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About Us


Family Owned & Operated Since 1906

2026 marks 120 years of narrated scenic boat tours on the St. Croix River.

Taylors Falls scenic boat tours logo with vintage boat illustration, established in 1906.

Taylors Falls Scenic Boat Tours has operated as a family business since 1906. Since opening, tourists by the thousands have enjoyed the scenic beauty of the world-famous Dalles of the St. Croix River by boat. On your tour, you’ll learn about the area’s history and the unique rock formations left behind as the glaciers retreated thousands of years ago! In addition to our daily boat tours, we also offer private charters, weddings, receptions, corporate parties, groom’s dinners, and birthday parties. Our paddlewheel boats provide a unique and memorable venue for your next event!

Where it began…

Vintage boat with two men, one standing on deck, near rocky shore.In 1906, two local boys began rowing tourists on the Upper Dalles of the St. Croix River. Rumor has it that the Caneday family became religious and would not take tourists on the Lord’s Day. With Sunday being one of the two best days for tours, the Canedays could not make a living operating their tours. The park commissioner sent word to the Muller family in Stillwater, MN, to inquire if they could send someone and offer tours. Sixteen-year-old Carl Muller, with a small eight-passenger power boat named the Pinafore, was up to the task–thus beginning the voyage of the Muller Boat Company, known today as the Taylors Falls Scenic Boat ToursCarl was the first, but four generations have followed. For more than a century, descendants of Carl and Katy Muller have welcomed passengers aboard to experience the stunning scenery and hear the history of the St. Croix River, the stories of the rock formations, and view the magnificent wildlife of the Upper Dalles. The Mullers have passed down more than a business; they’ve carried the history that flows through the St. Croix River at Taylors Falls, Minnesota, and St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin, beyond a single lifetime and into the present day.

Meet Carl – the one who answered the call in 1906 at the age of 16. He also started renting canoes that he had built himself in 1910, which we now know as the Taylors Falls Canoe & Kayak Rental.

Captain Robert C. Muller, Carl’s son, spent virtually every summer day with his father on the St Croix River, as did his bride, Ann Muller, who was the first woman in the company to get her captain’s license.

Cynthia Ann Muller (Cam) was raised on the water just like her father, Robert Muller. When she married Dennis Raedeke, it was only natural that they would take over the family business.

Cam and Dennis’ children all worked on the boats in some capacity, with Dan Raedeke and Amy Frischmon taking the helm in 1989. They have turned Muller Boat Company into every Taylors Falls tourist’s dream with growing Taylors Falls Canoe & Kayak RentalTaylors Falls Scenic Boat Tours, and adding Wildwood RV Park & Campground in 1995.

Dominick Raedeke is the fifth generation of family members to own and operate Taylors Falls Recreation, along with a great crew. Dominick received his pilot’s license in 2022, and you may be lucky enough to be aboard one of his tours this summer.

The boats may have changed, but the family at the wheel has remained.

Share your Memories!Man in a captain's hat and dog by a boat's controls, in black and white.

We’d love to hear about your memories on the St. Croix River with Taylors Falls Scenic Boat Tours. Whether your great-grandma had a picture on the Dalles Showboat, or your niece got married on the Queen, share your photos and stories with us for a chance to see your memory on social media, in an upcoming email, or on the website! CLICK HERE for the Upload Form

 

People on a wooden dock beside a small boat at Taylors Falls, MN, with rocky cliffs in the background.

Muller Boats through the Years

Coming Soon. Check out the history behind each of the boats driven by Carl and his family over the last 120 years!