Category Archives: Canoeing

Nature Current BIG Canoe Participating on Fox – Wisconsin Heritage Parkway Paddles

The Fox-Wisconsin Heritage Parkway and the North East Wisconsin Paddlers are proud to bring you the 2013 Fox-Wisconsin Heritage Paddles. This annual paddling series is designed to celebrate and explore the Parkway region.

This year our Nature Current Voyageur canoe will be joining the paddlers starting on June 22nd in Princeton and all the rest of the paddles in the series through the Sept. 28th Appleton Locks Paddle.  If you would like a ride with us on one of the these Heritage Paddles please get in touch with Mark at Nature Current. 

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Upper Fox River

June 22-23: Upper Fox Paddles
22 – Princeton to Berlin
Camp at Berlin’s Riverside Park
23 – Winneconne to Terrell Island to Rainbow Park in Oshkosh
Meet & shuttle: 9:30-10:30 AM; Launch 11 AM

Lower Fox River

July 20: Park-to-Park Paddle
Shattuck Park (Neenah) to Lutz Park (Appleton)
Meet & shuttle: 7:30-9 AM; Launch 9:30 AM

August 17: Tall Ships Paddle
De Pere to Green Bay
Paddle among replicas of historic sailing ships
Meet & shuttle: 8-9 AM; Launch 9:30 AM

September 28: Appleton Locks Paddle
Lutz Park (Appleton) to Sunset Point Park (Kimberly)
Paddle through Appleton’s four hand-operated locks
Meet & shuttle: 8-9 AM; Launch 9:30 AM

Heritage Paddle Activities

Paddlers are encouraged to seek additional heritage opportunities at each paddle event.

June 22-23: Upper Fox Paddles
Two voyageur canoes and two DNR canoes will be available. On June 23, Pierre Le Blanc will interpret fur trader times as a passenger from one of the canoes during the paddle.

July 20: Park-to-Park Paddle
Two voyageur canoes and two DNR canoes will be available. Please join us after the paddle at the Appleton Yacht Club for a special guest speaker. Paul Robbins, director of the UW Nelson Institute of Environmental Studies, will be speanking Wisconsin water bodies and the implications of climate Change.

August 17: Tall Ships Paddle
One voyageur canoe will be available, as well as historic voyageur, Pierre Le Blanc. The Tall Ships Festival will take place downtown Green Bay, August 16-18.

September 28: Appleton Locks Paddle
Two voyageur canoes and two DNR canoes will be available, as well as historic voyageur, Pierre Le Blanc.

Heritage Paddle Helpful Links

Reserve your spot in our Voyageur Canoe

Contact Mark at Nature Current to reserve your spot.  Email:  info@naturecurrent.com

 

Big Canoe Paddling on the Wolf River with Nature Current

A nice warm April day was a great reason to get the new BIG canoe on the water with friends and family to explore the flooded Wolf River. We started in Shiocton at Hwy 54, paddled up to where the Shioc River enters the Wolf and then were able to go another mile on the Shioc because the water was so high.

We did have to turn Water Lily, our big voyageur canoe around at the old bridge over the Shioc River because the clearance was too low. We took the big canoe through some of the flooded areas and explored in the trees. A red tailed hawk visited us along our journey.

Check out Nature Current BIG canoe journey’s at our new website.

January Paddling on the Fox River Video

The Fox River at Lutz Park Appleton, WI

50 degrees on January 10, 2012 in Wisconsin is a chance to paddle that a few of us paddlers couldn’t pass up. Here’s the video of myself, Sean and Terry paddling the Fox River from Lutz Park in Appleton to Little Lake Butte Des Morts.

You’ll see by the video there was virtually no snow and very little ice until we got to the wider part of the lake. It felt more like paddling in November. Watch for the eagle taking off from the tree in the video. We didn’t see 18 eagles like last week. We did see a few. I think this was because more open water spread them out to other places or maybe it was just our timing this day.

Warning: Cold water paddling can be dangerous. Don’t mess around this time of year! Safety is always important and even more so when it’s cold.

You can also check out this little winter paddling adventure in photos.

January Ice Paddling in Appleton Wisconsin

What is normally a long off season for paddlers was a little shorter for a few of us around Appleton, WI. Record temps in January brought the opportunity to paddle some open water on the Fox River.  A few eagles watched us paddle by in the trees.  The Fox River is a place where they congregate for the winter because it’s one of the few open water spots where they can catch fish.

