I’m looking for suggestions on a weekend kayak trip through southern WI river systems. Would like to know of trips that have camp sites along the way. Prefer to launch more North to end in the Delavan /Darien or Janesville area.
map
have you looked at a map by chance?
The only river that runs from the north to Janesville area is the Rock. Look for parks on the Rock, this isn’t real hard.
Bill H.
Southern WI trips
Its a bit north of where you’re considering, but don’t overlook the “Lower 100” of the Wisconsin River. Its just a few miles short of 100 miles from the dam at Sauk City (about 20 min north of Madison on hwy 12) to Wyalusing State Park at the confluence with the Mississippi.
Its a wide sandy river with very little shoreline development overall. Its a state protected “wild and scenic” river and there are hundreds (if not thousands) of islands and sandbars which can be camped on along the way. Carry your own water and food, and please “leave no trace.” There are landings all along the way for planning shorter stretches. No whitewater. Its expansive and feels much wilder than you might expect. There are liveries at most towns along the way for shuttles if that’s needed. Weekends can be busy, especially upstream from Spring Green. River levels under 2.5 ft on the Muscoda gauge are preferable for camping, since there will be many more beaches exposed, but you can usually find something to camp on even at higher levels. Watch for poison ivy at the edges of forested areas.
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/usa/nwis/uv?site_no=05407000
There are some nice stretches of the Sugar River also but I don’t know of any campgrounds along there and the shores are mostly privately owned.
Check out Mike Svob’s book “Paddling Southern Wisconsin”. It should be available at most libraries if you can’t find one at a book store. It’ll give you many more ideas and more detailed information and maps.