Mud Island, Memphis

Mud Island (not actually an island) is a small peninsula, surrounded by the Mississippi River to the west and the Wolf River Harbor to the east. In 1960, the Wolf River was diverted so that it flows into the Mississippi River north of Mud Island. Mud Island River Park, located on the south end of the island, opened to the public in 1982. It is located within the Memphis city limits, 1.2 miles from the coast of downtown, and houses a museum, restaurants, and an amphitheater. It is accessible by the Memphis Suspension Railway (a monorail), by foot (via a footbridge located on top of the monorail), by ferry, or automobile.

The Mississippi River park located on Mud Island includes bike trails, pedal boats, and rafts, as well as a hydraulic scale model of the lower Mississippi River from Cairo, Illinois to New Orleans.

Major cities and small towns located on the river are marked in the scale model, and markers explain history and facts about the river.

The model empties into a "Gulf of Mexico" replica which was once a waterpark named Bud Boogie Beach, and on the other side is a small wooden boat named the Maymay which is no longer open to the public. Admission to the park is free.

The museum on Mud Island presents the history of the lower Mississippi river valley, with great emphasis on the steamboat, complete with a full-scale replica steamboat.

An admission fee is charged for the museum.

Mud Island is home to a 5,000 seat outdoor amphitheater which has been used for a summer concert series for over two decades.

The band Dash Rip Rock, which has played there several times, recorded a song named Mud Island that can be found on two of their albums.

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