Fall Colors on Winchell Trail, Minneapolis
Autumn foliage in red and gold colors lines a fenced hiking trail through a wooded area.
Winchell Trail follows the bluffs above the Mississippi River Gorge in Minneapolis, connecting sections of the parkway system managed by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. The trail is named for Newton Horace Winchell, Minnesota's first state geologist, who studied the gorge's rock formations in the late 19th century. Portions of the unpaved path run close to the riverbank and require periodic rerouting due to erosion along the bluff. The corridor is part of the Mississippi River Gorge, a stretch of the river recognized for its exposed limestone and sandstone bedrock, uncommon along the river's otherwise low-bank course.
Photo taken in October 2023.
