The Mississippi River Trail runs through Winona County and includes scenic sections of state, regional, and local trails. The county’s state and federal hiking and water trails also include the waterways of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. So exploration here begins with different views of the river and trails.

Trails and Activities Around Winona

At Bluffside Park, the trails offer views of the Mississippi River Valley from the bluffs. The trail network includes 15 miles of multi-use trails and is designated for mountain biking, hiking, skiing, and snowshoeing year-round. The Oberton Family Bike Park, also in Bluffside Park, has a toddler track as well as jump and drop lines for riders from beginner to advanced.

The Flyway Trail – Winona Connector links Winona with Buffalo County in Wisconsin. Its route crosses the Highway 54 Interstate Bridge, the John A. Latsch Historical Wagon Bridge, and an 842-foot-long railroad bridge. Another trail experience is the roughly five-mile, flat, easy-to-ride paved route through Lake Park, which circles both sections of the lake.

Sugar Loaf has 38 protected climbing routes. A multi-use trail leads to the summit and offers sweeping views of the Mississippi River Valley. Winona Ice Park offers another kind of climbing: an artificial ice-climbing park in Sugar Loaf Park, high above the Mississippi.

Art, Architecture, and History

The Minnesota Marine Art Museum focuses on humanity’s enduring and historic relationship with water. It displays more than 600 works of art in six galleries; its seven-acre campus is on the Mississippi River. The Winona County History Center also combines a historic site with a contemporary addition: it is housed in a 1915 National Guard building and complemented by the Laird Norton Edition.

Agricultural history is presented at a museum opened in 2017 by the Winona County Historical Society at the Winona County Fairgrounds in St. Charles. Its exhibition sites include an exhibit building, the Gainey-McCarthy Schoolhouse, the Hill sisters’ log house, and an early log barn. Each building offers a different historical perspective on agriculture.

A walking tour in downtown Winona takes you through nearly a dozen blocks listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Winona Downtown Commercial Historic District includes more than one hundred listed sites and represents Minnesota’s largest collection of Victorian commercial architecture along the Mississippi River. The Bunnell House in Homer adds another perspective on architectural history: built around 1850, the house is designed in the Rural Gothic or Steamboat Gothic style and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The digital tour “Winona’s Glorious Glass” features places that visitors can also explore in person. Together with the museums and historic buildings, it offers different ways to engage with cultural history without limiting the experience to a single type of building.

Landscape, Winegrowing, and Local Traditions

Winona State University’s Landscape Arboretum encompasses more than 125 acres of university grounds and nearby wooded bluffs. The annual migration of tundra swans also draws many visitors to Winona. It adds a seasonal highlight alongside the trails and overlooks that define the Mississippi River Valley.

The Winona County Fair has brought people together since 1858 and is an annual, family-friendly outdoor festival. If you’re planning to visit the fair, check the current event dates. Garvin Heights Vineyards offers another local connection: the winery produces wine from cold-hardy grapes grown on its own hillside property above Winona, along the Mississippi River.

For practical information, the Winona Visitor Center offers brochures, maps, souvenirs, travel advice, and information about Winona. As these offerings may change, check the Visitor Center’s current information if you have specific needs.

Discover more destinations: Winona, Olmsted, Clay County, Chippewa County, Stevens, Lake Of The Woods County, Ramsey, Carver.

For the main travel overview: Minnesota.