Trempealeau Marina Sight Seeing Cruise

Takeoff - Trempealeau Marina Dock

Please arrive at least 15 minutes early - Trip times are when boat leaves the dock.

All Trips are limited to maximum 25 tickets sold. Sorry no exceptions.

On a backwater tour of the Mississippi River—especially through the quiet channels, sloughs, and chutes off the main navigation channel—visitors experience a side of the river that feels untouched and serene.

Here is a glimpse of what travelers can expect to see:

Wildlife & Birdlife

Majestic Birds of Prey: Bald eagles soaring overhead or nesting high in cottonwood trees, along with osprey, red-tailed hawks, and peregrine falcons.

Wading & Water Birds: Great blue herons, snowy egrets, and green herons hunting in the shallow waters, as well as migrating waterfowl like white pelicans, wood ducks, mallards, and tundra swans (in season).

Reptiles & Amphibians: Painted turtles, map turtles, and snapping turtles basking on fallen logs in the sun, along with leopard frogs along the mudflats.

Aquatic Mammals: North American river otters playing along the banks, beaver lodges and dams, muskrats swimming through the reeds, and white-tailed deer drinking at the water’s edge.

Flora & Natural Scenery

Blooming Water Lilies & American Lotus: Sweeping fields of large green lotus pads and bright yellow blooms floating on still backwater bays (typically peak mid-to-late summer).

Floodplain Forests & Canopy: Towering silver maples, river birches, green ashes, and giant cottonwoods hanging over the narrow channels, creating shaded aquatic tunnels.

Submerged Vegetation: Underwater beds of eelgrass and coontail that serve as critical nurseries for young fish and feeding grounds for ducks.

River Features & History

Wing Dams & Sandbars: Submerged stone structures (wing dams) built to direct currents, visible just under the surface, creating swirling eddies and shallow sand beaches perfect for stopping or viewing wildlife.

Quiet Sloughs & Chutes: Calmer waters shielded from commercial barge traffic and large riverboats, offering mirror-like reflections of the surrounding bluffs and tree lines.

Stunning Bluff Backdrops: High limestone and sandstone bluffs looming above the river valley, framing the backwater labyrinth.