Paddling in Mississippi National River and Recreation Area

The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area is an urban river park — not wilderness, not whitewater — threading 72 miles of the Mississippi through the Twin Cities metro.

The paddling here is moving flatwater on one of North America's great rivers, read against a backdrop that shifts from wooded bluffs and backwater sloughs to downtown Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

That urban context is part of what makes it distinct: this is a working river, shared with commercial traffic, motorized recreation, and strong currents that change with every rain event.

The park's National Water Trail runs roughly 76 miles and anchors all the paddling. PaddleShare, a self-serve kayak rental system, has organized the trail into named routes that give paddlers a practical framework.

The Nature route runs from Mississippi Gateway Regional Park down to North Mississippi Regional Park. The Gorge route moves through one of the river's more dramatic stretches, from Bohemian Flats Park to the Minneapolis Rowing Club near Lake Street Bridge.

A station at Pickerel Lake, inside Lilydale Regional Park in Saint Paul, gives newer paddlers a calmer option off the main channel. These routes are one-way, downstream — the current does real work here, and paddlers should plan accordingly.

Multi-day trips are possible. The NPS manages eight islands along the water trail open to dispersed camping, with no facilities — no tent pads, no fire grates, no toilets. Pack everything in, pack everything out, including human waste.

Anoka County runs primitive camping at designated sites on two of its own islands. Camping is prohibited on NPS lands in the core urban areas, including Island 108. 01 and Islands 111. 01 and 111. 02.

Check the Superintendent's Compendium before you go; regulations govern both camping and food storage under 36 CFR §2. 10. Three major portages and three operating locks break up the full length of the trail.

Knowing where they fall matters before you commit to a multi-day itinerary. Currents around locks, dams, and snags can be serious, and conditions shift fast with upstream precipitation. Check river levels before every trip.

The NPS runs its own guided kayak and canoe programs through the season at low or no cost — worth checking the park calendar. Rangers at the visitor center can speak to current conditions in a way no map can.

This river rewards paddlers who treat it as the dynamic, consequential waterway it is.