Root River State Trail in Southeast Minnesota 

Apr 27, 2024

By Sheri Rosenbaum

The Root River State Trail in southeast Minnesota has been on my radar for several years, and finally, this past weekend, I checked it off my list. Just an easy 4.5-hour drive from Chicago, a friend and I headed up there on Thursday and returned on Monday. We could easily have spent longer, but this working stiff has limited vacation time.

The trail is a 42-mile long, paved, rails-to-trails that meanders through six towns where you can shop, enjoy a meal, drink locally brewed beers, or eat homemade pie. The trail was once part of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad network. But the history of trains using this area along the river dates back to the 1800s.

In the 1980s, the towns along the river realized they could attract visitors year-round and created a rails-to-trails gem. This multi-use trail hosts bikers, runners, and walkers in the non-winter months, and once there’s snow, the cross-country skiers come out to play. Also, miles of snowmobile trails crisscross the path, with its orange and black signage visible during the off-season. The river offers excellent trout fishing, canoeing, kayaking, and tubing.

As you would imagine, the trail is less crowded in the very early morning (before 9 am) and weekdays. The towns and path see an influx of visitors Friday thru Sunday.

Since it’s a paved path, you can ride any bike. My friend used her titanium road bike with 700X23s. And I chose my Salsa Cutthroat with 2.1″ knobby tubeless tires for several reasons. First, we were traveling with the bikes on a hitch rack, and my road bike only travels inside the car. Second, the Salsa is equipped with SPD pedals enabling me to wear MTB shoes with 2-bolt cleats, so I could walk around when we stopped at towns along the way. Third, it evened the playing field, slowing me down and making me work harder. I outfitted my bike with a HandleStash Stem bag which I used as a feedbag filling it with dates to nibble on during the day, and an ORUCASE frame bag to carry a pump, multi-tool, nutrition, wallet, etc.

We rented a three-bedroom VRBO in Whalan for our stay, which we could ride right from our front door to catch the trail. The little town of Whalan boasts of being the smallest town on the trail. But it does have one of the best pie shops around. But note its “relaxed hours,” as they seem to be open whenever they feel like it and close by 4 pm daily. More about Aroma Pies later.

Lanesboro and Preston seemed to have the widest selection of BnBs, inns, and small hotels. There are resorts and cabins available, too. You can find campgrounds for tent and RV camping all along the river. We also saw several bikepackers who most likely used some of the rustic sites. I’ll share some resources at the end of this article.

We checked into our VRBO and drove the five miles to Lanesboro to walk around and grab dinner. This is one of the “bigger” towns on the trail. It has two main vices for most cyclists ― coffee (found on Coffee St) and beer at Sylvan Brewing. There are also many cute stores, restaurants, pie/ice cream shops, bike rentals, river rentals (kayaks, canoes, tubes), and community theaters.

We picked up tickets for a Saturday night performance at the Commonweal Theater – one of three community theaters in Lanesboro. Yes, three! Then we stopped at Root River Outfitters to double-check on renting tubes to float down the river on Sunday. From there, we headed for dinner, settling on the Pedal Pushers Café, one of the many bike-themed establishments. The décor had bikes on the walls, and some stools had pedals for footrests. We had an excellent meal while chatting with other cyclists and walked around town some more before enjoying homemade ice cream at one of the many creameries in town.

Since today was forecasted to be the “coolest” day of our trip (only in the 80s), the plan was to ride west from Whalen to the trail’s end in Houston and back, covering 53 miles. Riding from our doorstep down the big hill to the trailhead, I took a right instead of a left. We ended up heading to mile zero, which was in the town of Fountain. Oh well, when on vacation, you just roll with it.

We crossed several trestles left over from the railroad days and meandered upstream along the river. The trail alternated between being flanked by corn fields, limestone bluffs, or forest. I’d estimate 80% of the trail is tree covered, making it ideal for hot summer rides.

Wildlife is abundant, including whitetail deer, rabbits, hawks, blue jays, cardinals, catbirds, turkey vultures, turkeys, bald eagles, and several random local dogs using the path as their little highway.

As a multi-use trail, there were a variety of walkers, runners, and cyclists. Many of the riders were on the older and less athletic side and had opted to rent ebikes. If I had to guess, 75% of the bicycles we saw were ebikes, including numerous etrikes. I’m sure the added power was a welcomed advantage on some of the longer 1-3% climbs and even the 6% grade. There were also several families riding with kids on their bikes as well as being pulled in Burleys. We saw several dogs riding in style, too. It was nice to see people of every athletic ability enjoying the trail.

Today’s adventure took us from Whalan to Fountain, back to Whalan, where we stopped for lunch at Aroma Pie Shoppe — yes, they serve tasty sandwiches, too. With our bellies full, we continued to Peterson, home of the gnomes. As we headed back to Whalan, I dangled a “carrot” in front of my friend and suggested we head back uphill to Lanesboro again and stop for a beer at Sylvan’s before returning home. Secretly I was hoping for a metric century but settled for 60 miles and 1400 ft of elevation gain, including a 12% grade hill (Strava segment) up to our VRBO.

