A STATE WATER TRAIL GUIDE to the LONG PRAIRIE RIVER the LONG to TRAIL GUIDE WATER STATE a Creek 71 7 66 3

2 1 11 5 11 1 7 1

River 217 2 0 3 SNA Lake 210 21 0 10 1 Alexander 03 4 28 203 2 14 1

eau Lake 6 16 1 CASS CO. 0 8 20 2

Wing 18 1 rap e

Shamin Kilometers ow 123 r Scale in Miles C Lak 28 WMA Fish T Little Elk

Carry-in Access Access Water Campground Outfitter Dam River Mile Designated Public Land City Bounds Area Management Wildlife Area Scientific and Natural 1234 02

202 2

. 0 MO MORRISON CO MORRISON 0 20 2 10 1

0 0

SNA 10 WMA MORRISON CO. MORRISON

O. TODD C TODD

7 PRAIRIE Lake 60 Beauty 8 18 1 Lake 10 Pine Island Pine 9 29 2 WMA Kobliska 28 7 l e e Mil L Lak Lak 7 Rice 7 17 1 under 7 2

e Th 12 1

ONG 4 Coal L 14 1 Lak WMA Lawrence 6 16 1 39 66 9 26 29 2 0 WMA Hartford 210 21 WMA Turtle Creek WMA Staples

e 29 r C 18 20 21 79 1 21 2 25 5 27 25 2 5

ook 25 2 tle r u r T B Long WMA Prairie 4 18 14 1 21 12 74 30 Lake WMA 7 WMA Sheets 24

Moran 287 28 62 5 Long Prairie Long Prairie 63 16 5 30 21 5 35 45 Lake 21 90 Charlotte 71 71 40 74 81 9 9 2 Long 22 2 0 71 Prairie 20 2 86 Browerville 89 50 Browerville 88 38 0 89 2 72 7 210 21 0 10 1 89 4 24 2 89 rrahan 71 0 36 Lake 20 2 McCa 84 11 4 14 1 86 55 Clarissa 11 11 Reynolds Township 11 11 11 11 Iona WMA 86 7 7 77 7 77 7 2 22 2 38 80 8 6 78 7 76 7

Creek Freemans 60 7 87 8 71 5 0 75 7 5 10 1 2 84 75 7 22 2 6 3 3 86 36 3 23 2 4 23 2 24 2 Eagle Bend 3 3 Bertha 68 65 3

2 PRAIRIE 69 22 2 7 3 37 3 0 23 2 4 71 14 1

210 21

ONG 71 L 70

70 Osakis 4 24 2

Hewitt ake

36 L Creek 0 1 10 1 WMA 1 69 Burleene 1 1 1

1 Dismal WMA Holister Lake 73 2 Pendergast

22 2

85 TODD CO. TODD

38 TODD CO. TODD

OTTER TAIL CO. TAIL OTTER DOUGLAS CO. DOUGLAS 4 14 1 5 75 7 69 3 3 46 5 75 7 66 80 Oak Ridge Road bridge. Riverside Drive bridge. Railroad bridge. State Highway 71 bridge. County Highway 90 bridge. Carry in access, city of Browerville. County Highway 14 bridge. County Highway 79 bridge. WMA. Long Prairie State carry in access. WMA Long Prairie 400th Street bridge. County Highway 26 bridge. County Highway 7 bridge. Railroad bridge. bridge. Ave. 311th State Highway 10 bridge River confluence Wing Crow 1 4 71 7 14 1

Lake

Mary

West eek Lake r C 1 Annalaide A STATE WATER TRAIL GUIDE TO THE LONG PRAIRIE RIVER THE LONG TO TRAIL GUIDE WATER STATE A Creek 71 7 66 3

47.3 47.2 47.2 37.5 34.2 (R) 33.0 29.1 27.9- 24.0 26.0 (R) 21.9 19.0 15.9 12.3 9.7 9.3 3.4 0.0 lamus

46 210 21 Ca WMA WMA Spruce Creek Spruce Eastern 9 3 69 6 3 3 30 42 73 73 74 13 WMA 85 Big Spruce 36 WMA 36 Belle River

