Keeping Current

The Power of an April Shower

April can be a confusing month in the upper Midwest. One day may bring warm sunshine and dripping snowbanks, while the next might surprise us with a dusting of fresh snow. Even so, nature knows that the seasons are shifting. Beneath the muddy trails and lingering patches of ice, the natural world is waking up. April showers (whether rain, sleet, or the last gasp of snow) help set the stage for the first signs of early spring life.

One of the most exciting changes this month happens at night. As temperatures creep above freezing, frogs and toads begin their annual breeding chorus in wetlands and ponds. The clear peeping calls of spring peepers and the trills of chorus frogs are often the first true soundtrack of spring. Migrating birds are also on the move, with species like red-winged blackbirds and sandhill cranes returning to fields and marshes. Meanwhile, maple trees may still be finishing their sap runs, early insects begin to emerge on warmer days, and the first brave wildflowers start pushing up through soggy soil. April rain accelerates change around the Kinnickinnic from plants, to animals to the river itself.

April reminds us that spring does not arrive all at once, but rather unfolds slowly. A chorus of frogs one evening, the call of a returning bird the next morning, or a tiny green shoot pushing through last year’s leaves are all signs of change. So the next time an April shower rolls through, remember that every drop of rain and every melting snowbank is helping bring the landscape back to life.

Jane Taylor

Social Media & Community Outreach Coordinator

jane@kinniriver.org

Please Consider Making A Donation Today!

Your support provides critical financial resources to help continue KRLT's mission of protecting the beauty and health of the Kinnickinnic River and its watershed.

Click Here to Become a Member or Renew Your Membership!

What is a Watershed? Why does it Matter?

As the new Watershed Coordinator, I reach out to various groups who are working on conservation within the Kinnickinnic River Watershed to learn and share ways to protect the Kinnickinnic River. So, what are watersheds and why do they matter? We all live in them. Watersheds are areas of land that shed water to a river or lake. This watershed includes surface water running off the land from rain or snow melt and groundwater moving through the soil. As the water moves, it picks up or dissolves whatever is on the land and carries the pollution to the Kinnickinnic River. We are all connected to the Kinnickinnic River through natural and designed drainageways. Why does this matter? The cup that blows out of your garbage ends up in the gutter and is carried to the river. Manure spread on a field is dissolved in the snow melt and carried to the river. The salt we spread to keep our roads ice-free is dissolved by the snow and carried to the storm drain that takes it to the river. The excess fertilizer we spread on our lawns and fields, runs off the surface or is carried into the groundwater and ends up in the Kinnickinnic. As we go through our day, we interact with the land and those interactions affect the river.

Want to learn more?

The Kinnickinnic River is part of

the St. Croix and Mississippi River Watersheds. The MN Pollution Control Agency has a nice video explaining watersheds.

Aleisha Miller

Watershed Coordinator

aleisha@kinniriver.org

Having spent my entire life in River Falls, I spent countless hours on the Kinni, as a child playing and fishing the river, and later as an adult, fishing, kayaking, as well as hiking in and around the river.

After taking a Master Naturalist course, I began viewing the river in a much different way. I realized the Kinni is so much more. It includes the entire watershed and its ecosystem. How do we protect/conserve this valuable resource? How do we protect/conserve the land within the watershed of the Kinni? After all, protecting the land is the key to protecting the river. I was asked to join the KRLT board 5 years ago. It has been an amazing journey. With so much to learn and contribute.

My favorite thing related to the river and the watershed is my almost daily hikes at Kelly Creek Preserve, which includes photographing the many birds that live there. I have also enjoyed giving tours of the upper Kinnickinnic River, its tributaries, KRLT preserves, and the watershed. Sharing what I have learned about the river and the land surrounding it with other folks has been a true joy.

Mark Ritzinger

KRLT Board Treasurer

In 2026, KRLT will be taking the necessary steps to help guide our next strategic plan, our future. Staff have started conversations with our partners to understand how we can set priorities and pool resources over the next several years. And with other organizations and communities we’ve never worked with before, but should.

In Jan, staff met with local WI DNR staff to share ideas. There is definitely a need & interest to coordinate a citizen monitoring program for baseline data, volunteer crews to help with maintenance and habitat needs at DNR sites and our preserves, and the possibility of integrating intern experiences into different projects as we build our relationship with UW-River Falls. Partnerships will be key as we pursue grants for land acquisition and easements. Recently, we formed a coalition with several nonprofits from the Namekogen River down to the Kinni and submitted a grant for land acquisition/easements for the WI side of the St Croix. We won’t know if we will receive this grant until 2027. Either way, KRLT needs to launch a land fund to support future land acquisitions.

We’ve also started to reach out to St Croix Valley Habitat for Humanity and the St Croix Economic Development Corporation. KRLT is exploring partnerships to create conservation-minded development to minimize the environmental impact. Our work with Habitat for Humanity at the River Falls Eco Village, helping with a natural landscape, was just the beginning of what’s possible.

Fostering a sense of stewardship will always be a part of our mission to protect the Kinni. The Golden Years Nature Club senior program will expand in 2026. We continue to work with disabled students through our Rooted Together program. And families can explore the outdoors with help from our Kinni Explorers program. Now with Aleisha Miller coming on as our Watershed Coordinator, she is exploring programs to work with homeowners, farmers, and communities to implement best practices on private lands to improve water quality, control water quantity, and provide habitats for pollinators and other species.

As we develop our needs assessment, we are also researching and reaching out to others throughout the region, United States. We’re learning from others on what might be best for the Kinni as we go through this process.

Swinging Bridge Brewery in River Falls has graciously donated the use of their event space so we can share updates with members. Please join us at Swinging Bridge on Tuesday, June 9 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm and then again on Tuesday, August 11 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. Staff will share ideas and listen to your comments as we present the progress of the needs assessment. If you can’t make any of these dates, want to provide input, feel free to contact me to meet in person. Updates will also be posted in the e-newsletter and other means over the next year. The entire process and draft of an operational plan with financial goals will be presented at our annual meeting on November 3 from 6:00 to 7:30 at the Glen Park Pavilion.

More to come! Talk with you soon!

Steve Leonard

Executive Director

steve@kinniriver.org

As we begin Earth Month, we celebrate the beauty and magic of nature. One thing that my family looks forward to this time of year is our spring clean-up walks. We bring garbage bags and gloves to clean up trash from the snow melt. It is a great way to provide a perspective of what we can do in our own backyard to make a difference.

I want to welcome one of our newest Business Members, BMM Wholesale in River Falls, WI! If you are interested in more information about becoming a Business Member, please reach out. We also have information available by clicking here.

If you know someone who is passionate about the Kinnickinnic River watershed, invite them to become a member. With each new member, our community connections grow stronger, enabling us to make an even greater impact in protecting the Kinnickinnic River and connecting people to it. For more information about memberships, click here!

Have questions about KRLT Memberships or ways to support KRLT? Give me a call at 715-301-0753.

Together, we can protect the Kinni,