Canoeing the Driftless: A Paddlers Guide for Southeastern Minnesota

By David J. Lind

Southeastern Minnesota is a class=SpellE>paddlers dream. Throughout the forested bluff land
terrain, called the Driftless Area, there are both
easy paddling routes as well as challenging, more
difficult streams all offering beautifull scenic
views and a variety of wildlife.

Canoeing The
Driftless contains maps and descriptions for
over 50 routes covering 600 miles to help you plan your paddling trip.
Information such as route length, difficulty, hazards, as well as points of
interest, the best put-in and take-out accesses and shuttle routes are included
to help in choosing a trip to fit your needs.

Also included are River
Scenes which have interesting information on history along the routes as
well as some personal, sometimes humorous accounts of trips on the rivers.

Canoeing The
Driftless is written for all levels of
paddlers, from the beginner to the most experienced paddler.
For the beginner to intermediate paddler there are
the main routes on the Cannon, Zumbro, and Root
rivers, for the more experienced paddlers the routes on the Bear, Deer,
Whitewater, and smaller branches of the Root River and Zumbro
River provide more challenging runs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Feb 11, 2004
• ISBN: 9781414042053

David J. Lind

The author, Dave Lind, has canoed and kayaked for over 50 years, beginning with Boy Scout canoe-camping trips on the Mississippi River and the Minnesota Boundary Waters Canoe Area. Dave has paddled extensively in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Northeastern Iowa, on both whitewater and flatwater routes. He has found that the streams of southeastern Minnesota, located in the “Driftless Area”, are a paddlers paradise with scenic easy paddling routes, as well as challenging small stream routes that are not adequately covered in existing paddling books. Over the last ten years he has canoed every route in this book taking extensive notes on each river trip.

Book preview

CONTENTS

Epigraph

Acknowledgments

Introduction

How To Use This Guide

Driftless Area Of Southeastern Minnesota

Zumbro River

Zumbro River Overview Map

Main Branch Of The Zumbro River

Zumbro River, Power Dam To Zumbro Falls

Zumbro River, Zumbro Falls To Hammond

Zumbro River, Hammond To Millville

Zumbro River, Millville To Theilman

Zumbro River, Theilman To Kruger Park

Zumbro River, Kruger Park To Kellogg And The Mississippi River

Less Traveled Routes Of The Zumbro River

North Fork, Zumbro River

Zumbro River North Fork, Zumbrota To Mazeppa

Zumbro River North Fork, Mazeppa To Cr 7 Bridge

Zumbro River North Fork, Cr 7 Bridge To Zumbro Falls

Zumbro River Middle Fork, Pine Island To Oronoco

Zumbro River Middle Fork, Oronoco To Lake Zumbro (Sandy Point)

Snapshot

Lake Zumbro (Sandy Point) To The Power Dam (Ponderosa Access)

Dodge Center Creek (Dodge Center To Wasioja)

River Scene

Zumbro River South Branch Middle Fork, Wasioja To Mantorville

Zumbro River South Branch Middle Fork, Mantorville To Oxbow Park

Zumbro River South Branch Middle Fork, Oxbow Park To Genoa

Zumbro River South Branch Middle Fork, Genoa To Oronoco

Zumbro River South Fork

Zumbro River South Fork, Mayowood Pond To Silver Lake (Rochester)

Zumbro River South Fork, Rochester To Lake Zumbro (Sandy Point)

Whitewater River

Root River

Root River, Main Branch

Root River, Chatfield Access To Highway 52 Bridge (Parsley Bridge Access)

Root River, Parsley Bridge (Hwy 52) To Moen’s Bridge Access

Root River, Sr 16 Access To Peterson

Root River, Peterson To Rushford

Root River, Rushford To Houston

Root River, Houston To The Mississippi River

Less Traveled Paddling Routes Of The Root River

North Branch Root River, Stewartville To Cr 1 Bridge (Fugles Mill)

North Branch Root River, Cr 1 Bridge (Fugles Mill) To Cr 19 Bridge (Rattlesnake Crossing)

Root River North Branch, Cr 19 (Rattlesnake Crossing) To Cr 30 Bridge

North Branch Root River, Cr 30 Bridge To Chatfield

Middle Branch Root River

Middle Branch Root River, Fillmore Cr 5 Bridge To Cr 7 Bridge

Middle Branch Root River, Cr 7 To Highway 52 Access (Parsley Bridge)

