RV Camping | Scenic Pathways

McGregor Fall Arts and Crafts Festival

Attractions in this post: McGregor, Iowa, Pikes Peak State Park, Prairie Du Chien Golf Course

Fall colors were starting to break out along the Mississippi River and a perfect weather forecast for the weekend encouraged Jo and I to head to McGregor, Iowa for their Arts & Crafts fall event.

McGregor Iowa’s Art and Craft Festival, second weekend in October

McGregor Fall Color. Since we were last in McGregor-Marquette area in the fall a few more of McGregor’s historic old buildings have gotten remodeled and some new enterprises now occupying them. The town is full of antique shops, artisan studios, pubs, and gift shops . . . most of them stretched along the main street that runs from the river front up the hill to out of town. Originally settled in 1837 as a ferry boat landing to cross the river to Prairie Du Chien, the community grew fast and was incorporated as a town in 1847. It retains its original river town roots in its grain elevator and dock, which was active with the fall harvest the weekend we were there. But its restored downtown buildings and interesting shops make it a fun place to visit.

McGregor Iowa Antique Shops — One of the many antique shops in “antique” buildings in McGregor

McGregor Iowa mainstreet — Main street McGregor has retained and restored many of its old commercial buildings

Our favorite dining spot, the Beer & Bratz Garden, was closed for a few days due to a death in the family. We missed having a sandwich and Leinie’s on their deck that overlooks the river. As an alternative, we tried dinner at the Old Man River Brew Pub but we found it disappointing in many respects. So unfortunately no restaurant review here on that establishment. 🙂 The Cafe McGregor looks like a nice place; has an attractive outdoor patio. Have to try them next time we are in town.

McGregor Log Cabiin — A few structures like this log cabin date back to the 1840s and the founding of the town

There were spots of nice color on the hillside behind McGregor but we didn’t find the fall color along the river as we expected. Some trees had lost their leaves while others hadn’t changed much. If the leaves hold on, there still should be some halfway decent color towards the last half of October. Even though we missed peak color, it was still a very nice weekend to be out of doors along the Mississippi doing things whether it be hiking, leaf peeping, or touring the shops and pubs in McGregor and its nearby neighboring towns of Marquette and Prairie Du Chien.

McGregor Iowa — Not quite Peak Color on the hillside behind downtown McGregor

When we are in the area we usually do some hiking at nearby Effigy Mounds National Park as its mature forest offers some great color and it also has some very good scenic overlooks of the river. But the park was closed due to the government financial and political wrangling. This winter we hope to return to do some snowshoeing at the park when it reopens.

Pikes Peak Camping & Hiking

We lucked out and found an vacant campsite at Pikes Peak State Park located on one of the high bluffs above McGregor. Most of the 77 sites offer electrical hookups for Rvs with about a dozen suitable only for tent camping. There is a RV dump station and a clean, modern washroom and bath facility. Once we checked in we found out one reason the park was so full on an October Thursday: very reasonable campsite fees. Amenities include a day use picnic shelter, a well outfitted camp store and concession, some interesting hiking trails, and among the best scenic overlooks of the Upper Mississippi River. It is located only about two miles from town.

Here’s a few pictures of Pikes Peak.

Mississippi River Overlook, Pikes Peak — Looking upstream on the Mississippi River from Pikes Peak. Marquette-Prairie du Chien bridge in the background

Pikes Peak State Park River Overlook — The main scenic overlook of the Mississippi River Valley from Pikes Peak State Park

Prairie Du Chien Country Club Golf Course Review.

While we in the area I took an opportunity to squeeze in nine holes of golf at the Prairie Du Chien Country Club. It’s a nice little course and not too expensive. I will return to do 18 holes next time. Most of the fairways are tree-lined, with some thicker woods bordering some. About 2/3 rds of the holes are rolling hills, some with dramatic terrain changes. A few relatively level holes as well. I walked the course with little trouble. There were some challenging holes but no gimmicks. The fairways were lush and well maintained, the greens in good shape and relatively fast. The clubhouse is old and shows its age, but everything was clean. Has a small pro shop, a dining room and a bar, with an expansive deck overlooking the course. From the blue tees the course runs 6222 yards, with a slope and rating of 69.9/119.

A few pictures of the golf course.

Golfiing at Prairie du Chien — Well manicured fairways were typical of Prairie du Chien Country Club’s golf course

There are some dramatic terrain changes on some holes of the Prairie du Chien golf course

Our Rialta motor home will be soon put to bed for the winter so the next time we are at the Mississippi it will be winter for some snowshoeing.

