Cruise to Red Wing,MN

Our northern most cruise stop is Red Wing,MN. It is a beautiful journey up the Mississippi River from our home town of La Crosse,WI, the views of the bluffs and the wildlife, such as Eagle Watching, are spectacular and there are so many fun places to stop and see. When we arrived in Red Wing,MN we parked at one of two marinas located in town. We stayed at the Red Wing Marina which is the closest to downtown so we could walk and check out all the local shops and restaurants. The other marina called Ole Miss Marina is the largest marina in Red Wing and is located a little north of town.
From the Red Wing Marina we were able to walk to the Visitor's Center and get some information on things to see. At the Center, for those that don't want to do a lot of walking you can get tickets for a Trolley that will take you to many different stops such as the famous Red Wing Pottery, Sheldon Theatre, Barn Bluff, Bay Pointe Park, the St. James Hotel, and the Goodhue County History Museum. The city is full of beauty and rich history with so much to see you want to stay a couple of days to take it all in.
Across the Mississippi River on the Wisconsin side is the Harbor Restaurant, Bar, and Marina. They feature summer festivals along with their own bikini contest, a DJ, and live entertainment regularly.
If gambling is of interest to you, further north up the river is Treasure Island Casino and Marina.
Continue to follow Houseboating Excursions in the Mississippi River Valley as we provide information and cruise to more stops from as far north as Red Wing,MN to as far south as Prairie Du Chein,WI.

A Floating Bar?

Just to prove that cruising the Mississippi River is never boring we cruised to a unique floating bar just below Lock and Dam #5A called the DAM SALOON. If coming from the south you would follow the channel to the right past the Winona Municipal Harbor(Dick's Marine) and it will be on the right. If coming from the north follow the channel to the left and just past the town of Fountain City is Lock and Dam #5A, you have to lock through it and come immediately to your left across the channel.
Anything goes or not goes; clothes,shoes or none of the above, everything is welcome at the Dam Saloon even the wildlife living there. Stop in and have a drink and the wildlife tours are free. Just ask about Beavers?
Held every year is their famous Bikini Contest(check website for exact dates). They also have other contests going on to participate in. Don't forget to ask about joining the RAT CLUB, it comes with a special drink.
The Dam Saloon has a lot of history, so stop in and listen to the river tales from the past to the present. The Dam Saloon years ago was a Mississippi River Float and still offers some great fishing for a small fee and allows overnight stays for free, if you stop and the bar is closed just call the number on the door and the owner will be there in 15 minutes or less to open, no one goes away thirsty from the Dam Saloon.
The Dam Saloon does not have a grill but is one of our favorite places to stop and get refreshed so follow Houseboating Excursions in the Mississippi River Valley as we continue to take you to new exciting places, cruise stops and provide information.

Mississippi River Cruise Stop; Lake City,MN

Houseboating Excursions cruised the Mississippi River to the beautiful lake called Lake Pepin. We pulled into the Lake City Marina in Lake City,MN. This area offers some of the greatest boating in the Midwest, there are boats of all kinds. Lake Pepin is approximately 3 miles wide and 21 miles long. The one thing you will notice is the large amount of sailboats. On a beautiful, light windy day the lake is full of people sailboating, it is a spectacular sight to see. Lake City,MN is considered the "Pearl of the Mississippi" and is the birthplace of waterskiing. Lake City,MN has 2 marinas that offer overnight docking and refueling, Lake City Marina in the center of town and on the north end is Hansen's Harbor. They are both close enough to the city to walk and enjoy some shopping and their many restaurants such as the Nosh Restaurant, Chickadee Cottage Cafe, and Skyline on Pepin. For some evening live entertainment the Old Bank Bar is also close.
Lake City,MN has several different ways to enjoy the beauty of Lake Pepin by offering a modern day paddlewheel boat called the "Pearl of the Lake Paddleboat". It also offers tours on a 40-foot Taiwanese Sailing Yacht or take a houseboat cruise offered by Great River Houseboats.
Lake City,MN has many events going on during the boating season such as their 100-mile garage sale on the first weekend in May and Water Ski Days on the last weekend in June and many more for the whole family to enjoy.
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Mississippi River Cruise to Winona,MN

Houseboating Excursions made a stop at Winona,MN to take in the sites, do some shopping, have an ice cream cone and a wonderful evening meal at a local restaurant. We started out the day by locking through Lock and Dam #7 and traveled from La Crosse,WI north to Trempealeau where we stopped at a local bar and grill right on the river called Hungry Point. The food, service, atmosphere were all excellent, a great place to eat and relax. They also have a bait store and offer kayaks to rent. We then cruised north through Lock and Dam #6 and continued on until we reached Winona,MN. The Winona Marina is located at the south end of the city which offers gas,supplies, pump outs, and overnight stays. The heart of Winona has a long concrete levee with docks for boats of all sizes to tie up to and venture into the city. Along the river front there is Godfather's Pizza and the Cane Pole Cafe which offers food and delicious ice cream snacks. We walked the sidewalk a few blocks to the downtown area and did some shopping and sightseeing. We ended the evening with a nice dinner at the Jefferson Pub and Grill. At the north end just past the Interstate Bridge is Winona's Municipal Marina with Dick's Marine that offers gas,boat accessories, certified technicians, overnight slips, other supplies and monitors channel 16. Cruise north to Lock and Dam #5 you come upon the Dam Saloon which is the only floating bar on the river. They have a large dock to tie up to and offer free overnight docking, drinks, wildlife and fishing.
Come follow Houseboating Excursions in the Mississippi River Valley as we continue to take more Mississippi River Cruises and provide information.

