Mississippi River Restaurants...?

[chuckndiscs]

Good Day!

So I have moved up in the boating world to a 17ft 1969 Larson Volero 177 with a 100 HP Merc on it from my 14ft Alumacraft of last year . VERY FUN! I have been out on the Mississippi a couple times now playing around and I am now looking into going for a boat ride to a restaurant, docking, eating, and then boating back with my wife and 2 younger boys. I am normally launching from the 494 / Mississippi boat launch (SSP) and have found a couple of restaurants to stop in too. The first is the Hidden Marina in Saint Paul Park and the other is Mississippi Pub in Inver Grove Heights at the Marina there. Any reviews on these two establishments?

From what I read Hidden Marina used to be called Willie's Hidden Marina and they just re-opened in April, 2010. Their menu looks reasonable and has some excellent selections. I am not opposed in any way shape or form to the local ma and pa type restaurant, infact, most of the time I enjoy those more.

Any other good restaurant places around the Inver Grove Hieghts, Saint Paul Park, Cottage Grove, Newport, South Saint Paul, Saint Paul (Harriet Isle) area that you all would recommend?

Any recommendations to docking your boat at one of these marina's / restaurants? Are there costs normally just for docking or is is free docking as long as you eat type thing?


[SIDE QUESTION ON LAKES]
Also... I know of Prior Lake and Lake Waconia (and of course Minnetonka Lake) that have restaurant establishments that you can pull up to on them (and dine in shorts ) any other good ones?

Thanks!

-ChucknDiscs

 

[The Famous Grouse]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

How far do you want to go and what's the effective range of your boat?

Hastings has some good restrauants in town and there is a public dock just upriver from the bridge. Obviously you have to lock down at #3 just upstream of the park in Hastings.

Prescott WI at the confluence of the Miss and St. Croix (3 MI down from Hst) has restrauants as well.

Heading up the St. Croix maybe 15 miles (don't quote me on mileages here, do a Google Earth and measure them yourself if range is an issue) is Afton on the MN side. There's a great pub at the marina in Afton, but it gets busy at peak times.

BTW, abide by all no-wake zones on the St. Croix! If you think the St. Paul NW zone is patrolled, you ain't seen nothin' till you see the St. Croix.

And no wake means ABSOLUTELY no wake, this is the most partrolled stretch of water in MN and the slightest step out of line will see you instantly nailed with a massive fine. It's no wake from the 94 bridge upstream of Hudson to the RR bridge. There are also several no wake zones downstream of 94 between Hudson and Prescott. Do not even THINK of stepping out of line, all these zones are patrolled 24/7 and the cops are looking for any and every excuse to pull you up so then they can also breathalize you for BWI. I have seen dozens of people over the years being led off of various law enforcement boats in handcuffs, don't let that be you.

5 miles fruther upstream is Hudson WI. Careful on Lake St. Croix just down stream from 94 bridge, it can get very rough with a S wind.

Plenty of docking space at the wall. Barkers on main street is the best burger joint in WI and far less crowded than the higher-end places right by the river.

Upstream fruther is Stillwater on the MN side. Again, you can tie up at the town wall.

Range will probably be an issue with your size boat and a 2 stroke outboard. Be sure you refuel before running downriver past Afton because once you get into the middle section there's quite a few miles with no fuel until you hit Prescott.

Another great run is to launch at Hastings and run downriver to Red Wing. Dock at the town dock and eat at the Stags Head downtown. You can't dine your swimsuit there, you need to dress up just a bit. Usually what we did when I had an open bow was to beach on a sand bar upstream of Red Wing and change clothes out of sight, then continue down. Red Wing is one lock down from Hastings, #4 is at Prarie Island.

Again, the Hastings to Red Wing run is long (20-some miles?) and no fuel that I know of between Prescott and RW, so make sure you have enough range.

Below Red Wing on Lake Pepin there are dozens of restraunats on both sides of the lake. Stockholm, WI is my favorite town, public beach and dock, town is a short walk inland.

Be careful at the narrows at the mouth of Pepin by the Chippewa Delta, that neck is tight and wakes get compressed producing very high waves. Also be very careful on Pepin with the wind.

See you out there. My boat is a Wellcraft called the Distant Sun.

Grouse

 

[chuckndiscs]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

My distance right now is probably 20 miles or so on one tank... I have to pull the onboard tank this winter and inspect it. PO stated he was not sure of its condition but was skeptical that it didnt have holes or collect water, so I have been using 6 gall loose tanks instead. I get probably 1.5 hours of hard driving on one 6 gallon tank.

Ill have to try the St Croix out, sounds like a trip into Stillwater area for lunch would be a blast! I have always been a bit reserved about S Croix as I dont want to be "that guy" amongst the expensive boats!

I was thinking of trailering it for a bit south of the Twin Cities and hitting up the southern Miss. river some..might have to that in August! Question on heading that way... locks and dams, any real trick or gotcha's on them? I read the MN regs up and down in regards to going through them but I know there are always unwritten rules! Any advice would be awesome!

