Mississippi river which way does it flow

At its skinniest point, the river is between 20 and 30 feet wide, but at its largest, the Mississippi River is more than 11 miles wide! How long is the Mississippi River? The Mississippi River is approximately 2, miles long. Want to learn more? You can see firsthand on a Mississippi river cruise. The Mississippi River has stories to share — a legacy that flows from its headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico in New Orleans.

Word of our passage spreads through the towns that await, and local residents rush to one of the many locks we traverse to wave hello and greet us along the way. John — American Civil War Voices Life in a time of crisis. Chris Martin Writes. Knit All Night. Goshorn, God Follower, History Enthusiast. Damyanti Biswas For lovers of reading, writing, books.

Follow Following. Tarmangani Join other followers. Sign me up. Already have a WordPress. Log in now. Loading Comments Email Required Name Required Website. Early European explorers used the Mississippi to explore the interior and the northern reaches of what was to become the United States. Fur traders plied their trade on the river and soldiers of several nations garrisoned troops at strategic points, at various times, along the river when the area was still on the frontier.

White settlers from Europe and the United States and often their slaves arrived on steamboats dispossessing the Native Americans of their lands and converting the landscape into farms and cities.

Today, the Mississippi River powers a significant segment of the economy in the upper Midwest. Barges and their tows move approximately million tons of freight each year on the upper Mississippi through a system of 29 locks and dams. It is also a major recreational resource for boaters, canoeists, hunters, anglers, and birdwatchers and offers many outdoor opportunities. A more comprehensive discussion of the history of the upper Mississippi River , and specifically, the 72 mile long corridor within the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, may be found online.

The Mississippi River is the second longest river in North America, flowing 2, miles from its source at Lake Itasca through the center of the continental United States to the Gulf of Mexico. The Missouri River, a tributary of the Mississippi River, is about miles longer. Some describe the Mississippi River as being the third longest river system in the world, if the length of Missouri and Ohio Rivers are added to the Mississippi's main stem.

At a rivers delta, the reported length may increase or decrease as deposition and erosion occurs. As a result, different lengths may be reported depending upon the year or measurement method.

The staff of Itasca State Park at the Mississippi's headwaters suggest the main stem of the river is 2, miles long. At Lake Itasca, the river is between 20 and 30 feet wide, the narrowest stretch for its entire length. The widest part of the Mississippi can be found at Lake Winnibigoshish near Bena, MN, where it is wider than 11 miles. The widest navigable section in the shipping channel of the Mississippi is Lake Pepin, where the channel is approximately 2 miles wide.

At the headwaters of the Mississippi, the average surface speed of the water is about 1. At New Orleans the river flows at about three miles per hour. But the speed changes as water levels rise or fall and where the river widens, narrows, becomes more shallow or some combination of these factors. It takes about three months for water that leaves Lake Itasca, the river's source, to reach the Gulf of Mexico. Another way to measure the size of a river is by the amount of water it discharges.

Using this measure the Mississippi River is the 15th largest river in the world discharging 16, cubic meters , cubic feet of water per second into the Gulf of Mexico.

The biggest river by discharge volume is the Amazon at an impressive , cubic meters 7,, cubic feet per second. The Amazon drains a rainforest while the Mississippi drains much of the area between the Appalacian and Rocky Mountains, much of which is fairly dry.

At Lake Itasca, the average flow rate is 6 cubic feet per second. At Upper St. Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the northern most Lock and Dam, the average flow rate is 12, cubic feet per second or 89, gallons per second.