Today's break in the weather gives us hope the rain will continue to let up and we can get to paddling our rivers once again this summer. Last summer around this time we had 3 great back-to-back paddle days over the 4th of July holiday weekend.
Pontoon Slough
The boys and I started this adventure putting in the kayaks at Pontoon Slough which is part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife & Fish Refuge. You can find this boat launch and several others between Wabasha, MN and Nelson, WI. These backwaters are a popular place for all year long for fishing. And you don’t need a boat, you can fish off the launch or hike along to a sand bar when there’s open water or trek out on the ice during the winter. We explored part of the Nelson-Trevino water trail, fishing along the way. This area is known for walleye, largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, and bluegill according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. I’d love to bring the paddleboards down sometime and complete the full 4.8-mile trail. The lily pads were in full bloom and gorgeous. We had a very friendly dragon fly visitor that took a rest on Tristan's knee. And we explored a sandbar where Tristan found some empty turtle shells and Mason fished off a downed tree (a couple of my favorite pictures ever of him).
Chester Woods Lake
The next day Tristan and I brought one of the paddleboards and his mini kayak to Chester Woods Park, located near Rochester, MN. This Olmsted County Park has quite a few amenities to access or admire the 110-acre lake including a beach, watercraft rentals, several accessible fishing piers and hiking trails, among other things! As one of the limited lake options in southeast Minnesota, it can get busy with boats (only electric trolling motors are allowed), kayaks, and canoes on nice days. The lake can get a bit choppy on windy days as well. We lucked out with a nice day and Tristan was able to practice kayaking on his own. When he got tired, we towed his kayak behind the paddleboard and then he eventually rode on the paddleboard with me (and took a few dips in the lake along the way). We were also able to paddle over to the dam, which we’ve previously hiked to. It’s always fun to see the same places from different perspectives.
Zumbro River - Zumbro Falls to Hammond
The whole family joined a group of friends on the Zumbro River for our final paddle. The boys all kayaked and I brought my paddleboard out on moving water for the first time. I was leery about the rapids and getting hung up on rocks so opted to go with no fins, which made tracking interesting for the day (but still fun). Tristan towed behind Heath or I part of the time but did well on his own the majority. We put in at Zumbro Falls and got out at Hammond. This is a pretty popular stretch for kayaks and tubes; there are watercraft and shuttle rentals along the way if you don’t have your own/multiple vehicles. Depending on the time of year, the water clarity and levels can vary; the day we went the water was regular to low(ish) and very clear; so clear you could see the trout swimming by and low enough to make the rapids fun and hang up/tip over a john boat but not low enough to hang up the kayaks/paddleboard. After kneeling or sitting through about my 3rd stretch of rapids, I gave standing a go and made it through! With stopping and exploring sand bars and letting the current determine our rate of travel, the 7-mile trip took roughly 5.5-hours. The full 7 miles is all very picturesque surrounded by bluffs. I’m looking forward to completing this paddle again this year. I’m looking into some flexible fins to help with tracking and will let you all know how it goes!
I recently learned about the National Water Information System website. This is a great site to reference to keep up to date on conditions. I have bookmarked it and will definitely be referencing it when making any water-related plans. Stay safe out there!
Thanks for reading!
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