Nothing signals summer more than the buzz of fishing boats and the hum of tugboats on the Mississippi. Up close or from a distance, the river never ceases to crave your attention. Traveling the Great River Road along Crawford County’s west coast, there are a number of waysides where you can stretch your legs and take in the view.
The river town of Ferryville has a new observation platform on Highway 35 overlooking Lake Winneshiek – a wide expanse of the Mississippi River – that features a historical marker commemorating native son Patrick J. Lucey, former Governor of Wisconsin and US Ambassador to Mexico.
If you’re interested in the details of a working river, stop at Lock and Dam 9 near Lynxville and watch a barge “lock through.” The spectacle of an expert pilot guiding a 105-foot wide barge into a lock not five feet wider redefines the meaning of the word precision.
And if you’re piloting your own boat, there are numerous well-maintained boat ramps from which to launch. The view of the Mississippi bluffs from your boat rivals anything you’ve seen, and the fishing is world-class. Check out our map for ramp locations.
Just south of Prairie du Chien across the Wisconsin River, Wyalusing State Park offers campsites and picnic areas with spectacular views of the Wisconsin and Mississippi River valleys. You’ll be hard-pressed t to find a better dining room view than watching the sun settle into the Iowa bluffs from your picnic table.
After dark, the Starsplitters of Wyalusing conduct astronomy programs at its observatory on scheduled Saturdays. For daytime adventure, explore the fourteen miles of hiking trails meandering through the park’s hardwood forests and wildlife habitat. For a more rugged hiking experience, the DNR maintains several Natural Areas in Driftless Wisconsin, including three in Crawford County along the Mississippi River corridor, that feature native prairie habitat.
Summer has arrived on the Mississippi, but we’ll wait for you before we celebrate.
What’s your favorite summer spot along the Mississippi River?
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