10/19/2026
Do You Know About The St. Louis River Alliance?
With the St. Louis River Alliance membership drive starting today, October 19th, we at Spirit Lake Marina would like to highlight this important asset to our water community.
The St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA) is a non-profit, membership driven organization built of individual community members, families, business, organizations and local tribal governments. It is run by a group of dedicated and caring people who advocate for funds, and organize projects to aid in the restoration of our national area of concern (AOC), the St. Louis Estuary. The SLRA holds many events throughout the year to connect residents to the river that has defined the history of Duluth, Superior, and the surrounding areas. They release a monthly newsletter highlighting these events, along with current projects benefiting the estuary. Another publication of the SLRA is one of the most comprehensive water maps you will find of any body of water. This map highlights the national water trail, and contains information about the history and wildlife of the estuary. The map is free to the public and can be found at SLRA events, along with many local businesses, including here at Spirit Lake Marina. The SLRA website is one of, if not the most, informational site out there about all aspects of the river. To celebrate their membership drive, we have formed a list of some of our favorite fun facts that can be found on the SLRA website.
The St. Louis estuary is the world's largest freshwater estuary.
The river is known to local Anishinaabe as Gichigami ziibi, or “the river that flows into the great waters”.
The entirety of the river is 179 miles.
The river was formed mostly by glacier activity
The estuary contains important wetland communities found nowhere else in the world outside of the Great Lakes region.
The baymouth bar plays a vital role in the protection of the wetland habitats from the forces of Lake Superior.
Grassy point is what remains of an older baymouth bar from an earlier glacial lake stage.
45 native fish species can be found in the estuary.
230 of the 300 species of Minnesota birds have been documented around the estuary.
These are just a few things that can be learned while exploring the St. Louis River Alliance website, or by attending their events.
To the hard working people at the St. Louis River Alliance, thank you for everything you do, and have a good membership drive.
https://www.stlouisriver.org/
