Winona, MN

We decided to spend another night in Winona, so no river travel today. The sun came out with light winds this morning and we got out our folding bikes and headed across the bridge into town. Our first stop was the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, a delightful display of art inspired by water. There were works from local and regional artists, an exhibit on loan featuring the Hudson River Valley, and a fun collection of paper mache masks and photographs that “blur the line between the animal kingdom and human life.”

Fun fact: Until recently, the museum was home to one of three original paintings of General George Washington crossing the Delaware River in 1776. It sold at auction last year for $45 million.

After the museum, we grabbed lunch, then went on a nice ride around Lake Winona, stopping at a town park with a statue of Princess Wenonah, the city’s namesake, then rode back across the river bridge along the Flyway Trail into Wisconsin before returning to the marina. After resting and getting cleaned up, we walked back into town for a riverfront dinner at The Boat House, enjoying a lovely evening and good food as we gazed downriver and wondered about our next leg tomorrow.

In the legend of Princess Wenonah, the daughter of Dakota Sioux Chief Wabesha, she jumps to her death off of Maiden Rock on Lake Pepin rather than submit to an arranged marriage to a man she didn’t love. In fact-checking the legend I learned: 1) Wenonah is not a proper name, but means “first-born daughter;” 2) There is no word in the Dakota language that directly translates to “princess;” and 3) there are at least 40 versions of this legend along the Mississippi River. 

Winona is a college town, with Winona State and St. Mary’s University located here, and the energy of the new school term was present. The city is also headquarters to Fastenal, which was founded here in 1967 and has grown from its nuts and bolts roots into a Fortune 500 industrial distributor.