Dog Days of Summer

The month of August is always referred to as the Dog Days of Summer which means hot temperatures with high humidity. Houseboating Excursions in the Mississippi River Valley is reminding everyone of the dangers of Heat Illnesses and Heat Stress Disorders. When out on the river it is easy to overlook these dangers when having a good time.
Statistics show that more than 300 people in the United States alone die from Heat Illnesses every year. These illnesses cause more deaths than hurricanes, tornados, lightning, and floods combined. The elderly and young children are at the highest risk. Heat Illnesses occur when the body is unable to cool itself properly. Sweating is the body's normal way of cooling itself, but when the humidity is too high the sweat is unable to evaporate, preventing the body from releasing the heat. Other conditions leading to high risk of a heat illness are obesity, fever, dehydration, heart disease, sunburn, drug use and alcohol consumption. Heat stroke may occur when the body is unable to regulate its temperature. Body temperature may rise to 106 degrees within just 10 minutes. The result of heat stroke can leave disabilities or even death. Heat Exhaustion is a milder illness that can occur over several days of high heat exposure and an unbalance of hydrating liquids. If left untreated, it could lead to stroke.
Warning Signs to look for when it comes to Heat Illnesses are: extreme body temperature increase to above 103 degress; red, hot or dry skin and no sweating, a throbbing headache, unconsciousness, dizziness, nausea, and confusion. For Heat Exhaustion look for heavy sweating, muscle cramps, fainting and a headache.
A few ways to managing extreme heat conditions would be to as Koal and George are doing and cool off with a swim in the river. Go to a nearby public swimming pool or take cool baths or showers. Drink plenty of WATER and stay away from drinks that have caffeine, sugar, or alcohol. Try to avoid drinking very cold drinks because they may create stomach cramps. If possible stay indoors of a building that has air conditioning, even though electric fans are good, they won't prevent a heat illness.
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Sands on the Riverfront

A cruise stop in La Crosse,WI features the Sands on the Riverfront event. It was located in Riverside Park along the Mississippi River. Here many sculpture artists gathered together for friendly competition at carving piles of wet sand into different characters of their choice. They picked a theme for the sculptures called AT The Movies. Each group of sculptures was sponsored by local businesses. The event had many family activities to do such as different air filled trampolines for the kids to play on, live entertainment at the park's band shell, food and drinks. Admission was free but was accepting donations for Riverfront, which is an organization that helps people with disabilities.
The main sponsors for the event were Centurytel, Mathy Construction Co. and Big Event Company. This is an annual event lasting for 2 days and generally taking place in mid-august.
Riverside Park has a concrete edge for boats to tie up to when cruising the Mississippi River to stop and relax at the park. It is the location of where 3 rivers come together; Mississippi River, Black River and the La Crosse River. You can recognize the park from the river by looking for the tall Indian statue.
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A Gambling Cruise

A PINK ELEPHANT! No you haven't been drinking or have you? We took a Mississippi River cruise to Marquette,IA to do some riverboat gambling and some sightseeing. We pulled up to their dock and parked our houseboat on the channel side of the dock which offers us plenty of room and the dock has electrical for us to plug in to. The dock is run by Lady Luck Casino. They charged us $45.00 for the night which is pretty common at about $1.00 a foot. It came with a free bag of ice, a key for their showers and bathrooms. They offer pumpouts too for $10.00 and have gasoline available and diesel per 24hr.notice. The hours are Monday-Thursday Closed, Friday 12:00pm-8:00pm,Saturday 9:00am-7:00pm,Sunday 8:00am-6:00pm. The phone number is 563-873-3531. We parked for the night and ventured up to the casino for some gambling fun and to stop at the Calypso's Buffet for a bite to eat. Didn't win, but didn't lose much either, it was good fun.
We walked into town the next day which is maybe 1/8 mile from the dock and ate at the Marquette Cafe and Bar,which is open 7 days a week. We then ventured to the Eagles Landing Winery and checked out their winemaking process which uses grapes from their own vineyard. We enjoy wine very much so we had to try their free samples and brought home our favorite ones. There are also a few antique shops in the area to shop at.
For more Mississippi River Cruise destinations and adventures come follow us as we take you to another cruise stop and provide information about the Mississippi River.

Cruise to McGregor,IA

Our next cruise stop is at Mc Gregor,IA. We cruised down the Mississippi River enjoying the beautiful views the river valley has to offer. On our way we were able to see many bald eagles flying around getting fish, and as we approached closer just north of McGregor,IA, you can see one of the many peaks and summits in the area such as Effigy Mounds National Monument, Pike's Peak bluff. We pulled into the Mc Gregor Marina, which is located at the river mile marker 633.5 and they monitor channel 16, which is the main marine channel. They welcome boats of any size to transit or you can call 1-800-848-2413 to reserve a slip. They offer pontoon and fishing boat rentals along with a fishing guide service. They also have gas,pumpouts, and boat parts and service.
When you walk up the dock you come to a nice restaurant called Mr. McGregor's Beer and Bratz Garden which offers hot sandwiches, beer, soda, and ice cream. If you would like to take a short walk to town there are also many other restaurants such as McGregor Coffee Roasters, Old Man River Restaurant and Brewery and others with some having live entertainment.
If shopping is on the list, Mc Gregor has their own unique shopping mall that has 3 levels, 4 buildings, and 12 shops. It is right on Main St. with close proximity to the marina.
Another marina that is also located in McGregor,IA is Boatels Houseboat Rentals and Marina. There you can stop in and rent a houseboat and enjoy all the spectacular views and events that take place in the Upper Mississippi River Valley.
Please continue to follow and check our web site here at Houseboating Excursions in the River Valley as we take you to another Mississippi River Cruise Stop.