The Great River Road is a collection of state and local roads that follow the course of the Mississippi River through ten states of the United States. They are Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana. It formerly extended north into Canada, serving the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba. The road is designated as both a National Scenic Byway and an All-American Road in several states along the route.
Hokah is a city in Houston County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 580 at the 2010 census. Hokah is located near the confluence of the Root and Mississippi rivers, opposite La Crosse, Wisconsin.
French Island is a census-designated place (CDP) in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,207 at the 2010 census. It lies on an island of the same name, though they are not coextensive; a portion of the island is part of the city of La Crosse. All of the island is part of the La Crosse Metropolitan Statistical Area. French Island is part of the town of Campbell and contains all of its population, because the balance of Campbell is uninhabited.
La Crosse is a city in and the county seat of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the La Crosse–Onalaska metropolitan area, which includes all of La Crosse County and Houston County, Minnesota, with a population of 139,627.
La Crescent is a city in Houston and Winona counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 5,276 at the 2020 census.
U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends 1,400 miles (2,300 km) between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designated the Great River Road for much of its route. As of 2004, the highway's northern terminus in Wyoming, Minnesota, is at an intersection with Interstate 35 (I-35). Until 1991, the highway extended north on what is now Minnesota State Highway 61 through Duluth to the Canada–U.S. border near Grand Portage, then continued to Thunder Bay, Canada, as Ontario Highway 61. Its southern terminus in New Orleans is at an intersection with U.S. Route 90. The route was an important south–north connection in the days before the interstate highway system.
U.S. Route 14 or U.S. Highway 14 (US 14), an east–west route, is one of the original United States Numbered Highways of 1926. It is about 1,445 miles (2,326 km) long. It is roughly parallel to Interstate 90 (I-90).
Minnesota State Highway 16 is an 87.671-mile-long (141.093 km) two-lane highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with Interstate Highway 90 in Dexter and continues east to its eastern terminus at the Wisconsin state line concurrent with U.S. Highways 14 and 61 outside La Crescent just west of La Crosse, Wisconsin.
The I-90 Mississippi River Bridge, or the Dresbach Bridge, consists of a pair of parallel bridges that traverse the Mississippi River, connecting the La Crosse, Wisconsin area to Dresbach in rural Winona County, Minnesota. The current bridge was fully opened to traffic in October 2016, replacing a previous 1967 plate girder bridge. It is part of the Interstate 90 route. There is another automobile crossing a few miles south of this bridge; the Mississippi River Bridge, a combination of two bridges, and the La Crosse West Channel Bridge, connecting La Crescent, Minnesota and La Crosse, Wisconsin.
The Mississippi River Bridge is a combination of two individual bridges which are also known as the Cass Street Bridge and the Cameron Avenue Bridge, as well as the Big Blue Bridges. They connect downtown La Crosse, Wisconsin to Barron Island, crossing the east channel of the Mississippi River. Another bridge, the La Crosse West Channel Bridge connects Barron Island to La Crescent, Minnesota. The Mississippi River Bridge carries U.S. Routes 14 and 61 with WI 16. There is another bridge about four miles upstream, the I-90 Mississippi River Bridge that connects North La Crosse, French Island, and Dresbach, Minnesota.
The La Crosse Rail Bridge is a swing bridge that spans the Mississippi River between La Crescent, Minnesota and La Crosse, Wisconsin. The first bridge in this location initially was designed and ready to build by June 1876, and was completed in November 1876 by the Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway, a predecessor of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad. It was later replaced in 1902. It is at the Western end of the Canadian Pacific Railway Tomah Subdivision. Amtrak's Empire Builder crosses this bridge.
State Trunk Highway 35 is a Wisconsin state highway running north–south across western Wisconsin. It is 412.15 miles in length, and is the longest state highway in Wisconsin. Portions of WIS 35 are part of the Great River Road.
Minnesota State Highway 26 is a state highway in southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 21 miles (34 km) in length, Highway 26 runs parallel to the Mississippi River and is a portion of the Great River Road. The route begins at the Iowa state line where it continues as Iowa Highway 26, and ends at an intersection with Minnesota State Highway 16 south of La Crescent.
Minnesota State Highway 43 is a highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with State Highway 44 in Mabel and continues north to its northern terminus at the Wisconsin state line at Winona, where it becomes Wisconsin Highway 54 upon crossing the Mississippi River.
U.S. Highway 14 (US 14) in the state of Wisconsin runs northwest–southeast across the western to southwest portions of the state. It links La Crosse and the southwestern portion of the state with Madison and Janesville. US 14 is mostly two-lane surface road with the exception of a few multilane urban arterials and a freeway section around Madison that it mostly shares with US 12.
Interstate 90 (I-90) runs east–west through the western, central and southern portions of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. About 187 miles (301 km) of I-90 lie in the state.
U.S. Highway 61 (US 61) is a U.S. Highway in southeastern and east-central Minnesota, which runs from the Mississippi River Bridge at La Crescent and continues north to its northern terminus at its junction with Interstate 35 (I-35) at the city of Wyoming.
The La Crosse–Onalaska Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, Vernon County, Wisconsin, and Houston County, Minnesota, anchored by the cities of La Crosse and Onalaska. The area is part of what is commonly referred to as the Coulee Region or 7 Rivers Region. As of the 2020 census, the MSA had a population of 170,341, and in 2023 estimates placed the total population at 170,238. The La Crosse-Onalaska-Sparta combined statistical area has a population of 216,389 as of 2023.
The Tomah Subdivision or Tomah Sub is a railway line that runs about 103 miles (166 km) from La Crosse, WI in the west to Portage, WI in the east.
The Winona Rail Bridge was a swing bridge that spanned the Mississippi River between Winona, Minnesota, and Winona Junction in Buffalo, Buffalo County, Wisconsin. It was built to link the Winona and St. Peter Railroad with the La Crosse, Trempealeau & Prescott Railroad. Both railroads became part of the Chicago and North Western Transportation Company (C&NW). Parts of the bridge are still visible. The swing span was removed, but the box girder portion of the bridge still extends from Latsch Island just downstream of the current Main Channel Bridge. Piers from the original 1871 bridge and the box girders are in the North Channel just downstream of the current North Channel Bridge.
US 14 / US 61/
MN 16/
WIS 16 