Winter paddling should be approached with extreme caution. Do not go out on the water without the proper gear and a plan.  We do not recommend paddling in the winter in Wisconsin.

Slideshow of January Ice Paddling

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Water Walker – Feature Length Documentary

Bill Mason paddling his canoe.

For paddlers this canoeing film by Bill Mason is a treat. Especially in the middle of January in Wisconsin. The movie is from 1984. It’s a full 86 minutes of wilderness paddling.

This feature-length documentary follows naturalist Bill Mason on his journey by canoe into the Ontario wilderness. The filmmaker and artist begins on Lake Superior, then explores winding and sometimes tortuous river waters to the meadowlands of the river’s source. Along the way, Mason paints scenes that capture his attention and muses about his love of the canoe, his artwork and his own sense of the land. Mason also uses the film as a commentary on the link between God and nature and the vast array of beautiful canvases God created for him to paint. Features breathtaking visuals and exciting whitewater footage, with a musical score by Bruce Cockburn.

Winter Kayaking on the Fox River

Balmy January days in Wisconsin meant more open water on the Fox River.   My friend Terry and I went out how much water was open and check out the ice when the temps topped 40 degrees last week.   The Fox River is the only open water nearby in the winter.  Many winters when the temps are colder the river freezes solid.  We went about a mile before soft ice stopped our progress.

I do not recommend paddling in the Winter.  There are real dangers if you get wet.  It’s not a time to be messing around in tippy little boats.

Winter Kayaking on the Fox Slideshow

Winter Paddling in Appleton on the Fox River on January 5th

Finding open water is usually a challenge in January in Wisconsin. Also, it’s usually too cold to even want to paddle. January 5, 2012 brought 40 degrees, sun and calm winds to the Fox Cities area and we decided to take advantage of the mild temps and go paddling.

Safety is something we take even more seriously when going out kayaking and canoeing in winter.  Always dress for immersion.  Be prepared and be extra cautious.  Also not go alone.  If you’re inexperienced wait until summer when conditions are better to practice your skills.

 

January Paddling Slideshow

 

Wisconsin has been experiencing a balmy January so far in 2012.  January 5th reached 40 degrees!  For us hard core paddlers that means we start looking for open water.  One of the only places open this time of year is the Fox River through Appleton.

My friend Terry and I launched his canoe from the banks of Lutz Park.  The boat landing was iced up but the current along the sea wall was keeping the water open and made launching easy.  We were able to paddle West for about a mile into Little Lake Butte Des Morts, almost to Stroebe Island, before the ice blocked our way.  On December 21st during our last outing we had a channel all the way to the 441 bridge.  Today we played ice breaker for a little while until the ice became too thick.  We followed another smaller channel back and broke through another section of ice to enter the main channel.

The eagles from the Fox Valley area are making their winter home along this stretch of open water.  We counted at least 18 different eagles.  In one of the photos in the slide show you will see 16 eagles in the trees in 1 photo.  This is by far the largest collection of eagles I’ve ever seen in one place.  It seems like the eagle population is growing in Northeast Wisconsin.   All summer I spotted eagles while out paddling.  The most I’ve seen at one time before today’s paddle was 3.

We paddled almost up to Appleton Lock #1 before the ice made us retreat back to Lutz Park.

A 2 hour canoe outing in January was a great treat that most of us Wisconsin paddlers can’t do with all the cold and ice that we normally have in January.

Brief History of Canoeing from The Fox-Wisconsin Heritage Parkway

This information from  The Fox-Wisconsin Heritage Parkway blog

In recent years, paddling has experienced resurgence on the Fox and Wisconsin rivers. From Green Bay to Prairie du Chien, individuals are taking to this silent pursuit in numbers not experienced since the mid-twentieth century. When paddlers ‘put in’ on the Fox and Wisconsin today, they are continuing a tradition dating back thousands of years.

Developed by native peoples, the canoe is one of the oldest forms of watercraft in North America. Early models, believed to be over 8,000 years old, were carved from large tree trunks. In fact, the word ‘canoe’ is thought to have originated from the word ‘kenu,’ meaning dugout.

