How many islands dot the Mississippi inside the Twin Cities metro? That’s not easy to say. Little islands come and go. Even the biggest ones sometimes seem to fragment when the water gets high. We likely have more today than in years past, in part because the three metro locks and dams are no longer used for commercial shipping, so water levels aren’t kept as high as they once were. There’s talk of getting rid of some of these dams to restore the river, and this might make more islands arise naturally. Plus, the Army Corps of Engineers is building several islands in St. Paul for wildlife from dredged river sands. Here’s a look at some of our islands:
Downtown Minneapolis residents have watched the rise of Hall’s Island, just below the Plymouth Avenue Bridge, which was stripped of industrial contaminants and rewilded, for dragonflies and everyone. The biggest islands, of course, are easier to count, and sometimes offer cocktails. There’s Nicollet Island, 48 acres, including historic homes, a church, a private school, trestle bridges, and a historic inn. Just south, little-known brambly Hennepin Island, seen as you gaze north from the Stone Arch Bridge, is fun to explore after happy hour at St. Anthony Main.
It’s a bit of a spell downriver before we hit 220-acre Pike Island and 75-acre Picnic Island at Fort Snelling—peaceful, sacred islands where you can hear the hoot of owls and the lonesome cry of a train at the same time.
Tiny Raspberry Island in St. Paul, home of the Minnesota Boat Club since the 1870s, is reached by a bridge from Harriet Island that mainly lies in the shadow cast by the Wabasha Street Bridge above. Speaking of Harriet Island, the much larger 62.96-acre recreational area is no longer a true island now that various channels have been filled in to grant road access, but it’s both beautiful and beloved, offering gorgeous St. Paul skyline views and access to miles of trails and serving as a popular picnic and party destination. (Pro tip: get your picnic to go from the deli at nearby El Burrito Mercado, 175 Cesar Chavez St.)
