Today We Ride! 🚴‍♀️🚴‍♂️

Fueled by a morning ducking (thanks again, mystery ducker 🦆), we hit the trail for a scenic loop ride that took us through two cities, across three bridges, and around some serious construction chaos.

We kicked things off at the Mississippi River Gorge Scenic Overlook in St. Paul, stopping first at the Ford Dam Scenic Overlook before crossing the Ford Bridge into Minneapolis; where we hopped on the West River Parkway Trail.

Next up: Mill Ruins Park, with a beautiful view of the Stone Arch Bridge. Eventually, you’ll be able to ride across the Mississippi on that bridge—but for now, the Minnie side is still under construction.

So we took the 3rd Ave/Central Ave Bridge across the river instead, where we got great views of the locks and St. Anthony Falls. From there, we headed to Xcel Energy Water Power Park for an up-close look at the falls, the lock system, and a bit of local history.

We continued down the trail and rode out on the Stone Arch Bridge as far as we were allowed—soaking in the views before circling back.

Near the University of Minnesota, our peaceful ride turned into a maze of detours thanks to every construction crew in the Midwest apparently being on-site. We zig-zagged our way around campus until we finally found the East River Parkway Trail.

One more crossing over the Ford Bridge brought us to Minnehaha Regional Park to check out the iconic Minnehaha Falls and then we crossed the Ford Bridge AGAIN back to the Jeep wrapping up our 20-mile loop.Read more