presented by Friends of the Mississippi River

About the Challenge

2009 Mississippi River Challenge

The Mississippi River Challenge is a one- or two-day canoe or kayak event on the amazing Twin Cities stretch of the Mississippi River. This unique paddle was begun in 2004 by Friends of the Mississippi River to foster appreciation of the Mississippi River in the Twin Cities region and raise funds to protect it.

When you get on board for this event, on July 25th and 26th you will experience a new view of the Mississippi and the Twin Cities that includes:

  • Paddling through three locks
  • Stretches of what seem to be near pristine wilderness right in the core of the cities
  • Camping in an historic fort
  • Live music and great food
  • The opportunity to learn about the history, the ecology, and the culture of this great river
  • A chance to connect with other local paddlers and river enthusiasts, and more!
Paddlers in the Saint Anthony Lock - 2004 HealthPartners Mississippi River Challenge.

Mississippi River Challenge Paddlers at Saint Anthony Lock

All of these amenities and all shuttles and support are covered in one low registration fee. And in 2009, there are some great new incentives to paddle and protect this incredible river! Read more in the Paddle It and Protect It sections!

For those interested in the biking portion of this event, which was available in 2008, please check back in 2010 (or consider paddling this year!) as we are working on restructuring this opportunity.

Mississippi River Challenge News

2009 Mississippi River Challenge Kick-off Party A Success

A huge thanks to everyone who attended the successful kick-off party for this year's Challenge! Great food (graciously donated by Thousand Hills Cattle Company, Green Mill and Pizza Luce), banjo music by Singapore Jake, Summit beer and root beer (donated by Summit, along with the space), and some brief announcements by Friends of the Mississippi River Director Whitney Clark were some of the highlights of the evening. We hope you got your questions answered - since the registrations have started rolling in we know at least some of you did!

A special thanks to the paddlers and volunteers who signed up at the kick-off, and very special thanks to those of you who have signed up to be recruiters and help get new paddlers on the water! All paddlers who register before June 1 get a $10 gift certificate to Hoigaard's.

Please don't hesitate to contact us with additional questions. Or check out the Challenge calendar for details on the fundraising workshop on June 4th and the paddling workshop on June 9th. See you on the river in July!

Thank you to our sponsors for this event:

Photos of the 2008 Great River Energy Mississippi River Challenge

Check out photos of last year's Challenge at SmugMug.

You are free to download images and buy prints. Have fun perusing them and reliving the fun of the Challenge weekend!

On behalf of the river and the community, thank you to those who participated in last year's Challenge!

Watch Mississippi River Challenge Videos!

See what it's like to paddle and protect the mighty Mississippi River. Hear from paddlers, event volunteers, organizers and sponsors. Full-screen versions of these videos are available on DVD — contact us if you are interested.

Files are in QuickTime format, viewable with Apple's QuickTime Player.
[To get QuickTime: Mac OS X | Windows | MPlayer for GNU/Linux]

QuickTime IconDiscover the Mississippi River Challenge (67.6 MB)
Find out more about the Mississippi River Challenge in this video clip, 7 minutes and 32 seconds long.

QuickTime IconVolunteer for the Mississippi River Challenge (31 MB)
Find out more about volunteering for the Mississippi River Challenge in this video clip, 3 minutes and 40 seconds long.

QuickTime IconSponsoring the Mississippi River Challenge (29.7 MB)
Hear from sponsors of the 2005 Mississippi River Challenge in this video clip, 3 minutes and 18 seconds long.