently operates out of a pier in Wisconsin...
...Full Story Here
The `Sunfish Capital Of The World` Is A Wisconsin City With A Glistening Recreation Lake And Scenic Trails
A famous bike route along the Mississippi River could soon get official recognition in Wisconsin
The Mississippi River Trail runs roughly 3,000 miles between Minnesota and Louisiana. Most other states along the route put signs up and began officially promoting it about 25 years ago, said Sherry Quamme, chairperson of the Wisconsin chapter of the Mississippi River Parkway Commission, which promotes the Great River Road.
But Wisconsin, which has about 250 miles of the trail, never did.
That could be about to change. Though the trail technically exists for biking now, getting the designation would make the route more visible and accessible to serious bikers, who support the state`s economy, Quamme said.
- The Mississippi River Trail runs 3,000 miles for bikers between Minnesota and Louisiana.
- Today, all municipalities along the Great River Road have signed off on making the trail`s Wisconsin portion official.
- A bipartisan bill in the state Legislature would have the Department of Transportation put up signs marking the trail.
As Mississippi River`s Lake Pepin shrinks alarmingly, project will study role of ravines
Lake Pepin, the largest naturally occurring lake on the Mississippi River, is a beloved resource and important economic engine for the Wisconsin and Minnesota towns that border it.In the summer, its calm, expansive waters are popular for sailing and waterskiing — the latter of which was invented on the lake in 1922. In the winter, it`s an ice fishing hub... ...Full Story Here
Natural Connections: Southward Migration
The shallow water in Northwoods marshes and bays began to crackle with a skim of ice recently, gently reminding everyone that winter is on the way. Ice-up is a firm deadline for many beings who migrate to travel at least a little bit farther south. I got caught up in the flurry of activity and soon found myself in the Mississippi River Flyway swooping around the hills and corners of the Great River Road...
...Full Story Here
Wisconsin Mississippi River Interpretive Centers
You’ll Find One of Wisconsin’s Best Bakeries in a Hut on the Edge of a Road
...Full Story Here
Migration Alert: Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan Waterfowlers Prepare for Opener
Wisconsin
Wisconsin will offer ample opportunities for waterfowlers during the opening days of the season. "Statewide there is good water going into the opener this season," explains Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Game Bird Ecologist Taylor Finger. "We had excellent production statewide, so I would expect a good opening day with plenty of local mallards and wood ducks around. We have been seeing some migrant puddle ducks, including pintails, gadwalls, and wigeon, appearing on the Mississippi River, and migrating Canada geese are coming in from northern Ontario."...
This 10,000 square mile valley where glaciers turned away and rivers carved 600 foot bluffs 60 miles from Madison
Morning mist rises from the Kickapoo River, revealing limestone bluffs
that glaciers never touched. While ice sheets flattened the surrounding
Midwest 10,000 years ago, this 10,000-square-mile region escaped their
reach. The Driftless Area stands as Wisconsin’s geological anomaly,
where ancient river valleys carve through 500-million-year-old bedrock
just 60 miles from Madison. Here, 150,000 residents preserve farming
heritage dating to the 1820s in a landscape that defies every Midwest
stereotype.
The valley system glaciers couldn’t flatten
The name tells the story: “driftless” refers to the absence of glacial drift, the rock debris ice sheets leave behind. During the Late Wisconsin Glaciation 30,000 years ago, ice flowed around this southwestern Wisconsin region, deflected by highlands to the north...
...The Wisconsin, Kickapoo, and Mississippi Rivers wind through narrow valleys, creating a maze of waterways that supported ancient cultures seeking winter shelter. Regional archaeological records confirm this area’s long history as a natural refuge...
...Full Story Here
Freedom Park column: Grateful Reflections from the Great River Road Visitor and Learning Center
Our Visitor Guide Sponsors. Please check them out!
Farmers and ag professionals to come together at 3rd annual WI Water and Soil Health Conference
Every growing season presents its own set of challenges; this fall’s dry conditions made it difficult for surface-seeded cover crops to germinate and establish, leaving many fields vulnerable to erosion and nutrient loss as we enter winter. Knowing what to do in adverse conditions like these can be difficult. That’s why sharing and learning from each other`s farming experiences is at the center of the upcoming Wisconsin Water and Soil Health (WWASH) Conference. WWASH brings together farmers, agronomists, conservation professionals, and researchers to engage around soil health and water quality.
