Minnesota River Valley Birding Trail
Kasota Region North
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| Site Description | Directions to Site |
| MINNESOTA
VALLEY STATE RECREATION AREA – LAWRENCE UNIT
Scott County. Habitat: woods, thickets, grasslands, riparian, and wetlands. Amenties: T, R, C, P. Notes: The park is open daily all year, but the campground is closed from Labor Day to Memorial Day. Contact: 952-492-6400. Web Site Available. |
From the intersection of US 169 and Co. Rd. 9 on the west side of Jordan, travel north on Co. Rd. 9 for 0.3 miles to Co. Rd. 57 (190th St. W.). Turn left onto Co. Rd. 57 and travel west for approximately 2.0 miles (past the point where the paved road ends) to where the park begins. There are several spots in the park where visitors may pull off the road. The first is approximately 2.8 miles from Co. Rd. 9. The main trail parking lot is further down the road and past the main campground. The best trails are those that follow along the river edge. Co. Rd. 57 continues through the park and eventually connects back with US 169 south of Jordan. |
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| MINNESOTA
VALLEY STATE RECREATION AREA – KELLY LAKE UNIT Carver County. Habitat: woods, thickets, riparian, and wetlands. Amenities: T. Notes: Please be careful entering and exiting this site. The small parking area lies on a blind curve in the road. Contact: 952-492-6400. Web Site Available. |
Continue south on US 169 until you reach the town of Belle Plaine. At the intersection of US 169 and Hwy. 25, turn right and drive west through town and across the Minnesota River to Co. Rd. 6 on the west side of the river. Turn right onto what will become Co. Rd. 40 and drive 0.5 miles to a small turnoff on the right, where you should see a gate. Park here and walk down a wide level trail into the Kelly Lake Unit. |
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WASHINGTON LAKE PUBLIC
WATER ACCESS Sibley
County. REDHEAD WATERFOWL PRODUCTION AREA
Sibley County (155 acres). REVANCHE WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA Sibley
County (114.3 acres). |
Retrace your steps to the intersection of Hwy. 25 and Co. Rd. 6. Turn right onto Hwy. 25 and drive 9.0 miles west to Washington Lake Public Access. There is a small boat launch area at the southeast corner of the lake where you can stop and scope the lake. Other vantage points for Washington Lake are from Co. Rd. 16 on the lake’s east side and from Hwy. 25 slightly west of the boat launch. Redhead Waterfowl Production Area is another mile west on Hwy. 25 on the left side of the road. Two miles further west, just before you reach the town of Green Isle, is the Revanche Wildlife Management Area on the left. This site has no parking area. |
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| HIGH
ISLAND CREEK COUNTY PARK Sibley County. Habitat: woods, thickets, grasslands, and riparian. Amenities: T, R, P. Notes: Do not try to cross the creek at the bottom of the hill when the water is high. Contact: 507-237-4078. Web Site: None |
Retrace your steps to the intersection of Hwy. 25 and Co. Rd. 6. Turn right on Co. Rd. 6 and travel south several miles past its intersection with Co. Rd. 5, which crosses the Minnesota River, to Co. Rd. 12 (335th Ave.) in Jessenland. Turn right on Co. Rd. 12 and travel west up the hill approximately 2.0 miles to 341st Lane. Turn left and follow the winding gravel road south for 1.3 miles to High Island Creek County Park. |
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MINNESOTA VALLEY STATE
RECREATION AREA – BLAKELEY UNIT
Scott County. |
Retrace your steps to the intersection of Co. Rd. 12 and Co. Rd. 6 in Jessenland. Travel south on Co. Rd. 6 for 3.2 miles to where it intersects with Hwy. 19 in downtown Henderson. Turn left onto Hwy. 19 and travel south across the Minnesota River. When you reach the first gravel road on the east side of the river, turn left onto Co. Rd. 51 (Chatfield Rd.) and travel north for approximately 1.7 miles. You will see the wildlife management area’s signs on your right. Continue north on this road to its intersection with Salisbury Hill Road. At that point, you are in the heart of the Blakeley Unit. This unit does not have any good parking areas. |
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| NEY
ENVIRONMENTAL LEARNING CENTER LeSueur County (446 acres). Habitat: woods, grasslands, prairie, and riparian. Amenities: T. and R (restroom only open when center is open, which is very limited). Notes: The learning center is open by appointment only. Contact: 507-665-6244 or 507-248-3474. Web Site: None |
Retrace your steps to the intersection of Hwy. 19 and Co. Rd. 51 just east of Henderson. Turn left on Hwy. 19 and travel east up the hill a short distance to the Ney Environmental Learning Center on your right. There is parking and access to trails at the Center. |
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MINNESOTA VALLEY STATE RECREATION
AREA – RUSH RIVER UNIT
Sibley County. |
Retrace your steps to the intersections of Hwy. 19, Co. Rd. 6, and Hwy. 93 in downtown Henderson. Turn left onto Hwy. 93 and travel south 0.3 miles to Ridge Road (the turn for Hilltop Elementary School). Turn right on Ridge Road and travel up the hill to the corner of Allanson Park on your right. Turn right onto South Street and travel west past the school; left onto 300th Street; south and west on 300th Street for approximately 2.0 miles to its intersection with Rush River Park Road. Turn left and travel south approximately 6.0 miles to the park. (Note: It is possible to continue through the park and back to US 169 just west of LeSueur. However, if you wish to continue this loop, it is easier to simply retrace your steps to downtown Henderson.) |
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CHAMBERLAIN WOODS
SCIENTIFIC AND NATURAL AREA LeSueur County (254 acres). |
Retrace your steps to Hwy. 93 just south of downtown Henderson. Travel south on Hwy. 93 approximately 4.0 miles to its intersection with US 169. Drive a short distance on US 169/Hwy. 93 to the exit for Hwy. 93 at LeSueur. Travel east on Hwy. 93 for 1.0 mile across the Minnesota River into LeSueur. Turn right on S. Second Street. Travel south one block to Ferry Street. Turn right and travel west one block to Main Street. Turn left and travel south on S. Main Street (Co. Rd. 36) for 4.4 miles to 380th Street. Turn right and travel west 0.4 miles to where the road bends. There’s a small parking lot for Chamberlain Woods Scientific and Natural Area on your right. |
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OTTAWA BLUFFS LeSueur
County (63 acres). OTTAWA WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA
LeSueur County (577 acres). |
Retrace your steps to Co. Rd. 36. Turn right and travel south 1.0 mile to its intersection with Co. Rd. 23. Turn right on Co. Rd. 23 and travel west to a stop sign in the town of Ottawa. Turn left and continue south on Co. Rd. 23 to Ottawa Bluffs. The total distance from Co. Rd. 36 to Ottawa Bluffs is 1.8 miles. This site has no parking area. Continue south on Co. Rd. 23 for 2.6 miles until you see a gravel road on your right, which leads into Ottawa Wildlife Management Area. This site has a parking area and public water access. At this point, you can continue south on Co. Rd. 23 for 1.6 miles to Hwy. 99 just 1.0 mile east of St. Peter. Turn right (west) onto Hwy. 99 and cross the Minnesota River into St. Peter and US 169. You can either turn north on US 169 and return to the starting point for this loop or turn south on US 169 to begin the south loop of the Kasota Region. |
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| Key to Amenities: T: trail; R: restroom; C: camping; P: picnic area; B: boating. |
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The Minnesota River Valley Birding Trail is a project of Audubon Minnesota