Root River, Hwy 26 Public Water Access Site

On Root River

The Root River is a river of about 80 miles in the Driftless Area of southeastern Minnesota and a tributary of the Upper Mississippi River. Its main stem forms at Chatfield where the North Branch and Middle Branch meet; the South Branch, which flows from Mystery Cave, joins above Whalan near Lanesboro, and the South Fork joins near Houston. The river passes Lanesboro, Whalan, Peterson, Rushford and Houston before entering the Mississippi at Navigation Pool 7, east of Hokah and south of La Crosse, Wisconsin. Between Chatfield and the Mississippi it falls 310 feet, an average of 3.4 feet per mile. The water is somewhat cloudy because the soils in its watershed erode easily. More about Root River.

Boating rules on Root River

• Clean aquatic plants and animals off watercraft, drain all water away from the landing, and put unwanted bait in the trash before launching and before leaving (DNR state water trail guidance) source
• Peterson carry-in canoe access closed during the 2026 Mill Street Bridge reconstruction; erosion curtains guide paddlers, and a portage around the worksite is required once overhead work begins (temporary notice) source

Community

Where people who use Root River talk about it.

• Root River State Water Trail (Minnesota DNR, with water trail alerts) Agency
• Root River watershed (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency) Agency
• Friends of the Root River Association
• Root River Near Houston, MN - USGS Water Data Link
• Root River smallies - In-Depth Outdoors forum Forum
• Root River Minnesota - Paddling.com forum Forum
• Search Reddit: r/minnesota Reddit
• Search all of Reddit for Root River, Minnesota Reddit

Nearby launches

• Root River, Hokah Public Water Access Site · 2.4 mi · Thompson Creek
• Mississippi River, Sportsman Landing Public Water Access Site · 3.2 mi · Mississippi River
• Lawrence Lake Marin · 4.3 mi
• Mississippi River, Lower I-90 Landing Public Water Access Site · 5.5 mi · Mississippi River
• Mississippi River, Upper I-90 Public Water Access Site · 5.8 mi · Mississippi River
• Mississippi River, Wildcat Park Public Water Access Site · 6.3 mi · Mississippi River