Search for the Headwaters of the Mississippi River

Off we went to search for the headwaters of the Mississippi River in Lake Itasca State Park.  The source of the Mississippi River was actually called by the Indians and the fur traders as Elk Lake.  In 1832 Henry Schoolcraft was sent by the US government to negotiate a treaty between 2 Indian tribes.  He used that opportunity to explore the area near Elk Lake. That is when he discovered the source of the Mississippi River.  Others had also found the source but never wrote it down.  Schoolcraft not only wrote it down, but he renamed Elk Lake as Lake Itasca.

This is the beginning of the Great River Road journey.