The Root River flows for through the

Driftless Area The Driftless Area, a topographical and cultural region in the American Midwest, comprises southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and the extreme northwestern corner of Illinois. Never covered by ice during the last ...

of southeastern

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

and is a tributary of the

Upper Mississippi River The Upper Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River upstream of St. Louis, Missouri, United States, at the confluence of its main tributary, the Missouri River. History In terms of geologic and hydrographic history, the Uppe ...

. The Root River is formed by three branches, the North, South and Middle branches of the Root River and the South Fork Root River. It is an excellent river for

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

ing and fishing. The gentle to moderate flowing river drops an average of 3.4 ft/mile from

Chatfield, Minnesota Chatfield is a city in Fillmore and Olmsted counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 2,779 at the 2010 census. The city's area is split almost equally between the two counties. Chatfield is known as "The Gateway to Bluff Cou ...

, to its pour point in the Mississippi River into Navigation Pool 7 just south of

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of La Crosse County. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population as of the 2020 census ...

and east of Hokah, Minnesota.

History and description

Root River is an English translation of the Dakota-language name Hokah. The Root River is formed by the merger of its North Branch Root River and Middle Fork Root River in

. A mile and a half north of Lanesboro, Minnesota it is joined by the South Branch Root River. The South Fork Root River joins the Root River near

Houston, Minnesota Houston is a city in Houston County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 997 at the 2020 census. History The community was named after Sam Houston, first president of the Republic of Texas. In 1852, William McSpadden platted the ori ...

. The South Branch Root River rises in Mower County as agricultural drainage ditches, which disappear underground, re-emerging as a much cooler stream at Mystery Cave near Preston, Minnesota. The 48° F water creates superb conditions for brook trout. The Root River and its tributaries lie within Minnesota's

, a region which missed being glaciated during the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

, i.e., the

Wisconsinian glaciation The Wisconsin Glacial Episode, also called the Wisconsin glaciation, was the most recent glacial period of the North American ice sheet complex. This advance included the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which nucleated in the northern North American Cord ...

. At Houston, the Root River's discharge was 845.2 cubic feet per second in 1961.

Fish and wildlife

Many fish species such as brook trout,

rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coast ...

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

, smallmouth bass,

rock bass The rock bass (''Ambloplites rupestris''), also known as the rock perch, goggle-eye, red eye, and black perch, is a freshwater fish native to east-central North America. This red eyed creature is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish fam ...

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus'') is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, th ...

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomo ...

s, shorthead redhorse, river redhorse,

golden redhorse The golden redhorse, ''Moxostoma erythrurum'', is a species of freshwater fish endemic to Ontario and Manitoba in Canada and the Midwestern, southern, and eastern United States. It lives in calm, often silty or sandy waters in streams, small to ...

silver redhorse The silver redhorse (''Moxostoma anisurum'': Maxostoma= mouth to suck; anisurum = unequal tail) is a species of freshwater fish endemic to Canada and the United States.Phillips G., Schmid W., Underhill J. 1982. Fishes of the Minnesota Region. ...

, Longnose Sturgeon,

greater redhorse The greater redhorse (''Moxostoma valenciennesi'') is a species of freshwater fish found in northeastern North America. It is the largest member of the genus ''Moxostoma'', with a maximum length of 80 cm (31.5 in). Distribution and ha ...

black redhorse The black redhorse (''Moxostoma duquesni'', also ''duquesnii'', ''duquesnei'') is a species of freshwater fish endemic to Ontario and the eastern half of the United States, where it lives in streams and small to medium rivers. A bottom-feeder ...

, northern hogsuckers, and

white suckers The white sucker (''Catostomus commersonii)'' is a species of freshwater cypriniform fish inhabiting the upper Midwest and Northeast in North America, but it is also found as far south as Georgia and as far west as New Mexico. The fish is commo ...

inhabit the river. The Root River system provides habitat to a number of bird species. Red-tailed hawks and

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same nich ...

s can be found in the area. Blue herons,

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally ...

s, and

wood duck The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a species of perching duck found in North America. The drake wood duck is one of the most colorful North American waterfowl. Description The wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A t ...

s are also commonly seen. Numerous mammals can be spotted in the region including

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the ...

gray fox The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener (biology), congener, the diminutive island fox ...

, red fox,

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological ni ...

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight o ...

s, squirrels, and

badger Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united ...

Trail

The Root River State Trail is a trail for bicycling, hiking, skating, skiing, etc. It begins in

Fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were or ...

and continues through Lanesboro, Whalan, Peterson, Rushford, and

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

2007 flood

As a result of the

2007 Midwest flooding The 2007 Midwest flooding was a major flooding event that occurred in the Midwestern United States in the third week of August 2007. While Hurricane Dean was affecting the Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico, and Tropical Storm Erin was af ...

, the river rose to , about a foot short of the height of the dike protecting the town of

Maps

References

External links

Minnesota DNR canoeing guide
for the Root River

for the Root River State Trail. {{Minnesota tributaries of the lower Mississippi drainage basin, state=collapsed Rivers of Minnesota Tributaries of the Mississippi River Driftless Area Rivers of Mower County, Minnesota Rivers of Houston County, Minnesota Southern Minnesota trout streams