O. 136 1

C 65 65 13 4 14 1 9 30 5 Carlos

DOUGLAS CO. 46

OTTER TAIL 64 9 90 Miltona 36 D 36 9 136 1 13 29 2 Lake Lake Irene 42 Lake Carlos State Park and lake outlet. Campround and access. Dam. State Highway 29 bridge. State Highway 29 carry in access. Miltona Carlos Road bridge. Soo Line Railroad bridge. County Highway 65 bridge. County Highway 3 bridge. County Highway 3 bridge. County Highway 3 bridge. County Highway 1 bridge. County Highway 69 bridge. County Highway 38 bridge. bridge. County Highway 11 carry in access. Township Reynolds Park and rest area. Westside Lions Carry in access, city of Long Prairie. 29 WMA Horsehead Miltona 29 9 Route Description of the Long Prairie River of the Long Prairie Description Route 29 2 29 Hwy 29 6 NE NOTE: (R) and (L) represent right and left banks of the river when facing downstream. NOTE: (R) and (L) represent right left 26 2 Lake Carlos SPK RIVER MILE 93.7 93.4 91.9 91.9(R) 91.1 89.3 86.4 84.0 79.9 77.1 72.7 66.9 64.1 56.2 53.5 (R) 47.6 (R) 47.3 (L) WMA Lake Adley Schulke 0

State Park 4 210 21

35 42 Lake Carlos 14 1 Elmo WMA Elmo 6 5 235 2 Dam 63 WMA Lake Hartfiel Prairie Parkers Miltona 62 40 Lake Carlos Lake 36 136 1 Lake Carlos WMA Inman A STATE WATER TRAIL GUIDE TO THE LONG PRAIRIE RIVER LONG PRAIRIE A STATE WATER RIVER TRAIL Guide

The Long Prairie River gently flows through a diverse landscape of Minnesota State Parks and Trails shaded woods, farm fields and floodplain meadows and forests. mndnr.gov/watertrails