A more modern design, the birch bark canoe had a tremendous impact on the settling of North America. This design was popular throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as voyageurs, missionaries, and fur traders explored the interior of North America via its many lakes and rivers.

Known for its large towing capacity and ability to handle a variety of water conditions, it was this type of canoe that Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet selected for their 1673 journey down the Parkway in their search for the Northwest Passage. In 1847, journalist, George William Featherstonhaugh traveled the Fox River by wooden canoe as documented in his published journals, A Canoe Voyage Up the Minnay Sotor.

Read the full article at the Heritage Parkway blog.

Waupaca River Paddle – Hwy 54 to Harrington Rd.

The Waupaca River from Hwy 54 in Waupaca to Harrington Rd. is a beautiful mostly wild stretch of river running right on the edge of town.

Length: 7.5 miles
Start: Kiwanis Park in Waupaca off Hwy 54
Finish: Harrington Rd. bridge
Time: about 3 hours on the river
Shuttle:  Hwy 54 to Harrington Road is about 4 miles.  Leaving a bike at the end could work well if you don’t have an extra vehicle.

Hazards: deadfalls in the first 2 miles block the river and with the moving water make the first section challenging.

The Waupaca River is one the nicest rivers for a leasurely paddle with changing scenery in central Wisconsin.  Bob and I started this paddle at Kiwanis Park on Hwy 54 in Waupaca.  The park is a convenient starting place to put in with it’s cleanly mowed river banks.

Right away we had to navigate around a large tree blocking the river.  There was just enough room to get through the branches and keep our boats in the water.  Trees are a challenge in the first part of this paddle.  The river banks are 25 to 40 feet wide in the first 2  miles from Kiwanis Park.  The river is also completely tree lined which means blow downs end up in the river.  A portage or 3 may be necessary in the beginning.  We only had to get out of our boats once on this day but there were many other places we had to pull our boats over logs and through branches.  There is enough current in the Waupaca River to make all this maneuvering around trees an extra challenge.  If you pay attention and know how to control your boat  you should be fine but be prepared to portage in a few spots.

About 2 miles from Kiwanis Park the Crystal River enters the Waupaca River on the right.  The Crystal is just a few hundred yards after a private steel and wood bridge.  The Crystal adds plenty of extra water to the flow of the Waupaca.  From here on the river gets wider and the extra width make it less likely trees will completely block your way.  There were still a few spots where we had  to get around large trees but less than the sections above.

There is another small private bridge to go under and the concrete  remains of an old bridge to pass around before you see the bridge at Hwy 22 / 54 at about the 3 mile point.  The Hwy 22/ 54 bridge could be an alternative start or end spot.  We didn’t see any signs of this bridge being used by paddlers as we went by but the South side looks like the best access from our position in the river.

Longer, fairly straight sections with broad curves after Hwy 22 / 54 are nice and easy.  Some of the broad shallow sandy sections may force you to walk your boat when the water is lower.  We had plenty of water in the entire river.  The Waupaca River runs just North of the Waupaca Airport.  We saw a couple of small planes from the airport but it’s a small airport and we didn’t actually see the airport from the river.  After the airport there is another small farm bridge to go under with a very sharp left turn after.  The eddies and riffles after the bridge were fun to play in.

The banks of the river vary from small marshy sections to high banked outside curves.  Most of the river is tree lined until you get near the end.  A couple of farm fields are visible as you near Harrington Rd.  The peace and calm of most of the upper sections is interrupted in the last mile with the traffic noise where the river runs near Hwy 10.  We did get a view of the highway near the very end of our journey.   There are not as many boulder gardens in this section like there are from Hwy Q to Brainerd’s bridge, West of Waupaca.

The Waupaca River from Hwy 54 to Harrington Rd. is highly recommended for a paddle trip as long as you are willing to deal with a few portages around deadfalls.  We enjoyed seeing an Osprey circling around the river.  We also saw a Blue Heron and turtles.

If you want to lengthen this trip you can extend your take out to the Lake Weyauwega landings.  The landings in Weyauwega are an additional hour downstream.  As of Summer 2011 Weyauwega lake has been drained to control weeds.  The landings will not be very useable until the lake if filled again which will probably be sometime in 2012.

 

Photo Slideshow of the Waupaca River

Here’s our trip in photos:

Map of the Waupaca River – Hwy 54 to Harrington Rd.


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