- Big Stone Lake is the source of the Minnesota River, which flows 332 miles (534 km) to the Mississippi River.
- down the Minnesota River
- Flow from the lake to the Minnesota River is regulated by the Big Stone Lake Dam, built in 1937 at the lake’s southern end.
- It [Minnesota River] flows southeast to Mankato, then turns northeast.
- It [Minnesota River] joins the Mississippi at Mendota south of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, near the historic Fort Snelling.
- It [Whetstone River] enters the Minnesota River at Ortonville, Minnesota, about 0.25 mi (0.4 km) after crossing the state line and just downstream of the Minnesota’s emergence from Big Stone Lake.
- Minnesota River (Wikipedia)
The Minnesota River (Dakota: Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of 14,751 square miles (38,200 km2) in Minnesota and about 2,000 sq mi (5,200 km2) in South Dakota and Iowa.