Red Eye The Long Prairie River when passing through the culverts to ensure not By 1877 the water level had fallen so that only of your plans including planned departure and • Be sanitary! Use designated toilet facilities or Crow River tipping your canoe. small watercrafts could navigate the river. Today, arrival times. bury human waste away from the river. Perham The Long Prairie River gently flows through a while wooded areas are returning, the majority of • Travel with a companion or group. 10 71 diverse landscape of shaded woods, farm fields Currently recreational facilities along the Long land around the river is cultivated, hay, pasture, or • Choose a distance that is comfortable for you, Wadena Wing Otter TailOttertail Brainerd and floodplain meadows and forests. The river Prairie River are somewhat limited. Because of a grassland. most people paddle two to three river miles per Motley River Staples winds its way eastward from its starting point at wide marshy floodplain and lack of suitable hour. Pine Lake Carlos in Eastern Douglas County for 95 public riparian land, access is limited to using Fishing • Wear a U. S. Coast Guard approved personal Mississippi RIVER miles until it flows into the Crow Wing River two bridge crossings and parking along road flotation device that state law requires be on miles southeast of Motley. shoulders. The City of Long Prairie does own The Long Prairie River provides a sport fishery board the boat for each person. Chippewa River PRAIRIE 10 parkland along the river that provides public for northern pike and walleye. Both small and • Bring a first aid kit that includes waterproof LONG Long Little Prairie Falls access to the river. large mouth bass are also found in the river. matches. 94 Alexandria 71 River Camping is limited to Lake Carlos State Park, at Recent fish surveys have • Bring an extra paddle in your canoe. the headwaters of the river. The park has two found high numbers of • Be cautious of river obstructions, such as Sauk campgrounds; a lakeside facility, and a second white sucker and shorthead overhanging and dead trees in the river. North Fork St. facility away from the lake up in the hills. A total redhorse. The upper • You must pack out all trash. 94 Cloud of 125 sites are available at the park. portions of the Long Prairie • Leave only footprints; take only photographs! Crow River River are stocked with 71 Historically, the Long Prairie River served as smallmouth bass in an Water levels can speed or slow you down. You hunting and fishing grounds for the Dakota and attempt to establish a can get information about water levels from the Sustainable Ecosystems “The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is an Equal Opportunity Employer” Ojibwa Native Americans. The river also served spawning population in regional DNR office, or check the DNR website, Outdoor recreation is dependent on a healthy as a means of transportation to the Crow Wing Lake Carlos. or the DNR Information Center. Remember that and attractive natural environment. Sustainable river otter This information is available in alternative Over the 95 mile length of the Long Prairie River River and then the Mississippi River. much of the shorelands are privately owned. outdoor recreation enables people to enjoy the format upon request. it drops from an initial elevation of 1360 feet Wildlife Respect and protect the water and shorelands. outdoors without negative impacts on the above sea level at Lake Carlos to approximately European settlers first started establishing environment. 1215 feet at the confluence with the Crow Wing themselves in the area in the 1840s. At this time A variety of wildlife species call the river home. Boating Information Communities working together can improve River. the river and connecting streams were much Different species of waterfowl, great blue herons water resources by promoting environmentally Minnesota State Parks and Trails deeper, and at one point a steamboat was able to and many kinds of songbirds along with the • Register your watercraft. All watercraft more Area Office sensitive land use practices along rivers and While the entire river is designated canoe and regularly travel part of the river. Originally the occasional muskrat, beaver, otter and mink can be than 9 feet in length, including nonmotorized 940 Industrial Drive South, #103 throughout watersheds. Sauk Rapids, MN 56379 boating route, low water levels may result in majority of the river flowed through forested found along the river. The few forested and canoes and kayaks, must be registered in 320-255-4279 portions of the river being impassable. The river areas. The woods consisted of a variety of hard grassland areas along the river are inhabited by Minnesota or your state of residence. Natural shoreline buffers improve water quality is generally considered accessible by novice woods and pines. One of the first industries was many game species such as grouse, pheasant, wild • Not all portions of this water trail are suitable by filtering out pollutants and sediments. Healthy Online water trail information and and diverse native shoreline plant communities maps can be found at canoers; however, snags can provide challenges logging. Commercial logging began about 1866 turkey and whitetail deer. Some game species and for motor use. mndnr.gov/watertrails and may tip canoeists. and continued through the mid 1890s. The sandy waterfowl species can be found at the Long are attractive and provide important shoreline soils found along the river were susceptible to the Prairie Wildlife Management Area located North Rest Areas and Camping Sites habitat for birds and wildlife. DNR Information Center The DNR’s Information Center is available to provide free There are two dams on the river. The first exists logging and the resulting erosion filled the of the city of Long Prairie. It is not uncommon to publications of facilities and services as well as answers questions at the outlet of Lake Carlos. Another dam was streams with sediment. view birds of prey, including the bald eagle, owls • Public rest areas are available along the route to pertaining to DNR recreational opportunities in Minnesota. Natural constructed downstream as a diversion to Lake and various hawks. rest, picnic and explore. Shorelands The DNR Information Center 40% evaporation Osakis and was built to divert water from the • Camp only in designated campsites, which are 10% runoff 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155-4040 651-296-6157 Metro Area river to Lake Osakis during low water years. Only Planning A Safe River Trip available on a first-come, first-served basis. 50% infiltration 1-888-646-6367 MN Toll-Free

remnants of the second dam exist, however • Bring drinking water. It is only available at a Altered mndnr.gov Shorelands caution is urged to boaters traveling through the A successful river trip is safe. To enjoy a safe limited number of rest areas. Drinking river 30% evaporation

55% runoff area. journey, you should be prepared by doing the water is not recommended, but if you do it must 15% infiltration You can make a difference by joining the DNR following: be treated. Adopt-a-River Program. Be a clean up volunteer for a portion of your favorite recreation area. Call Another safety concern is at Highway 29 near • Respect private property. Stop only at the DNR Information Center for a brochure, or visit mndnr.gov/adoptariver. Lake Carlos. The river passes under the Highway • Get acquainted with your route. Plan your trip designated sites; much of the shoreland is through two culverts. Extreme caution is needed with a map before you depart and advise someone private property. ring-necked pheasant ring-necked © 2014 Minnesota Department of Natural Resources