The walk at Minneopa follows a limestone stairway down into the valley just west of Mankato and ends at the falls. You leave the prairie at the top and walk into the sound of the creek as the stairs drop into the cut.
Back on the bluff, the Seppmann Mill still stands, a stone wind-driven grist mill over the valley. Walk it after the stairs, while you are still up top.
The park road runs through a 325-acre bison range. The herd grazes along the drive, and you roll through in the van on that road. Walk the falls, see the mill, and drive the range in the same morning.
After Minneopa, Land of Memories Park & Campground is the in-town night, on the Minnesota River, with open grass, shade, and sites along the water for tents and RVs. It is the close first night after the falls. If you need more sleeping space than a campervan, Mankato RV rentals are the size-up.
Reserve Minneopa's own campground when you want to sleep inside the park. Book the site before the van, because the pad is the scarce piece and worth booking early. East of town, the next night is a lake on a rail-trail through the Big Woods.
Sakatah Lake State Park
East at Waterville, you ride the Sakatah Singing Hills State Trail under Big Woods hardwood and sleep at Sakatah Lake State Park. The Minnesota DNR marks the trail as 39 paved miles from Mankato to Faribault, running straight through canopy.
Townsend Woods Scientific and Natural Area is just north of the park, a quieter walk when you want to get off the bikes. Keep the van at Sakatah Lake State Park and ride out from the overnight.
If you keep following the Big Woods toward Hidden Falls at Nerstrand, that stop is on the Lakeville campervan page.
Flandrau State Park at New Ulm
West along the Minnesota River, New Ulm is the town and Flandrau State Park is the swim. You swim in a sandy-bottomed pond at the day-use area. The Cottonwood River borders the campground loops, so you camp on the same water as the swim.
Fort Ridgely State Park
From Mankato the Minnesota River valley runs west through New Ulm to Fort Ridgely. You walk the fort ruins on prairie above the river, in the open, with the water below the grass. The 1862 Dakota War sieges were fought here. The park has a campground if you are making this the west-end night.
The river continues toward Blue Mounds and Pipestone. Those prairie stops belong on the Minnesota campervan page.