Lakes and Parks in Minneapolis
Walk, bike, drive, swim or paddle around the chain of lakes running north to south along the western side of Minneapolis proper. Some are connected by lagoons and creeks which eventually spill into the Mississippi River at the famed Minnehaha Falls, inspiration of Longfellow's "Song of Hiawatha". These are all part of the Minneapolis Grand Rounds , a 40-mile loop around the city begun over a century ago during the nation's first grand movement to toss the "Keep Off the Grass!" signs into the dustbin of history. Each of the Chain of Lakes has a walking path and a one-way biking/skating path. At least one path is kept clear even during snowy winter month, and it is possible to use the paths almost every day of the year.
Only beer in cans are allowed in Minneapolis Parks.
Cedar Lake. Cedar Lake has three public beaches, and is accessible by canoe, rowboat, or kayak by its connecting lagoon to Lake of the Isles and, by extension, Lake Calhoun. It is also the only one of the Chain of Lakes where private property actually fronts the lake.
Lake of the Isles. Lake of the Isles has bird sanctuaries on its (officially off-limits) islands, and a public skating rink, with a warming house, is groomed in the winter months. Check the newspaper; you may get lucky and catch a world-class speed-skating competition here. Its shores also feature some of the best climbing trees in the city, particularly for those who carry a short rope ladder in their pack. Although residents can lease rack space for their rowboats, canoes, or kayaks, there is no public boat rental. Boats rented or launched from Lake Calhoun can access Lake of the Isles via the lagoon which flows under Lake Street. There are also no public swimming beaches.
Lake Calhoun. Lake Calhoun has several public beaches, including volleyball nets on the South beaches. It also has rowboat and canoe rentals (and lessons) and sailboat lessons. There is an active yacht club that sponsors several races weekly. Also, the surface conditions on Lake Calhoun make this lake most popular among sailboarders, often well into the Fall. While sails can't pass the low street crossings above the lagoons, paddlers can easily reach Lake of the Isles and Cedar Lake. Recent years have seen more competitive bidding for food service contracts, and the current commissary is an affordable fish restaurant that's well rated by local residents and guides.
Lake Harriet. Lake Harriet also has boat rentals. Lake Harriet's features include a bandshell at which numerous local and regional talent perform, and has included the Minnesota Orchestra, among others. It has several public swimming beaches, a marina, and is arguably the most popular and crowded lake among local residents for swimming, boating, walking, biking, and organized family and group celebrations.
Lake Nokomis. Lake Nokomis has several beaches. It should be noted that, in Minneapolis, a public swimming beach is identified by at least a small stretch of sand, and at least one lifeguard during midday hours. Lake Nokomis qualifies. It also has public boat access for canoes, kayaks and sail boats. Several convenience stores and a grocery store are nearby on Cedar Avenue if you need to make a run for that item you forgot on your picnic.
Minnehaha Creek. Minnehaha Creek connects Lake Minnetonka in the far west suburbs with the Mississippi river, running through Lake Nokomis and other small lakes along the way. A short tributary connects it to the southeast corner of Lake Harriet, but it is not navigable directly from any of the lakes..
|
Fluid Landscapes
The face of Minneapolis' lakes and creeks has been ever-changing since the Industrial Age began. Each of the chain of lakes has been dredged repeatedly, shifting the shores and in the case of Isles accidentally submerging a long-lost third island. Basset Creek once connected the northwest section of the Grand Rounds?including Wirth Lake and points north and west?with the Mississippi before being diverted and buried to serve as storm drainage. Large stretches of swampy wetlands once made for a makable, if buggy, passage from the north and west suburbs through all of the Lakes to the river. Now this is possible only for those willing to brave manholes, raccoons, and the law in a descent below the city.
|
- The Chain of Lakes is not a continuous navigable waterway by any means, although the bike and walking paths, and auto parkways, connect parks and waterways from North Minneapolis almost without interruption to the Mississippi River. Minnehaha Creek is a shallow creek that allows canoeing or inflatables' traffic for only a couple months of the year. It terminates into the Mississippi, just after the dramatic Minnehaha Falls, a popular family park destination.
Minneapolis features many other parks with recreational, natural, and historical merit in various degrees. Boom Island Park, just North of Nicollet Island and most easily accessible from the Stone Arch Bridge , features nice fishing on side channels and some of the most unique skyline views in the United States, as well as a look at the century-old remains of massive brickworks and water-power tailrace tunnels of the Pillsbury A Mill. The Mill was the last functioning reminder of Minneapolis' boomtown heyday to shut down in 2005, and is slated to become yet another retail/restaurant/condo building lining the redbrick St. Anthony Main.
Directly across the river is the Mill Ruins Park and Mill City Museum , next to the St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam?the final lock on the journey up the Mississippi. The Mill Ruins was the site of the Washburn A Mill among others, host of an infamous explosion and fire in the 19th century. And the 20th. And the 20th again. Oh, and there were two more in the 19th. Eventually, the burnt shells were given up on and left standing, and much of the canal and tunnel system which provided water power was covered with earth and paved over to form West River Road. The park features excavations of quite a bit of these early stoneworks from an age when very rich men prided themselves on the quality of even the most mundane, invisible, underground works; as well as the outfall of Basset Creek, buried for the last 1.5 miles of its run beneath downtown.
Tower Hill Park in Southeast Minneapolis is home to the venerable Witch's Hat , the Prospect Park neighborhood's 1914 water tower. It is on the National Register of Historic Places, and offers maybe the best (if not the broadest) view in the city on the one day per year that its observation deck is open.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Minneapolis
