This past Wednesday morning I captured a few 180 degree panoramas of the Autumn sunrise in Red Wing, MN along the Mississippi River. With all the rain, the river is on the rise once again. The Mississippi has been high most since the Spring run-off; through the Summer and now into Autumn.
Bay Point Park Fishing PierThe Big TurnRed Wing BoathousesRiverfrontRed Wing Bridge Construction
The Trimbelle River is a 29.4-mile-long tributary of the Mississippi River in western Wisconsin in the United States. It flows for its entire length in western Pierce County, rising West of the town of Martell and flowing generally southward through the towns of Trimbelle (at Cty O & Hwy 10) towards the Mississippi River near about 5 miles west of Bay City. ~wikipedia
I have spent many hours on the Trimbelle River chasing Brown Trout. Most of my time fishing has been between The Great River Road (Hwy 35) and Hwy 10. There are plenty of access points North of Hwy 10, but the stream isn’t as good in my opinion.
There is one particular area that I have always enjoyed more than any other. The following photographs are from that area.
The Pasture Stretch
This pasture stretch is especially beautiful this time of year as the Fall color begins to set in. I have not fished this stretch in years. The bridge you see at the bottom of the first image is known locally as the “swimming hole” bridge. A very popular place to cool off during the steamy summer months. Access to this swimming hole and stream banks used to be wide open, but after many years of people leaving trash everywhere – swimmers and fishers alike, the land owner shut down access. I cannot count how many times I fished that stretch and the amount of trash I would haul out in my waders, vest and net. It’s unfortunate. I wish I would have thought of organizing a trash cleanup event back then.
Bay City, WI; Catherine’s Pass (aka Katrina’s Pass) is an area of much concern, discussion, public feedback and planning over the last year of so. You can read about the project that will impact this area at Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance (LPLA).
You can easily see the sediment flowing into the area via Google Maps. Follow the fuchsia colored lines outlining the sediment settling into Bay City Bay. At one of the public meeting held in Bay City, a local resident recalled that the Isabelle River used to flow into the bay (red line), but that changed course over the years and now flows out of the bay (turquoise line) likely due to sediment build up.
The Problem
Lake Pepin is also threatened by excess nutrients leading to eutrophication and downstream impacts. Phosphorous is the limiting nutrient and excess input from the surrounding landscape has led to eutrophication, characterized by algae blooms that reduce light and oxygen thereby threatening animal and plant survival. It is estimated that the accumulation of phosphorus in Lake Pepin sediment has increased 15-fold since 1830. This eutrophication process is tightly linked with sedimentation because phosphorous binds to soil particles, which are transported together down the watersheds to Lake Pepin. Nitrogen input is also affecting local water quality with cascading impacts all the way to the Gulf of Mexico, where a large hypoxic area, or “dead zone”, has formed at the Mississippi delta leading to environmental problems, such as fish kills.
~LPLA
You can also see quite a difference between 1938 and present day. The Islands have grown in size, and cuts (or passes) have been eliminated as the sediments has filled them in. The sediment is only the beginning.
19382019
These panoramas of the area were shot shortly after sunrise on Saturday September 28th 2019. It is such a beautiful area. I love photographing the area and my wife and I enjoy kayaking here as well. I am hopeful that the project to address the issues in this area moves forward and is fully funded. If you love this area too, please familiarize your self with the issue, get involved and consider donating to the cause through Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance.
There was some beautiful light this morning in Bay City before, during and after sunrise. It was very cloudy early this a.m., but Mother Nature cooperated nicely.
It’s been awhile since I’ve captured this location. March 8th 2019 was the last sunrise attempt I made.
The city of Lake City is located 65 miles southeast of the Twin Cities at the intersection of U.S. Highways 61 and 63 on the Mississippi River at Lake Pepin. Lac de Pleurs (Lake of Tears) was the name given to Lake Pepin by Father Louis Hennepin, who camped on the shore of the lake in 1680. He christened the large body of water Lac de Pleurs after observing his Sioux captors weeping near the lake over the death of a chief’s son. The war party of Isanti Sioux had captured Hennepin and his two companions several miles south along the Mississippi and were camping near the lake on their return north to their Sioux villages near present-day Mille Lacs. ~wikipedia
On September 24th Lake City was hit with an EF0 tornado. Here are a few aerial images of an area that experienced some damage.
