Year in Review: A Discussion with Tucker Blythe, Superintendent, Mississippi National River and Recreation Area

Article by Becky Fillinger, photos provided

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area is one of 423 national park units in the National Park System. It is the only national park dedicated to the Mississippi River, one of the great rivers of the world. We asked Superintendent Tucker Blythe to provide our readers with a "2022 Year in Review" – and were we ever surprised at all the partnerships, activities and number of visitors taking advantage of our local treasured resource. Here's what he had to say: 

The National Park runs 72 miles of the Mississippi River from Dayton to south of Hastings and includes four miles of the Minnesota River. Our boundary encompasses 54,000 acres, of which the National Park Service only owns 91 acres. The other lands within our boundary are owned by local, state, regional, and federal agencies, as well as by private owners. We are a partnership park – we rely on our partners to help preserve and protect this river for this and future generations.

I became the park superintendent, or park manager, at the end of September, 2021. My first full year as superintendent at the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area has been inspirational for me. I had the opportunity to see all 72 miles of the park corridor from the air while helping with an eagle survey; I have toured and hiked a number of local, state, and regional parks within the national park boundary; I’ve been able to get out on the river on kayaks, pontoons, and paddleboats; and I’ve had the privilege to work with a great park staff and our incredible partners. I’m pleased to share with your readers some of the highlights of 2022 in the park. 

• Over a quarter million people visited Mississippi National River and Recreation Area in 2022.
• At our seasonal visitor center at Upper St. Anthony Falls:
  • We were open 110 days this season.
  • We served over 31,000 visitors.
  • We gave 200 lock tours to over 1950 visitors, and new this year, most of those tours started from Water Works.
  • We had a surprise visit from Latvian Prime Minister, Krišjānis Kariņš.
  • 400 people attended "Mystery on the Mississippi" over four nights in June and July at the Lock and Dam. The immersive fictional murder mystery, created in collaboration with Fearless Comedy Productions, combined performance art, education, entertainment, and history and nature.
  • Our in-person education programs reemerged after the pandemic:
    • We served almost 17,000 students through our formal education programs in 2022.
    • Almost 500 kids went through the Working River Program at Upper St. Anthony Falls. This program is a partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Mill City Museum, Mississippi Park Connection, and River Educators to facilitate STEM-based educational programming.
    • In partnership with the University of Minnesota Youth Summer Program at East River Flats, we piloted new land-based programs for 5th-8th graders.
    • We continued to offer a variety of educational programming to Twin Cities Metro schools in partnership with Wilderness Inquiry, Padelford Riverboats, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Saint Paul Audubon Society, and others.
    • Over 2500 people experienced the Mississippi by kayak through the Paddle Share program. Paddle Share is a great way to experience the Mississippi River!
    • Artwork from over the years of the Big River Art Contest is on display in the South Mall of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport until spring of 2023. Check it out if you are in the airport near the south security checkpoint.
    • We continued doing great natural resource research and restoration work in the River’s corridor with our beaver and bat surveys, mussel research, climate change research, and non-native species removal. A lot of this work relies on our wonderful volunteers.
    • Speaking of volunteers, we learned this year that we were the national park with the most volunteers in 2021 (2022 numbers haven’t been tallied yet). Thanks to all who help take care of the park’s resources and visitors!

2022 was a great year, and I hope that in 2023 you will attend one of our programs, special events, or education programs. You can experience the river in a Paddle Share kayak, as a volunteer, or by observing wildlife. We can’t wait to meet you!

Paddle Share participant

Park Rangers at work.

Songbird monitoring along the Mississippi River.

A painting of a Great Blue Heron submitted to the Big River Art Contest.