La Crosse: Trails, Water, and Cultural History

La Crosse combines striking landscapes with places for recreation, observing nature, and exploring culture. At Grandad Bluff Park, hiking trails along the bluffs meet scenic views. On the Mississippi River, Pettibone Park has a beach; elsewhere, the range extends from wetlands to gardens and a historic cultural center. When choosing a vacation rental, it’s worth first considering which of these aspects of La Crosse you want to shape your stay.

Bluffs, River, and Diverse Landscapes

Grandad Bluff Park is known for its scenic views and has hiking trails along the bluffs. If you want to experience La Crosse on foot, you’ll find a combination of trails and views here. Grandad Bluff is also the starting point for an annual New Year’s Eve celebration with fireworks. This is a special side of the area at the turn of the year, quite different from an outing focused on trails or nature.

Pettibone Park has a beach on the Mississippi River. This gives the park a distinct connection to the water among the area’s natural attractions. A 27-hole disc golf course adds a specific sporting activity to what the park offers.

La Crosse’s park system also offers a variety of trail types: it includes more than 70 miles of paved and natural-surface trails. The two types of surfaces are a practical point of reference when considering which trails suit your interests. Myrick Park, meanwhile, is a 22-acre area consisting mostly of wetlands and located within the La Crosse Area Comprehensive Fishery Area. An adjacent city park has a marsh trail system along the La Crosse River, with platforms for wildlife viewing. For nature enthusiasts, this means a choice between landscapes with trails and a place to observe wildlife.

The wider La Crosse area features prominent cliffs, deep valleys, limestone ridges, and winding waterways. This broader area lies along the Great River Road National Scenic Byway. This landscape description refers to the wider region and adds a regional perspective to the specific natural attractions in La Crosse.

Gardens, History, and Culture

The Riverside International Friendship Gardens are a collection of public gardens in La Crosse’s Riverside Park. Each garden honors one of the sister cities with plants, sculptures, architecture, and water features. These varied design elements make the gardens a different kind of destination from the trails in the park system: the focus here is on landscaped grounds and honoring international ties.

The La Crosse County Historical Society preserves the exterior and interior of the Hixon House Museum as they were in the 1880s. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. These two details give the site a clear historical context. The Pump House offers a different perspective on the city’s history: the building was constructed as a municipal water pumping station in 1880 and converted into a cultural center in 1977. If you’d like to include cultural history in your trip, the two sites offer different ways to explore it—a preserved house from the 1880s and a building with a former municipal function.

Ideas for Families and Different Kinds of Days

The Children’s Museum of La Crosse offers interactive exhibits across three floors for children ages 1 to 10 accompanied by adults. Holiday programs and other special programs complement the exhibits. This makes a museum visit an option for families with children in this age range to consider as a separate activity.

La Crosse offers a variety of themes, without needing to combine the places mentioned into a single route. When choosing your vacation rental, consider which of these interests matter most for your stay.

Discover More Places

If you’d like to discover more places, you can also find Bangor, Onalaska, and West Salem here.

For the broader travel overview: La Crosse.