On a beautiful, clear, early November day we drove from Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin to the Mississippi River. We travelled north past Ferryville then crossed to the Iowa side of the Great River. Then north again into Minnesota. We were headed for Brownsville, Minnesota for a very special sight.
This is a special time of the year along the upper Mississippi River, near the tri-state area where Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota meet. Just south of the city of Brownsville, Minnesota in the extensive Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, the Corps of Engineers has been rebuilding islands in the backwaters of the Mississippi. These islands were originally present when the river was dammed, but then gradually eroded over the subsequent 60 or 70 years. It turns out that those islands provided the perfect habitat for tuberous plants that offer a perfect diet to migrating swans.
Migrating Swans on the Mississippi
A Day in Wisconsin's Amish Country
Prairie du Chien Attractions
A Great Day of Wisconsin Trout Fishing