Tributaries Of The Middle Branch, Root River

Bear Creek

Bear Creek, Cr 1 Bridge To Cr 38 Bridge

Bear Creek, Cr 38 Bridge To Cr 5 Bridge

Deer Creek

Deer Creek, Cr 8 Bridge To Cr 1 Bridge

Deer Creek, Cr 1 Bridge To Masonic Park (Cr 38)

Deer Creek, Masonic Park (Cr 38) To Cr 8 Bridge

Deer Creek, Cr 8 Bridge To Cr 5 Bridge

Spring Valley Creek

Spring Valley Creek, Township Road 359 Bridge To Cr 8 Bridge

South Branch Root River

South Branch Root River, Cr 5 Bridge To Forestville State Park

South Branch Root River, Forestville Park To Preston

South Branch Root River, Preston To Lanesboro

South Branch Root River, Lanesboro To Whalen

South Fork Root River

South Fork Root River, Cr 12 Bridge To Choice And Cr 13 Bridge

South Fork Root River, Cr 13 Bridge To Yucatan (Cr 4 Bridge)

South Fork Root River, Yucatan (Cr 4) To Root River Main Branch

Cannon River, Sakatah Lake To Cannon Lake

Cannon River, Faribault To Northfield

Cannon River, Northfield To Cannon Falls

Cannon River, Cannon Falls To Welch

Cannon River, Welch To The Mississippi River (Red Wing)

Straight River

Straight River, Owatonna To Medford

Straight River, Medford To Faribault

Mississippi River And Backwaters

Mississippi River, Red Wing To Alma

Mississippi River: Alma To Trempealeau

Mississippi River: Trempealeau To Iowa Border

Chester Woods Lake

Planning A Paddling Outing

Helpful Hints And Techniques

The Real Distance

Shuttling Cars And Canoes

Reading A River

Navigating Shallow Water

Navigating River Tree Snags Or Strainers

Canoeing Upstream

River Difficulty Ratings

Poling

Canoeing Equipment And Gear

Type Of Canoes

Tandem (Two Person)

Solo-(One Person)

Kayaks

Paddles

Canoe Car Racks And Tie Down

Clothing

Resources

Maps

River Levels

Canoe/Kayak Rentals

Route Synopsis

About The Author

Epigraph

I have found that small rivers are fun places to canoe, fish, see animals and watch nature. You can get close to them, learning to enjoy them because they are sometimes clear, sometimes muddy, fickle and smell funny. They flow, they gurgle and skip down riffles. Streams are alive and vibrant in a way lakes aren’t and can’t be. Streams are connections to the land above and below them; lakes just sit there.

Excerpted from an article by John Weiss, outdoor editor for the Rochester Post-Bulletin, dated 9/16/95.

Acknowledgments

I would like to especially thank James Moran, who for many years went on paddling outings with me as I gathered information on the routes included in this book.

Thanks also to John Weiss for supplying pictures taken on several of the river routes.

I would like to acknowledge the many friends and family members for their encouragement and a special thanks to Colette, my wife, for letting me take the time to explore the rivers of Southeastern Minnesota and for her enduring the many late nights I spent at the computer writing this book.

INTRODUCTION

This book is a paddling guide to over 55 routes encompassing 600 miles of rivers and small streams that flow through the valleys of Southeastern Minnesota. The rivers covered are:

•  o ZumbroRiver: Main Branch from Power Dam to the Mississippi River. The tributaries of the Zumbro including the North Fork, Middle Fork, South Branch of the Middle Fork, North Branch of the Middle Fork, South Fork and Dodge Center creek.

•  o RootRiver: Main Branch from Chatfield to the Mississippi River. The tributaries of the Root including the North Branch, Middle Branch, South Branch, South Fork, Deer Creek, Bear Creek and Spring Valley Creek.

•  o CannonRiver: Sakatah Lake to the Mississippi River.

•  o StraightRiver: Owatonna to Faribault.

•  o WhitewaterRiver: Elba to Mississippi River.

•  o Mississippibackwaters: from lock and dam #3, near Red Wing, to the Iowa border.