Lake Pepin occupies a valley carved by the waters of Glacial River Warren, which drained Lake Agassiz in a catastrophic flood at the end of the last Ice Age, and to a lesser extent from Lake Duluth, a smaller glacial lake which drained through the present valley of the St. Croix River. When the continental glacier’s meltwaters found other outlets to the sea, River Warren was succeeded by the more modest Upper Mississippi, which drains a much smaller basin, and the St. Croix spillway became the present river. Over a long period of time, the deep valley was partially filled with sediments, forming a broad floodplain. In this plain Lake Pepin formed behind a delta comprising sediments deposited into the ancient lake bed by the Chippewa River near the present community of Wabasha at the southern end of the lake. The lake backed up behind this sediment dam as far north as the location of Saint Paul. In the 10,000 years since the lake’s creation, ongoing sedimentation into Lake Pepin has caused its upper end to migrate downstream some 50 miles to its present location east (river direction south) of Red Wing, Minnesota. ~wikipedia
Nelson is located at the junction of the Mississippi River and Chippewa River valleys. The river bottoms surrounding the confluence are home to a large amount of wildlife. A causeway and bridge across the Mississippi River link Nelson with the city of Wabasha, Minnesota at the junction of Wisconsin Highway 25 and Wisconsin Highway 35. Southbound Highway 25 becomes Minnesota Highway 60 upon crossing the Mississippi River to Wabasha.
Nelson lies on Wisconsin Highway 35, the “Great River Road,” a popular tourist route that runs along the east bank of the Mississippi River. ~wikipedia
Nelson, WI is home of the 100 year old Nelson Cheese Factory and J & J BBQ & Catering. Two favorites stops while traveling through this picturesque bluff country. A little North of town is my favorite wood-fired pizza establishment – The Stone Barn.
A couple different views of the causeway and bridge across the Mississippi River linking Nelson, WI with the city of Wabasha, MN.
Cyndie and I were in Prescott, WI this a.m. for a late breakfast at The Kitchen Table. Fantastic breakfast and coffee; fast and friendly service. Biscuits and Gravy is top-notch. I’ve never had lunch there, but the lunch menu looks plenty good.
Prescott is situated at the confluence of the St. Croix River and Mississippi River. You can very easily make out the sediment-laden Mississippi water mixing with the St. Croix down stream from the railroad bridge. You can learn more about this issue @ Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance.
Here are some panoramas I shot of the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers.
I was a bit late for sunrise, but the fog was heavy and flowing nicely through the valley. Solders Memorial Park on top of Sorin’s Bluff in Red Wing is a perfect location to appreciate the vastness of the fog as it flows along and lifts away.
This city was named after the early 19th-century Dakota Sioux chief, Red Wing (Shakea), or Hupahuduta (“Wing of the Wild Swan Dyed Red”). He was one of a succession of Mdewakanton Dakota chiefs whose name “Red Wing” came from their use of a dyed swan’s wing as their symbol of rank. He was an ally of British soldiers during the War of 1812. After a vision in which he saw the Americans driving out the British, he declared neutrality. French Canadians referred to him as L’Aile Rouge. Later he took the name Shakea, or “The Man Who Paints Himself Red,” after passing the name Red Wing on to a successor chief. ~wikipedia
Red Wing is a city in Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States, along the upper Mississippi River. Having lived near the river most of my life, it’s sometime easy to forgot the unique and picturesque features that draw others to the region.
Having a drone has re-peaked my interest to photograph the beautiful area where I live.
Red Wing is connected to Wisconsin by the Eisenhower Bridge); it carries U.S. Route 63 over the Mississippi River and its backwaters. ~wikipedia
Construction on the bridge that will replace the Eisenhower Bridge is slated to be complete August 2020. Based on a Minnesota state statute, the name must remain the Eisenhower Memorial Bridge.
The Trimbelle River is a 29.4-mile-long tributary of the Mississippi River in western Wisconsin in the United States. It flows for its entire length in western Pierce County, rising West of the town of Martell and flowing generally southward through the towns of Trimbelle (at Cty O & Hwy 10) towards the Mississippi River near about 5 miles west of Bay City. ~wikipedia
![ake Pepin occupies a valley carved by the waters of Glacial River Warren, which drained Lake Agassiz in a catastrophic flood at the end of the last Ice Age, and to a lesser extent from Lake Duluth, a smaller glacial lake which drained through the present valley of the St. Croix River. When the continental glacier's meltwaters found other outlets to the sea, River Warren was succeeded by the more modest Upper Mississippi, which drains a much smaller basin, and the St. Croix spillway became the present river. Over a long period of time, the deep valley was partially filled with sediments, forming a broad floodplain. In this plain Lake Pepin formed behind a delta comprising sediments deposited into the ancient lake bed by the Chippewa River near the present community of Wabasha at the southern end of the lake. The lake backed up behind this sediment dam as far north as the location of Saint Paul. In the 10,000 years since the lake's creation, ongoing sedimentation into Lake Pepin has caused its upper end to migrate downstream some 80km (50mi) to its present location east (river direction south) of Red Wing, Minnesota.[5]](https://i0.wp.com/traun-photo.com/dan/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/2019-09-19-DF068-Around-the-Lake-0001-7-Edit-2.jpg)