This year’s WWASH Conference is set for Dec. 16-17, 2025, at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells. This meeting is an opportunity to connect with others in the agriculture community while gaining actionable insights into building soil health and protecting water quality...
...Keynotes include Dr. Anna Cates and Dr. Matt Helmers. Cates is an Associate Extension Professor at the University of Minnesota and the State Soil Health Specialist, and will present on collaborative private-public strategies to expand cover crop adoption statewide. Helmers is a Professor at Iowa State University and Director of the Iowa Nutrient Research Center. He will present on nutrient loss reduction strategies across the Mississippi River Basin. Keynote farmers Ken Kayhart (Juneau County) and David Trimner (Marathon county) will share insights from their conservation journeys in both dairy and grain systems...
...Full Story Here
Transmission line raises questions
Dairyland
Power Co-operative in partnership with GridLiance Heartland have
proposed building a 140-mile electric transmission line from Marion,
Minnesota to Bell Center, Wisconsin. This transmission line would be a
segment of much longer transmission line.
As proposed the project would co-locate a 765-kilovolt (kV) power line with the existing 161 kV power line.The proposed line would use towers as high as 199 feet, substantially more than the current 70-foot high structures. The proposed project would also call for the expansion of the current right-of-way easement to be expanded from 100 feet to approximately 200 feet. If built, the 765 kV transmission would also carry six time more electric power than the largest transmission lines (345kV) now being used in the state...
The Website for this project is here:
https://www.maribelltransmission.com/
...Full Story Here
Breaking American Tourism Record with New Stats, Strengthening US Economy...
Mississippi joins Wisconsin, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, and California in breaking American tourism record with new stats, strengthening US visitor’s economy, latest update is here.Wisconsin Leads with a Tourism Hat Trick
Wisconsin stood out in 2024. The state recorded $25.8 billion in total economic impact from tourism. That marked the third consecutive year of record-breaking results. Visitor numbers soared to 114.4 million, higher than pre-pandemic levels. The impact spread widely. Rural counties saw sharp rises in spending. Adams County alone grew by nearly seven percent in one year.Tourism generated $1.7 billion in state and local tax revenue. That sum provided essential funds for schools, healthcare and infrastructure. It also reduced the tax burden on households. Employment figures were just as striking. About 182,000 full and part-time jobs were supported by visitor spending. Wages and household incomes climbed as hotels, restaurants and events thrived.
For 2025 the outlook is strong but uncertain. Wisconsin invested heavily in marketing, including culinary promotions and national advertising. The aim is to attract new visitors and lengthen stays. But the risk of weaker international demand remains. Domestic tourism will need to carry much of the weight again...
Ken Notes: To be clear, The Great River Road is only one of hundreds of tourism assets in Wisconsin, but we are proud to be a small part of an economic engine that is moving Wisconsin forward!
This Weekend, Go See the Majesty of the Leaves Changing on The Driftless Bluffs (While Secretly Hunting for Pepie the Lake Pepin Monster)
You thought you were out of the game. You thought you’d retired. My monster chasing days are in the past, you said, even going as far as to swear on a Bible. And OK yes it was the Cryptozoologist Bible, but still, it felt official, definitive, final. You were done. You’d get a new hobby: leathercrafting or model trains or some bespoke tinkery stuff like that, and you’d be content. The only monsters I wanna hunt now are these monster deals on polyvinyl laminate flooring. That`s a real thing you whispered to yourself. You got a Home Depot credit card and you actually said those words. And then you piled boxes of planks into the shopping cart for a nice red oak look in the basement.
But the basement ain’t finished....
The legend of Pepie
...Full Story Here
Ken Notes: Fun read, and if you find the Monster send us a picture. Also note the real key to success is to search from the Wisconsin side of the lake. have a great weekend!
Tourism Sites and Event Calendars
...Full Story Here
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