Kickapoo River

Kickapoo River: Bridge 4 to Bridge 7 (just south of Ontario, WI on Hwy 131)

4 hours

Perfect for solo trips because shuttling is easy. Your ending point is just a 20 minute walk back to your vehicle at the starting point. Hwy 131 intersects the river as it meanders all over, making a straight walk back to your vehicle very easy. You can paddle for 4 hours (5 if you like to dork around) and walk for 20 minutes, not bad. If you're lucky, a passerby will give you a lift.

The Kickapoo River is an iconic river of the driftless region. Perfect for hooking a first timer on river paddling. Narrow, meandering, and deep. Sandstone bluffs covered in ferns, moss, and lichens are ridiculously beautiful. 

I had good company on this trip. I was one of six (five humans, one pooch). My new kayaking buddy, Khushali, has been joining me for a few good trips lately. She was a first timer when we paddled upstream on the Mississippi to Nine Mile Island on a windy day. Baptism by fire was not my intention. She did awesome. If this weren't a virtual blog, I might go on and on about my companions and their loveliness. 

Things that I loved about the non-human elements of this river include:
-Jewel weed in full bloom
-Yellow prairie flowers lighting up the banks (rosin weed was peaking)
-Ferns, mosses and lichens covering the sandstone bluffs
-Northwoodsy feel (hemlocks and white pines galore)
-Green "mountains" all around (actually big hills and bluffs)

Sunday, August 9th, 2020 was the day of this trip.