Minnehaha Falls bring nature to urban area in Minneapolis

Autumn provides a beautiful backdrop to Minnesota’s Minnehaha Falls. The falls, part of Minnehaha Park in Minneapolis, was featured in an 1855 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poet based his characters – Hiawatha and Minnehaha – on Ojibwe tribal members. A sculpture representing Hiawatha and his love, Minnehaha, is located upstream from Minnehaha Falls.

Minnehaha Park is a beautiful – and popular – nature attraction in Minneapolis. A trail guides visitors to the bottom of the creek, providing spots to view Minnehaha Falls. The park was built during the Great Depression through the Works Project Administration. It’s impressive that so many of our nation’s older parks were built during the Depression and continue to remain viable. It says a lot about the quality of work from almost a century ago.

Minnehaha Falls has a 53-foot drop along Minnehaha Creek. The creek eventually flows into the Mississippi River. Minnehaha Park is part of the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway, a 50-mile route that features recreational areas around Minneapolis.

Minnehaha Park – which encompasses 193 acres – offers additional walking trails and picnic areas. The trails give visitors views of a variety of trees, such as Maple and Cottonwood. During the fall, Minnehaha Park shines with the changing colors of the leaves.

The park is home to the first house in Minneapolis. The John Stevens House was built by the military officer on the west bank of the Mississippi River, near St. Anthony’s Falls, near downtown. The house was moved near Minnehaha Park in the mid-1890s. It became part of the park in 1982 and has been open for tours since 1985.

The park features other attractions, including an old train depot and a replica of Longfellow’s house.

We enjoyed our visit to the park. We recommend visiting the park early during the day or taking the light rail. There is a fee for parking. Parking can be difficult to find as it’s a popular park. We’ve been there twice. The first time was on a holiday weekend and parking was impossible to find (we had been warned). During our recent visit, it took about 15-20 minutes to find a parking spot.

For more information on Minnehaha Falls and the park, please visit www.visitroseville.com, www.minneapolis.org or www.exploreminnesota.com.