Minnesota Water Trails
Kayak or canoe more than 4000 miles of Minnesota water trails. Minnesota rivers and streams provide scenic paths through our natural beauty. Early voyageurs and explorers used Minnesota waterways as highway to discovery. The water trails throughout Minnesota have now become part of the state's vast playground.
The information and links on this page will connect you with the many possible places to go canoeing or kayaking in Minnesota.
“Rivers are roads which move, and which carry us whither we
desire to go.” ~Blaise Pascal, 17th-century French Philosopher
The Lake Superior Water Trail hugs 155 miles shoreline along the world's largest freshwater lake. With 10% of all the fresh water on earth, Lake Superior offers a spectacular environment for canoers and sea kayakers. Enjoy all that Lake Superior has to offer along the
Lake Superior water trail.
The Superior National Forest has more than 2,000 lakes and rivers that offer a chance to canoe, boat, fish and camp. Visit and play in the areas of Minnesota where early Native Americans, voyageurs, missionaries, loggers and explorers once traveled. Here is your guide to the
Superior National Forest.
About a third of the Superior National Forest lies within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness(BWCAW). Visitors to the BWCAW will find solitude and back country recreation. Permits are required and special regulations apply to visits to this area. The U.S. Forest Service manages the 1 million acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northeastern Minnesota.
Other Major Water Trails in Minnesota
The Mississippi River is about 680 miles long (in Minnesota; the whole river is about 2,350 miles long). Lake Itasca in Itasca State Park is the source of the Mississippi River, just one of many interesting facts about the Mississippi River Minnesota water trail.
The Minnesota River is about 370 miles long. It flows into the Mississippi at Fort Snelling State Park.
Minnesota Wild and Scenic Rivers
Some of Minnesota's rivers have been designated wild and scenic rivers under the Minnesota Wild and Scenic Rivers Act or the National Wild and Scenic River Act.
These are the rivers with that designation:
- St. Croix River on the border with Wisconsin
- Kettle River in Pine County
- Mississippi River from the city of St. Cloud to the cities of Ramsey and Dayton
- North Fork of the Crow River in Meeker County
- Minnesota River from the Lac Qui Parle dam to the city of Franklin
- Rum River from Ogechie Lake to the city of Anoka
- Cannon River from the city of Faribault to the Mississippi River
Boundary Waters Canoe Trails
Maps and Lists of Water Trails in Minnesota.
More About Minnesota Water Trails
Minnesota's Wild and Scenic Rivers
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