Daniel S.
Yelp
Although Minneapolis is known for its skybridges, it offers endless bridges to nature. They are spiritual bridges. When the urban hiker such as Yours Truly spent hours along the picturesque Mississippi River I crossed several spiritual bridges that delivered me to nature.
If you want to see the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis on a time allowance, Boom Island Park via the Plymouth Avenue Bridge would be the northernmost point of the hike where the Old Stone Arch Bridge would be the southernmost point. Boom Island Park is a jewel in this infinite karot diamond necklace making up the Mississippi River Greenbelt. It is a 14 acre celebration of the Mississippi River featuring a rolling field of grass, playground, steps leading to the water, picnic shelters, and a lighthouse interspersed with trails continuing along the riverbank and St. Anthony Business District. There is also a direct connection to the Plymouth Avenue Bridge that carries all traffic to the west bank of the river.
Boom Island Park is also a celebration of history. Minneapolis has a rich history in lumber, grain and flour mills. Decades before the hiking revolution Minneapolis experienced the Industrial Revolution. Boom Island is named after the booms that mills used to separate the logs that subsequently floated down the Mississippi River towards the very popular scenic spot known as St. Anthony Falls. During this era it was a true island. Today there is a remnant from the logging Era. It is the converted pedestrian and bike bridge carrying park users across the Mississippi onto a forested path through Nicollet Island. When booms took over Boom Island it was a train bridge. Surprisingly there is a lack of signage explaining its rich history.
Boom Island is also a unique park owing to the fact that it features one of the few United States lighthouses along a river. The Boom Island Lighthouse was my highlight of the park and one of the highlights hiking along the river. Before stepping into the park, I set eyes on it with the Plymouth Avenue Bridge hiking north on the Grand Rounds Trail. It was the destination photo spot on the northernmost point of my Mississippi River loop hike. I would like to share that the most captivating vista of the lighthouse was from the Plymouth Avenue Bridge. This is scenic eye candy where the lighthouse towers above the Minneapolis skyline with a placid Mississippi River bordered by a forested west bank. From the Plymouth Avenue Bridge a pedestrian bridge leads on a down slope course into the 14 acre park. From this perspective I took in a forested hill adorned with wildflowers leading to the lighthouse and river.
South of the lighthouse, the park is an open well manicured grassy field. The hiker has a choice to continue southeast toward the St. Anthony Business District or directly south along the river to Nicollet Island. Or both. I chose the river route where I ultimately connected to the business district via Hennipen Avenue. With every step south the lighthouse was further in the rear view mirror. By now the spiritual bridges of the most tranquil part of the Mississippi River that I have ever seen overtook the experience. The steps leading to the waters edge overlooked the forested west bank. It is my understanding that these steps are called the marina. Throughout the park adorned lamp posts paralleled the paved walking trail. When I turned around to look north I could see the Plymouth Avenue Bridge and the very same powerlines leading to St. Anthony Falls and destinations beyond. It was when I crossed the former railroad bridge onto Nicolte Island that another spiritual bridge disconnected me from the hustle and bustle of modern life. The path led into a heavy forested trail where a canyon of trees made the nearby high rise canyon of downtown Minneapolis appear a world away. The deep woods south of Boom Island Park covered the view of the Mississippi River and homes. Hiking in the city of Minneapolis it felt that I was in the Nature Conservatory instead of a major city. Ultimately nature merged with development at the railroad crossing near LaSalle Academy. From here I walked a local street south onto eastbound Hennepin Avenue which brought me into the St. Anthony Business District to continue the loop hike.
Boom Island is an example that spiritual bridges are neverendinding. They enrich your memories for the rest of your life.
