A long, narrow straightaway announces the gigantic Kraft factory on your right. Light rapids and riffles will continue through a series of pleasant city parks around which the river meanders. At Cooper Street, you’ll come upon four culverts. They look intimidating because they lie on a diagonal, so you can’t see proverbial light at the other end of the tunnel. You can easily portage around these, but rest assured it’s totally safe. Choose the rightmost culvert, as there’s a fun small rapid just below the clearance. Consider this short-but-lively stretch part one of this trip.
Part two consists of Cooper Street to just downstream of the US 151 underpass. This stretch is a little dull, to be frank. The river widens and thus gets quite shallow and slow. Notwithstanding the clarity of the water, there’s a considerable amount of trash in this section—mostly tires. The culprit is no doubt the large landfill you’ll see in the form of a hill on the right. Fortunately, all of this is quickly passed through. Another tunnel, this time concrete-lined, the US 151 underpass is pretty fun to paddle through. Since the current here is virtually nonexistent, there are no safety concerns. On the downstream side of US 151, you’ll see a new housing development off to the right. The general dullness of this section resumes for a quarter of a mile more before the river again narrows, woods enclose, and the best part of the trip begins—indeed, the best portion of the entire Beaver Dam River!
Past the barn on the right and then a set of power lines lies a wonderfully easy 1-foot drop—you’ll see a modest horizon line and hear the rapid. The river flows fairly straight through a woodsy corridor for the next few miles, and riffles are everywhere, occasionally punctuated with small rapids. The left bank will rise about 20 feet high, and then the right bank as well. You’ll pass only two houses here, side by side on the right above a series of concrete terraces. After these, the river zigzags through more charged riffles leading to a magnificent and colossal railroad bridge seemingly in the middle of nowhere and more or less resembling a Roman aqueduct. At least 50 feet high, it was built in 1910 and straddles the tall banks. Be careful though: On the downstream side of the bridge is a wire, not barbed, but you don’t want to become entangled.
After the bridge, the river is shallower, so in low water you will need to pay attention for the deepest channels. There are a number of small boulders and a few strainers to watch out for and maneuver around. It’s not necessarily dangerous, but you must be mindful and on-game—but in a fun way, not a dangerous one. Leading up to and following Canary Road, the woods thin out and you’re in farmland. The riffles continue, the water is still clear, and the river meanders more here, so the paddling remains a delight.
Immediately upstream of a charming red barn is one last super-fun rapid at a right-hand bend. As usual, you’ll hear the sound of it before seeing it. The rapid peters out to a riffle leading to CR S. The current will remain lively for the next 0.5 mile, to the bridge at CR J, where you’ll see a small stream enter on the right. Take out on the right bank on the upstream side of the bridge, where there is a convenient flat spot for ease of access.
• THE • FUDGE •
ADDITIONAL TRIPS There’s a pretty stretch a few miles downstream beginning at Meadow Road to the dam in Lowell. Except for one random stretch with riffles, it’s slow and becomes somewhat monotonous, but the beginning meadow is especially lovely in spring. A couple hundred yards of Class I rapids and riffles lie below the dam, but there’s no good spot to take out. It’s slow and agrarian downstream of Reeseville, and eventually the river splits around two huge islands studded with subdued quartz. The area is interesting but very marshy and often frequented by motorboats.
Beaver Dam Lake itself is not recommended for paddling due to the motorboat traffic it receives.
CAMPING Derge Park (N8379 CR W, Beaver Dam; 920-386-3700)
FOOD FOR THOUGHT For a great cup of coffee as well as sweet and savory treats, head over to Black Waters Coffee (308 S. Center St., Beaver Dam; 920-887-8100), two blocks from the put-in.
2 Crawfish River A: COLUMBUS TO ASTICO PARK
• THE • FACTS •
Put-in/take-out Columbus Dam off Campbell Street/Astico Park near Danville Dam
Distance/time 8.6 mi/Allow for 4 hrs
Gradient/water level 0.5 fpm except for the riffles section/Use USGS gage 05425912 (Beaver Dam River) since the official Crawfish River gage is too far downstream to correlate. Look for a minimum of 60 cfs to avoid scraping.
Water type Quietwater with a section of riffles
Canoe or kayak Either
Skill level Beginner
Time of year to paddle Anytime
Landscape Urban, agrarian, hardwood forest
OVERVIEW A pleasant trip offering a surprising amount of diversity, this upper stretch of the Crawfish has a lot to like. While never far from town or farms, the river nonetheless retains a secluded feel. An unexpected boulder garden with riffles and light rapids adds a spike of fun to an otherwise lazy float trip. The county park at the take-out offers pretty campsites and hiking trails on a peninsular hill, as well as a beautiful old powerhouse next to a dam. Expect to see great blue herons, muskrats, ducks, kingfishers, turkey vultures, hawks, and turtles—maybe even egrets and owls.
SHUTTLE 4.3 miles. From the take-out, turn right on CR T. As you cross the bridge, be sure to slow down and look to the right at the handsome Danville Dam. (Also, you can anticipate the water level by seeing how much is spilling over the dam.) Turn right on CR TT, then turn left on Ninabuck Road. At the stop sign, turn left on WI 60 and take it into town. Turn right on Campbell Street; if you cross the river again, you’ve missed Campbell. At the end of Campbell, you’ll see a path on the left leading to the base of the dam. Park roadside near the path and walk the short distance to the bottom of the dam.
TAKE-OUT N43° 19.565' W88° 56.950'
PUT-IN N43° 20.250' W89° 00.608'
• THE • FLAVOR •
PUT IN BELOW THE DAM. Immediately there will be large rocks to dodge in the streambed, some hard to see due to the clouded water. You will be able to tell right away if the river is shallow: If you’re scraping here, you will be walking your boat downstream. Below the dam, the river is unusually narrow; with trees flanking both banks, the setting is pretty and relaxing. As it widens and slows down, you’ll see some buildings on both banks and a set of power lines overhead.
An attractive truss bridge spans the Crawfish River in Astico County Park.
After a long straightaway, the river bends to the left to begin a bizarre loop. It’s a welcome aberration though, as a pretty set of deep woods lines the left bank. A series of three sharp right-hand turns follows. After the third, you’ll come upon a humongous logjam on the left; fortunately, there’s plenty of clearance on the right to pass it by. It’s an impressive pile up of wood and debris 5 feet high. After this is a random footbridge spanning the entire river, succeeded by another power line.
For a short way, there will be woods on the left and an 8-foot-tall bank on the right. Here, the Crawfish runs parallel to aptly named River Road, but cars are rare. Soon you’ll see an isolated farm on the right up a gentle hill followed by the same power line crossing the river a third time. This signals an unexpected but entirely welcome