Water levels on the St. Croix River have dropped about 1.5 feet over the past week, necessitating closure of the public water access to the St. Croix River at William O’Brien State Park.
Boaters are advised to use alternate PWAs on the river while the PWA at William O’Brien State Park is closed. The closest access sites on the St. Croix River are at Osceola and the St. Croix Boom Site. A map of the St. Croix River State Water Trail (mndnr.gov/ watertrails/stcroixriver/index.html ) that includes PWAs is on the DNR website.
A drop in the river level is common at this time of year. However, combined with the unintended Lake Alice drawdown that occurred over the weekend of August 9-10, 2025, this season’s drop in river levels created a sediment delta that clogged the back channel of the St. Croix River where the park’s PWA is located. The low river levels and the heavy sediment load are two issues that, independently, would not require closure of the PWA. However, combined they’ve made the boat landing unusable.
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is working to determine the best course of action to address the increased sediment in the channel and reopen the PWA.
Updates about the PWA at William O’Brien will be shared in the visitor alerts on the park’s website (mndnr.gov/obrien) as they are available.
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