Turkey River (Iowa)

The Turkey River is a 153-mile-long (246 km)^[1] tributary of the upper Mississippi River. Its main branch rises in Howard County, Iowa, near the city of Cresco. The other counties it or its tributaries cover are Chickasaw, Winneshiek, Fayette, Clayton, Delaware, and Dubuque.

Flowing from northwest to southeast, it flows through or near the cities of Spillville, Fort Atkinson, Clermont, Elgin, Elkader, Elkport, Garber, and Millville, where it is joined by the Little Turkey River before entering the Mississippi south of Guttenberg and across from Cassville, Wisconsin.

The watershed covers 1,083,200 acres (4,384 km²).

Recreational and wildlife areas

• Cardinal Marsh Wildlife Management Area is a few miles southeast of Cresco.
• The mouth of the river is part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

Sources

• Iowa Department of Natural Resources
• USDA