This weekend we are heading out to Prior Lake to enjoy their festival and body of water!

Thanks for all the replies! We are going to hit up one of the two restaurants I mentioned above 2 weekends from now so I will update on my opinion and review afterwards in case anyone wants to hear on them!

Thanks!

Chuck-n-Discs

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

Upstream fruther is Stillwater on the MN side. Again, you can tie up at the town wall.
Grouse

If you tie up at the town wall, make sure you have some big bumpers. The concrete is pretty unforgiving for smaller boats when the wind kicks up.

Also make sure that you do not go any further north than Stillwater - there is usually a patrol there informing people and there are some signs, that you are not allowed to travel north from stillwater


(Edited for correctness)

 

[korygrandy]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

Also make sure that you do not go any further north than Stillwater - there is usually a patrol there informing people and there are some signs, but if you cross the imaginary line you are not allowed to come back down south.

I am just curious as to why you cannot go further north? I see those ferries running in Taylors Falls all the time.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

I am just curious as to why you cannot go further north? I see those ferries running in Taylors Falls all the time.

Here's the reason - and I had it backwards. I remember trying to plan a trip and we must have been thinking about dropping in Taylors Falls and going down then back up. You are not allowed to boat past stillwater when travelling north. The ferries operate exclusively above the line in stillwater.

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/boating/zebramussels_stcroix.html

Boating or launching north of Stillwater the St. Croix River
Boaters who intend to head north (upstream) from the Stillwater area should be aware that the National Park Service (NPS) has restricted travel in the Federal zone at RM 28.5 (the High Bridge area). No boats will be allowed to travel north (upstream) past this point. Boaters who are traveling downstream can pass this area, but will not be permitted to travel back upstream.
Other than the statewide prohibition on placing a boat or trailer in the water with zebra mussels or aquatic plants attached, there are currently no other restrictions on launching boats at access sites north of the High Bridge area on the river (such as those at state parks or on the mainstem at Osceola) as long as the boater does not travel downstream beyond the NPS restricted area that ends near the High Bridge.

 

[The Famous Grouse]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

Ill have to try the St Croix out, sounds like a trip into Stillwater area for lunch would be a blast! I have always been a bit reserved about S Croix as I dont want to be "that guy" amongst the expensive boats!

I was thinking of trailering it for a bit south of the Twin Cities and hitting up the southern Miss. river some..might have to that in August! Question on heading that way... locks and dams, any real trick or gotcha's on them? I read the MN regs up and down in regards to going through them but I know there are always unwritten rules! Any advice would be awesome!


Chuck-n-Discs

I wouldn't be intimidated by the Croix, there's not near the posing and posturing out there compared to that giant satallite toilet they call Minnetonka.

Regarding heading south, it's awesome down by Winona, south to LaCrosse, but it is big water so keep an eye on the weather and with your setup you'll want to carry additional fuel.

Obviously the #1 thing on rivers is knowing the depth of the water. Even large backwaters can be extremely shallow, so be careful and keep a sharp watch anytime you're not in the shipping channel.

Don't be intimidated by the locks. When approaching the lock from upstream to lock down, always approach from the lock side, never try to cross right above the dam side where the fast water is in case your engine should fail.

Use common sense, follow instructions, and do what everyone else does. Keep your speed down to no wake and your boat in control, and have your fenders ready.

The #1 thing about locks is this: NEVER NEVER NEVER TIE THE ROPE THAT HOLDS YOU NEAR THE LOCK WALL TO YOUR BOAT. Just hold it in your hand. Repeat, DO NOT tie it. If you don't understand why, just ask, but make sure everyone on your boat knows. It's a basic instinct when a person is handed a line on a boat to quick tie it to something. Major mistake on a lock.

I am just curious as to why you cannot go further north? I see those ferries running in Taylors Falls all the time.

You can go north of Stillwater, but only to the high bridge, which is a few miles upstream.

The reason for this is to slow the spread of Zebra Mussles upstream.

Warning here: The channel above Stillwater becomes EXTREMELY narrow and hard to follow in places and water depth outside of the channel is best expressed in inches, not feet.

It is also not well marked in places because this is not considered commercially navigable water, so bouys can be few and far between. It is very dangerous to travel at speed in this area if you don't absolutely know where the channel is. This area of the river alone probably keeps 25 prop rebuilders employed year round and I have seen 2 very bad groundings of large cruisers in this area, one of them had the stern drive ripped off of the transom! Be careful.

Grouse

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mississippi River Restaurants...?

I wouldn't be intimidated by the Croix, there's not near the posing and posturing out there compared to that giant satallite toilet they call Minnetonka.
Grouse

LOL - I agree with part of that. Don't be intimidated by the St. Croix. It's a really nice place to go for a cruise. Lake Minnetonka isn't that bad, was just there last night - although we generally stay out of the "ocean".