La Crosse (CP Mississippi Br.)

La Crosse's CP Mississippi Bridge is one of Wisconsin's most accessible river-crossing railfan spots. The best vantage point is Riverside Park on Veterans Memorial Drive, where you can set up within clear sight of trains entering and exiting the 1,050-foot swing span. The park is a public green space at the confluence of the Mississippi, Black, and La Crosse Rivers, with paved paths, benches, and open sightlines to the bridge.

About 28 CPKC trains cross the bridge daily, a mix of manifest freight, unit grain, intermodal, crude oil, potash, and ethanol consists running on the Tomah Subdivision (eastward to Portage) connecting to the River Subdivision (northward to St. Paul). Trains approach the bridge at restricted speed, giving you extended photo opportunities as consists stretch across the water.

One of the unique aspects of this location is the working swing span. The bridge still pivots for barge traffic, with approximately 3,400 openings per year — most concentrated between May and October during the navigation season. When the bridge is open for river traffic, dispatchers hold trains on either side, and you may witness the five-minute rotation sequence from the park. A dedicated bridge tender operates the span 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The La Crosse Amtrak station is located at 601 St. Andrew Street, about a mile from the bridge. This classic two-story depot was built in 1926–27 by the Milwaukee Road, replacing an earlier station that burned in 1916.

The bridge spans the Mississippi's main channel between La Crosse on the Wisconsin side and La Crescent, Minnesota. The setting is defined by the contrast between the broad, slow-moving river and the sandstone bluffs of the Driftless Area rising sharply to the east. Grandad Bluff, the most prominent landmark, towers roughly 590 feet above the city at an elevation of 1,183 feet above sea level, forming a dramatic backdrop visible from most vantage points near the bridge.

Riverside Park sits at river level — roughly 640 feet elevation — at the confluence of three rivers. In spring, the bottomland forests on the islands flanking the bridge green up early, and the area is known for migrating American white pelicans that rest on the sandbars. Summer brings long days and occasional river mist after thunderstorms. Fall is the prime season for photography: the bluffs light up in reds and golds, and the foliage reflects off the water surface, framing trains on the bridge in seasonal color. Winter offers a stark, photogenic contrast of dark steel against snow-covered bluffs, though wind off the river can be biting.

The soundscape is part of the experience — the rumble of locomotives on jointed rail echoes across the water, mixed with the lap of waves and the distant horns of towboats pushing barges on the Mississippi.

The CP Mississippi Bridge carries CPKC traffic on the connection between the River Subdivision (St. Paul to La Crescent, MN) and the Tomah Subdivision (La Crosse to Portage, WI). At River Junction West, just north of the bridge on the Minnesota side, these two subdivisions converge through a triangular track arrangement that also connects to the Marquette Subdivision running south along the Mississippi.

Approximately 28 CPKC trains cross the bridge daily. Traffic includes mixed manifest, unit grain (primarily from Upper Midwest origins), crude oil and ethanol trains from North Dakota and Iowa, potash, intermodal, and frac sand. Norfolk Southern power occasionally appears on run-through oil trains.

Amtrak's Empire Builder (trains 7 and 8) crosses the bridge once in each direction daily, with the eastbound arriving at the La Crosse station at 10:47 AM and the westbound departing at 7:14 PM. The newer Amtrak Borealis service also serves La Crosse on the same route.

It is important to note that the broader La Crosse area is far busier than just the bridge. About a mile east of the Amtrak depot, BNSF's St. Croix Subdivision crosses CPKC's line at Grand Crossing, a flat diamond junction. BNSF runs 40 to 50 trains daily on its Chicago–Twin Cities main line (the former Chicago, Burlington & Quincy route), making the total La Crosse train count approximately 60 movements per 24 hours. BNSF's North La Crosse Yard and crew change point sit just north of Grand Crossing.

The primary shooting location is Riverside Park along Veterans Memorial Drive. From the park's riverfront path, you get clear views of trains entering and exiting the bridge span. Late afternoon light (from the southwest) illuminates eastbound/northbound trains nicely from this position. A telephoto lens in the 200–300mm range captures trains on the bridge with the Minnesota bluffs as background.

The Gillette Street overpass is the go-to spot for photographing the CPKC–BNSF diamond at Grand Crossing, about a mile east of the Amtrak station. This elevated position gives you clear sightlines of trains from both railroads crossing the junction, though the shoulder is narrow — exercise caution.

Grandad Bluff Park, accessible by car via Bliss Road, offers a panoramic overlook 590 feet above the city. From here you can see the BNSF main line below and the Mississippi River valley stretching into Minnesota. It's a wide-angle scene rather than a close-up train shot, best for establishing shots and video.

For Amtrak, the La Crosse station at 601 St. Andrew Street provides platform-level access to photograph the Empire Builder and Borealis during their station stops. The 1926 Milwaukee Road depot building itself is worth photographing.

Copeland Park, northeast of the station, houses a static display including Burlington Route 4-6-4 No. 4000 "Aeolus," the former Grand Crossing interlocking tower, and Milwaukee Road caboose No. 0359 — good for heritage photography.

The first railroad bridge at this location opened on November 27, 1876, built by the Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway (predecessor of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, commonly known as the Milwaukee Road). It was one of the first 15 bridges to span the Mississippi River. The bridge cost $500,000 to build and paid for itself within a few years, saving the railroad $90,000 annually in river ferry tolls. Before the bridge, the railroad operated disconnected segments: one from La Crescent to St. Paul on the west bank, and another from La Crosse to Milwaukee on the east bank.

The current steel swing bridge replaced the original in 1902, incorporating concrete and steel construction with the most advanced engineering of its era. The swing span features a distinctive Humpback truss design, flanked by flat-top fixed through trusses. The entire structure is 1,050 feet, 11 inches long and is located entirely on the Minnesota side of the main channel.

La Crosse's railroad heritage extends beyond CPKC. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (BNSF's predecessor) arrived in 1886 via the Winona, Alma & Northern Railway, making La Crosse a junction of two major Chicago–Twin Cities corridors. The city's population surged from 5,000 to 25,000 between 1865 and 1890, driven largely by railroad development. The 4000 Foundation, established in 1989, preserves La Crosse's railroading history and maintains the Copeland Park locomotive display.

La Crosse (CP Mississippi Br.) stands out for several concrete reasons. First, it is one of only a handful of working swing bridges remaining on the upper Mississippi River — the span still pivots for barge traffic roughly 3,400 times per year, operated by a full-time bridge tender around the clock. Watching the five-minute opening sequence while trains wait on either bank is an experience unavailable at fixed-span crossings.

Second, the public access is exceptional. Riverside Park provides close, unobstructed views of the bridge from a maintained public space with parking, paths, and facilities — no trespassing required, no distant levees.

Third, the broader La Crosse area is arguably Wisconsin's busiest railfan destination. Within a one-mile radius you can photograph CPKC bridge traffic, the CPKC–BNSF diamond at Grand Crossing, BNSF's 40–50 daily trains on the St. Croix Subdivision, Amtrak's Empire Builder and Borealis, and heritage displays at Copeland Park. The combined volume of roughly 60 trains per 24 hours makes this one of the most productive single-day railfan outings in the Upper Midwest.

Finally, the scenic context — a steel swing bridge framed by 590-foot bluffs and the broad Mississippi — provides a photographic backdrop that changes dramatically with the seasons.