Happy Trails,

Roscoe

St Croix Falls Interstate Park – Fall Color

Scenic view of Interstate Park Gorge of the St. Croix National Scenic River — View of the St. Croix River Gorge from the Summit Rock Hiking Trail. Click image for a larger view

Interstate Park, a cooperative effort of Wisconsin, Minnesota and the National Park Service, is located on the St. Croix Wild and National Scenic River which forms part of the state line dividing the northern part of Wisconsin and Minnesota south of Duluth. It is actually two parks. There is the Wisconsin Interstate Park (St. Croix, Wisconsin) on the east side of the river and the Minnesota Interstate Park (Taylor Falls, Minnesota) located on the west bank. It is located about 60 miles north, along the Great River Road extension from Prescott, Wisconsin. The best route is to cross the river at Prescott and drive along the Minnesota side of the St. Croix River to Taylor Falls.

At Prescott the St. Croix River joins the Mississippi doubling the size of the Great River. At this point the Mississippi River Road leaves the Wisconsin-Minnesota border and heads towards the St. Paul, Minnesota. If you are driving the Great River Road, we recommend continuing along the shores of the St. Croix as it is a more scenic drive and you’ll not see anything as spectacular as the St. Croix River Gorge if you stayed on the Mississippi Road and continued on to St. Paul.

Our favorite season for Interstate Park is fall. The dramatic cliffs and formations of the Dalles of the St. Croix make it an outstanding scenic area. In fall its beauty is supplemented by terrific fall color displays. The St. Croix River Valley with its mixture of oaks, maples, birch, hickory, ash and many other species typical of a northern hardwoods forest provide an abundance of hues of reds, golds, and oranges.

Some Pictures – Click on image for a larger view

Fall color drive in Wisconsin's St. Croix Interstate Park — A scenic fall drive through Wisconsin’s Interstate Park

Walking along a wooded hiking trail in St. Croix Interstate Park

Dalles of the St. Croix River, National Interstate Park — Looking down the Dalles of the St. Croix & the Angle Rock from the Pothole Trail

Angle Rock Bridge St. Croix National Park — A close-up of the The Angle Rock bridge on the Minnesota side of the St. Croix

Interstate Park Recreational and Camping Facilities and Attractions

The parks are open all year. In the winter on the Wisconsin side there are 12 miles of cross-country skiing/snowshoeing trails; on the Minnesota side no x-c trails but they do offer some snowshoeing trails. Other times of the year Wisconsin offers 12 hiking trails totaling about 8 miles, whereas the Minnesota side has 6 trails, some of which include very unique geological formations. The parks are most popular in the summer offering rock climbing, hiking, canoeing and kayaking, fishing, swimming, and camping.

The Wisconsin side has the largest campground sites (2 areas) and has recently added a number of RV electric hookup sitets. The Minnesota park side also offers RV hookups. RV users on the Wisconsin side who “dry camp” will have water and a dump station near the ice age center. See our links at the bottom of the page for maps and other information on recreational and educational attractions offered by the Interstate Parks.

History of St. Croix River

The unique dalles, potholes, and cliffs are the result of several earthquakes and lava flows occuring over eons combined with the thawing, about 10, 000 years ago, of Glacial Lake Duluth. When its massive ice dam (located south of the current city of Superior, Wisconsin near Solon Springs) broke the meltwaters carved out the current St. Croix River valley. Only very resistant basalts from the lava flows were able to partially withstand the torrent and the unique geological formations were the result.

The original waterfalls and rapids which were the original St. Croix Falls are now buried underneath the “lake” created by the St. Croix Hydroelectric Dam located about one half mile north of the bridge. Above the dam the river is wider, more quiet, and lake-like. Below the dam the river runs faster with some rapids.

The outstanding scenery and geological formations led to a joint effort by Wisconsin and Minnesota to preserve the area for the use of the public. Established between 1895 and 1900 it was the nations first cooperative park established by two states. Because the St. Croix River, which divides the two state parks, is part of the National Wild and Scenic River system and the park is also part of the Ice Age National Scientific Reserve recreation passes of the National Park Service are honored at Interstate Park. Also each state honors the annual and day pass stickers of the other state. Staying at the northside Wisconsin campground it is only a short hike to the bride to walk across to the nature and hiking trails on the Minnesota side or to downtown Taylor Falls for that matter. If you stay at the Minnesota campground, you may need to drive your car to visit the Wisconsin side as it is a 1.5 mile hike just to get to the bridge.

More Information, Fall Color Pictures, & Links on Camping & Visiting St. Croix Interstate Park

Another National Parks along the Upper Mississippi River you might enjoy visiting:

Hiking Trails, Scenic Views, Native History Effigy Mounds National Park

Firepoint Overlook, Effigy Mounds National Park — Many great views of the Mississippi River from the bluff top Effigy Mounds hiking and nature trails

visitor center exhibits Effigy Mounds National Park — Kids and Mom enjoying some hands-on exhibits in the Effigy Mounds Visitor Center

See our National Parks Resource page for more ScenicPathways National Parks profiles.

Roscoe