For a people who love their water, Minnesotans doesn’t seem to have much respect for the river that gave the state its name. Take the historical marker north of Le Sueuer that is dedicated to the Minnesota River Valley. The marker declares in gold letters against a black background that the Minnesota River is “just a shallow, meandering river.” The pejorative word “just” serves to contrast the present river with its Ice Age ancestor, the Glacial River Warren, a beast of a river that swept forth about 11,000 years ago and carved out the Minnesota River Valley, which in some places spans 5 miles.
The Minnesota River, of course, does not span 5 miles. It is a more modest piece of nature that takes advantage of the work done by the mighty Warren. There’s a geological term for this when a river travels through an older, established channel, and the marker tells us what it is. It is an underfit river, which sounds dangerously close to an unfit river. Why even go there? The St. Croix River Valley marker skips over the geology and, instead, goes on ad nauseam about how charming the valley is, even referring to the St. Croix as the American Rhine, although I have never seen a castle on the St. Croix. (Erratum: I stand corrected. A castle-like estate graces the Minnesota shore of the St. Croix.)
It is true that the Minnesota River is not as lovely as the St. Croix. And unlike the Hudson, the Minnesota River is unlikely to inspire a school of painting. For one thing, the palette of the river’s scenery tends toward the drab side with its muddy brown water and grayish maples and cottonwoods, some of which jut from the ground at odd angles. But on a bright day during the warmer seasons when a trick of sunlight transforms the turbid river into a glassy reflection of trees and sky and conjures the neighboring lakes into a perfect blue luster, the valley could serve as the catalyst for a painting. Or a photo. Or two.
The Minnesota River flows east of Chaska toward its eventual convergence with the Mississippi.
Early spring flooding inundates a trail in Burnsville.
The Highway 41 bridge crosses the Minnesota River near Chaska.
Light in August, or, if you prefer, the sun also rises.
Grass Lake lies between Eden Prairie and Shakopee in the river valley. The Minnesota River, which isn't visible here, flows between the trees and the buildings in the distance.
