I managed to snap a great pic under the 35W bridge, despite my utter lack of photographic competence.

Pretty impressive right?

I think so.

If you have ever driven across the 35W bridge, you might have noticed the two thirty-foot sculptures in the median. These sculptures are interesting (to me at least) for a variety of reasons:

Reason One – They are made out of something called Photocatalytic Concrete, which removes pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides and sulfur dioxide from the air.

Reason Two – In their project description, Oslund and Associates describes the sculptures as:

“The symbol for water, inverted on its side, simply defines the transitions of the road on land to a bridge over water”

Reason Three - This one is of my own creation, but the three waves remind me of the Three Mississippi Rivers that exist inside the 72-Mile stretch that makes up the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (a National Park btw). It fits so well that I find it hard to believe it is pure coincidence.

Anyways... here they are:

One Mississippi – The Prairie River

The Prairie River north of Minneapolis

At the northern-most tip of the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, the confluence of the Mississippi and the Crow rivers mark the beginning of the Prairie River. This stretch of river extends 25.5 miles down to St. Anthony Falls in Minneapolis.

The characteristics of the Prairie River include:

• River banks that vary from a few to 30 feet in height.
• River valley ranges from less than two-tenths of a mile to about a mile wide
• Little floodplain, no backwater lakes, few braided channels and only small islands

Two Mississippi – The River Gorge

The River Gorge from the 46th Street/Ford Parkway bridge

The River Gorge runs 8.5 miles from St. Anthony Falls to the confluence of the Mississippi and the Minnesota Rivers and is the only true gorge along the river’s entire length (all 2,350 miles). The River Gorge features:

• 50 to 100+ foot bluffs (the tops being one to two-tenths of a mile apart)
• A 110-foot drop throughout the gorge (the steepest in the entire river)

Before the gorge was flooded by Locks and Dams 1 & 2, rapids raged through this area in high water, and in low water giant boulders emerged creating pathways to more than a dozen islands. Today only one remains.

Friends of the Mississippi River have some great in-depth info on the river gorge!

Three Mississippi – The Floodplain River

A barge on the Floodplain River

The Floodplain River runs from the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers, all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.

This river is characterized by:

• Broad valley and floodplains
• Many side channels, lakes, wetlands, and islands
• Bluffs up to 250-feet outlining the valley

“This is the river of Mark Twain and steamboats, the river of myth and metaphor” – Mississippi River Companion

So now you know what I think about every time I drive over the 35W bridge.

Boom knowledge. You’re welcome.

Check out the National Park Service’s Mississippi River Companion! (It’s where I obtained this knowledge).

The reason? An invasive species called Asian Carp. You might already be familiar with this particular fish (or maybe not).  Regardless, the National Park Service has compiled a great overview about the Asian Carp and its impacts.

To summarize, the Asian Carp:

• destroys native ecosystems
• degrades water quality
• out-competes native aquatic species and
• has a habit of jumping out of the water which can be dangerous to humans.

Lock and Dam No.1 is the last line of defense for the Mississippi River north of Minneapolis where the Asian Carp has not yet established itself as well as an abundance of Minnesota lakes and rivers. We encourage all paddlers and boaters to join us and our partners in the boycott of Lock and Dam system in the Twin Cities. Together we can protect this important resource we all enjoy so much!

For further involvement, check out http://stopcarp.org/ to join the fight to close Lock and Dam No.1 for good!

About the Author

Matt is an environmentalist and outdoor enthusiast. He recently graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities where he studied environmental policy and sustainability.

Paddle Taxi is more than excited to apply.  We think this grant was almost designed with our mission in mind!  Well, actually, it’s the other way around.  These water trails have been in existence since 1967 and have only improved along the years as the water quality improves.

Now, it is easier than ever to get out and paddle on the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area!  We look forward to working alongside the DNR, helping expand our services and social mission.

Innovative medical device, animal health, biotech and health technology ideas.

Innovative ideas, technologies and products that strive to create solutions to society’s environmental issues.

Innovative products, services and solutions in manufacturing, recreation, education and all other ideas.

Innovative web 2.0, mobile, software and hardware ideas.

Innovative solutions to society’s most pressing social problems.

For full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students attending a college or university in Minnesota and who are between the ages of 19 and 30 and have less than 5 years of work experience.

They will be picking 10 finalists out of the 50 applications in our division.  We think Paddle Taxi stands a very great chance to making a lasting impact in the division and among the people, however, it is becoming more clear that the MN Cup will have an even bigger impact on the working staff behind Paddle Taxi.  This is going to be an exciting summer…

While we never want to leave a ‘trace’, sometimes we still want to leave our mark…

Dream Job 101 – Adventure Guiding on the Mississippi: The Good, the Bad and the Wavy

Austin Aho has spent more summer days paddling the Mississippi River than anyone in Minnesota.  In 2011, Austin started a paddleboard tour guide company with the mission of sharing his passion for the Mississippi with others in the Twin Cities, and over the past two summers, Stand Up MN (standupmn.org) has enabled people, mostly beginners, to learn and explore the Mighty Mississippi in new and exciting ways.In this presentation, Austin will share 4 stories from his experiences paddleboarding the Mississippi River and 4 lessons on starting an outdoor adventure company.  You can expect entertaining stories and photos of finding dead bodies and naked ones, hard lessons of legal disputes and cut-throat Groupon negotiations, and souvenirs you should NEVER give a politician.He will also be introducing his latest project: Paddle Taxi, a not-for-profit shuttle service on the Mississippi to provide transportation for your next kayak and canoe adventure!

Now who’s scared?  Let’s get this project started…  We mean kick-started!

We are going to be launching a fundraising campaign which coincides with the Midwest Mountaineering Spring Expo: April 26-28!

So we make a plan.  Identify needs.  Create a plan to acquire resources.  Yet without first-hand experience with resource development, young entrepreneurs, like us, need to take advantage of the tools already available.

Thank GOD for the good people at Springboard for the Arts, who created workshops for exactly this purpose.  We will be attending to get a better grip on crowdsourcing:

  February 25: Crowdfunding Panel

This panel discussion will cover the many facets of crowdfunding through sites such as Kickstarter, IndieGoGo, USAProjects and more. Details below. Questions? Call Carl at 651-292-4381 or email carl@springboardforthearts.org.

Resources of the world are becoming more accessible to people of all colors in the most remote regions of the world.  For proof, just check out Kiva, an amazing micro-lender where I am currently sponsoring $25 towards a Cambodian’s small business.

For a big dream from a small dreamer to actualize, one needs to go outside the box, ask for help, and learn from others who know the path.  We hope to utilize some of these resource development tools, alongside dedicated and stable partners, to build a platform for Paddle Taxi to thrive as an asset to Twin Cities paddlers.

Whether it be Kayak, Canoe, Paddleboard, or row boat, we hope to make the Mississippi more accessible to the common paddler!

Stay tuned for updates on our resource development.  And if you know of a group or individual who would like to join or mission, please contact us!

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