Minnesota has 1 designated Wild and Scenic River with 12 protected segments spanning 127.8 miles — the St. Croix Wild and Scenic River, which forms the border with Wisconsin and is administered by the National Park Service as part of the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway. All 127.8 miles fall under NPS jurisdiction, divided between Scenic and Recreational classifications. The river runs through a deep, forested sandstone gorge in the north and broadens into a wide recreational corridor near the Twin Cities metro, offering exceptional access for paddlers and anglers in the upper Midwest. Click any segment on the map for details.
Wild and Scenic Rivers in Minnesota at a Glance
The St. Croix is one of the original eight rivers named in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968, making Minnesota’s designation among the most historically significant in the national system. The river is jointly managed with Wisconsin under the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, one of only a few NPS riverways in the country where the protected corridor spans a state boundary. The upper St. Croix and its major tributary, the Namekagon, together form the full Riverway — the USFS data attributes the Minnesota-side segments to Minnesota, with the Wisconsin-side miles appearing under that state. Minnesota’s 127.8 miles cover the reach from the St. Croix’s headwaters south to the St. Croix Falls gorge and the broader flatwater corridor approaching the Twin Cities.
Classification Breakdown
The St. Croix has no Wild-classified segments in Minnesota — the corridor transitions from Scenic in its narrower, more forested upper reaches to Recreational as it widens and becomes more accessible near the Twin Cities metro. This reflects the practical reality of a river system with a major metropolitan area at its lower end and increasing shoreline development southward.
| Classification | Segments | Protected Miles |
|---|---|---|
| Scenic | 5 | 70.8 |
| Recreational | 7 | 57.0 |
Managing Agencies
The National Park Service administers all 12 segments through the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway headquarters in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin. The NPS works closely with the Minnesota DNR and the Wisconsin DNR on water quality, shoreline development standards, and recreation management across the full bi-state corridor.
| Agency | Segments | Miles |
|---|---|---|
| National Park Service | 12 | 127.8 |
Longest Designated Rivers in Minnesota
| River | Miles | Segments | Classification | Agency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Croix Wild and Scenic River | 127.8 | 12 | Recreational / Scenic | NPS |
The St. Croix Wild and Scenic River corridor in Minnesota runs from the river’s glacially formed headwaters south through the deep Interstate Park gorge at Taylors Falls — one of the most dramatic river canyons in the upper Midwest — and continues through increasingly broad, slow water approaching the confluence with the Mississippi at Prescott, Wisconsin. The Taylors Falls reach is famed for its potholes and basalt formations; the National Park Service maintains visitor centers at Taylors Falls and St. Croix Falls (Wisconsin). Downstream, the Scenic reach transitions to Recreational as shoreline cottages and marinas increase through Stillwater and beyond.
Visiting the St. Croix Wild and Scenic Riverway
The St. Croix is primarily a paddling and motorboat river rather than a whitewater destination. The upper reach from Taylors Falls south is calm, wide, and suitable for kayaks, canoes, and motorboats; the NPS requires permits for some high-use camping areas during peak summer weekends. Anglers target walleye, smallmouth bass, and muskellunge throughout the designated corridor, with the river ranked among the top muskie fisheries in the upper Midwest. The Interstate Park at Taylors Falls (Minnesota DNR) and Interstate State Park (Wisconsin DNR) together protect the gorge and offer hiking on rhyolite and basalt cliffs above the river. The historic river town of Stillwater, at the southern end of the Scenic reach, offers outfitter rentals and NPS interpretive programming.
Maps for Neighboring States
The St. Croix Riverway is shared with Wisconsin, which administers the opposite bank and holds the Namekagon tributary designation. Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota, which border Minnesota, each have separate designated rivers in the federal system — see the South Dakota Wild and Scenic Rivers map for the Missouri River designation. For the full national picture, see the US Wild and Scenic Rivers map.
Data Sources
River segment geometry, classification, mileage, and managing-agency attributes come from the US Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse, specifically the National Wild and Scenic River Segments dataset jointly maintained by the USFS, NPS, BLM, and US Fish and Wildlife Service. Source service: USFS EDW Wild Scenic River Segments. Authoritative national index: rivers.gov. State recreation context: Minnesota DNR, the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, and the National Park Service Great Lakes Network.