Each of the rivers and streams are divided into sections that consist of one or several paddling routes with alternate accesses. This makes it easy to plan short day trips or longer multiple day excursions.

For many years I have paddled the streams in Southeastern Minnesota, known geologically as the "Driftless Area", keeping detailed notes as I explored the routes documented in this guide. This book provides a comprehensive guide for paddling the Driftless Area including route descriptions and maps for the popular DNR maintained routes as well as the less traveled routes. Many of the routes contained in this guide are not documented in any other paddling publication. Paddling the southeastern Minnesota streams is a great way to enjoy the outdoors, quietly gliding along, observing wildlife, and get close to nature.

Paddling Safety

Paddling a canoe or kayak, by its very nature, can be hazardous. While this guide provides a difficulty rating for the routes, using sound judgment, common sense and observing safety precautions is the responsibility of the participants.

How to use this guide

The purpose of this book is pro3vide enough information for you to pick a route that fits your skill level and still give you a chance to discover the scenic beauty of the river and allow you to explore on your own.

For each river this guide provides an overview description and an overview map showing the entire river. Each river is then divided into routes averaging about 10 miles.

Each route includes a map showing the river route, towns, pertinent roads, and accesses. other information included on each map is:

•  County(s) the route flows through.

•  PagereferencestotheDelormeMinnesotaAtlas&Gazetteer (a good topographical map book) are given to help you find the best roads to use in driving to a route.

•  Legend

•  LongitudeandLatitudecoordinates. (LabeledGPS) Useful for those using GPS units or those having access to online mapping applications or paper maps that have latitude and longitude coordinates.

Each route description includes information such as points of interest, shuttle routes, and put-in/take-out accesses. A snapshot of each route with the following information is also given:

•  Rivermilesandaverageruntime. This is important for trip planning since it is difficult to figure the correct river miles using common state or county maps. The run time is only a guide as the actual trip time depends on the time you will spend exploring, fishing, etc.

•  Averagedrop. Measurement of the gradient (feet per mile) from the put-in to the take-out. This is useful in planning a trip as a high drop number (8 or above) indicates the water flow is fast with rapids and ripples, while a low number (3 to 5) indicates slower flatwater paddling.

•  Hazards. List of obstacles that you may encounter on the route. Please pay special attention to these.

•  Difficulty. This is the author’s rating of the route:

•  Easy: Suitable for beginners. Usually a Minnesota DNR maintained route with good accesses.

•  Moderate: Requires river-paddling experience because of minor hazards. Route may not be DNR maintained.

•  Difficult: For experienced paddlers only. Hazards may require paddling techniques to navigate and may require some short but tough portages around obstacles. Accesses are usually rough. Route may not be DNR maintained.

•  VeryDifficult: For very experienced paddlers. Advanced paddling techniques required. usually rough accesses, numerous hazards, and possible tough portages. Route may not be DNR maintained.

Driftless Area Of Southeastern Minnesota

The land make-up of Southeastern Minnesota makes it a unique area for river and small stream paddling. The southeastern Minnesota driftless area includes four major rivers: Cannon, Zumbro, Root, Whitewater, and several smaller streams, all directly tributary to the Mississippi. Together, their watersheds comprise 5,708 square miles, primarily in Goodhue, Rice, Wabasha, Dodge, Olmsted, Winona, Fillmore, and Houston counties. All of these streams originate on the cultivated glacial plains of southeastern Minnesota, wind slowly east, and drop abruptly into wooded gullies, ravines, and deep valleys of what geologists call the driftless area, and then flow into the Mississippi River.

The land in the southeast corner of Minnesota is different than the rest of the state. Minnesota is called the land of 10,000 lakes, but surprisingly there are very few natural lakes in southeastern Minnesota. Instead it is a rugged land of forested hills and valleys with rushing streams and is a lot like the Ozarks. The climate is more southern than the climate of the rest of Minnesota. It is a region with many small streams flowing down deep valleys lined with tall limestone bluffs.

The southeast part of Minnesota contains many superb streams for fishing trout and smallmouth bass. There are also many caves and caverns of unsurpassed beauty.

This is the "driftless area", a land the glaciers missed, a rugged land carved by a sequence of geological events unique on the North American continent. The driftless area is an island of rocky uplands of 10,000 square miles in