We did make a quick stop at Treasures on the Trail artisan shop in Whalan. I love yard art (not the tacky kind), and the outdoor display caught my eye. Jane Lewis and her husband create these beautiful upcycle pieces of art. Jane’s husband repurposes old bicycle wheels, and she cuts and paints old aluminum cans creating these beautiful flowers. Be sure to venture into the store where more handmade artisan items are bicycle and non-bicycle themed.

That evening we drove to Preston and, at the top of a hill, had dinner at the Branding Iron. It was an old fashion super club with a great view of the valley below and wonderful homemade food. It was certainly the place to be on a Friday night in Preston.

Today we had a lot to cram into a very hot day. Ride in the morning, a cave tour in the afternoon, dinner, and a play.

The morning we started very early with a quick 15-minute drive to Peterson, where we began our ride to the other end of the trail in Houston. The trail conditions changed as we traveled past Rushford. It was still paved but narrower and didn’t seem as well maintained. We found an Analemmatic sundial once in Houston at mile marker 42 and the trail’s end. In the center was each month of the year and a half moon of numbers around it. You stand on the month, and your body casts a shadow on the numbers to reveal the time. It was dead accurate! I want one for my backyard.

Heading back to Peterson, we startled a flock of wild turkeys and became part of a community triathlon using the path for the bike leg. It was fun to have volunteers with cowbells cheering, and as riders headed in the opposite direction, we yelled words of encouragement. In the 90-degree heat, it seemed to give them a mental boost to keep pedaling. We finished with 35 miles and 690 ft of climb for the day.

We arrived at Peterson with little time to spare since we had tickets for the Mystery Cave tour at 1:20 pm. Ordering takeout from Burdey’s, a local diner, we drove back to Whalan for a quick wardrobe change and drove the 40 minutes to the cave.

Mystery Cave State Park was a perfect way to spend a hot afternoon. Underground the temps were 48 degrees F. I scanned the tours the day before, always looking for an adventure, thinking the four-hour Wild Caving tour might be “fun.” But as I read the description, stating you had to crawl on your belly and squeeze through tight spaces, it became apparent that the Scenic tour was a better option. Indeed it was.

Mystery Cave is the longest cave in Minnesota and was discovered in 1937. It has over 13 miles of underground passages created as rocks were dissolved by moving water. The cave has changed hands five times, with the current owner being Minnesota’s DNR, who turned it into a state park. I highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance as it’s a popular attraction.

That evening, dinner was at Juniper’s, an excellent restaurant in Lanesboro, followed by a wonderfully funny play at the Commonweal Theater.

Another 90-degree day dictated an early ride on the trail, Whalan to Fountain and back. This direction is upriver, which means uphill for most of the 16 miles. But when you turn around, it’s a blast flying at 20 mph. After the 32-mile round trip, we headed to Root River Outfitters in Lanesboro to rent tubes. I splurged and spent the extra $3 for the “fancy” tube, complete with cupholder and backrest. Yep, I was floating downriver in style. The river was low due to the Midwest drought, but we still enjoyed a 3-hour float with plenty of rapids to keep things interesting, plus a bald eagle sighting.

After a refreshing beer on the patio at Sylvans and a bite to eat, a nap was in order, and we relaxed for our last evening in Whalan.

I had read about the Harmony-Preston Valley State Trail, which intersects the Root River Trail about five miles outside of Lanesboro. We had avoided riding it because of all the reports on TrailLinks and from locals was the trail wasn’t well maintained. I was itching to see what was down the 18-mile trail, so today, we explored.

With limited time, we checked out of our VRBO at 630am and drove to Lanesboro to pick up the trail. The trail was narrower than the Root River and had a few bumps due to tree roots, but the only caution I’d have for riders is the approach and exit of each bridge. These areas are poorly maintained, and you could easily get a snake bite on a road bike. Some of the bridges were even jarring on my Salsa Cutthroat.

Preston, at mile marker 5.5, has a lovely trailhead with washrooms, ice cream, an inn, and a veteran’s memorial tank. Be sure to stop and read the many plaques on the area’s history and wildlife.

We got 15 miles into the trail before our time ran out, and we had to head back to the car for the drive home. I terribly wanted to see this dangerous climb out of the valley to get to Harmony. But that will need to wait until next time.

I hope you have a chance to enjoy the Root River Trail and all the surrounding towns. It’s worth the trip, and I’m sure I’ll return.

Helpful resources and links:

Root River State Trail

Harmony-Preston State Trail

Mystery Caves

A Guide to Historic Bluff Country

Root River Outfitters

Aroma Pie Shoppe

Commonweal Theater

Treasures on the Trail

Sheri Rosenbaum regularly contributes articles and reviews products for RBR. She’s an avid recreational roadie who lives in the Chicago area and a major advocate for women’s cycling, serving on the board of directors and volunteering with the Dare2tri Paratriathlon Club. Click to read Sheri’s full bio or visit her web site sunflowersandpedals.com.