Explore the Wildlife and Scenery of the Whitewater River Valley

A state park and a wildlife refuge within Minnesota’s Whitewater River Valley offer many recreational opportunities. For me, it’s a favorite place to photograph birds and other wildlife.

“One of the first conditions of happiness is that the link between man and nature shall not be broken.”
— Leo Tolstoy

Over millions of years, where the current U.S. states of Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin meet, the Mississippi River and its tributaries have cut deeply into bedrock. Locals call this area of rugged terrain bluff country, coulee country, or the driftless area. Much of the valley of one of the big river’s tributaries, the Whitewater River, in southeastern Minnesota, is managed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to preserve natural habitats, protect wildlife, and provide recreational opportunities.

Sometimes in spring, water runoff erodes clay deposits into the river, making it milk-white. The Dakota named the river for this springtime color.