Illinois Paddle
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
    • Comment Policy
  • Blog
    • Gear
    • Journal
    • News
    • Tips
  • Resources
  • River Trips
    • Illinois Rivers >
      • Des Plaines
      • DuPage River
      • Fox River
      • Illinois River
      • Iroquois River
      • Kankakee River
      • Kishwaukee River
      • Little Vermilion River
      • Mazon River
      • Pecatonica River
      • Rock River
      • Vermilion River
    • Indiana Rivers >
      • White River
      • Sugar Creek
    • Iowa Rivers >
      • Upper Iowa River
      • Turkey River
    • Michigan Rivers >
      • Grand River
      • Pictured Rocks
    • Minnesota Rivers >
      • Boundary Waters
    • Missouri Rivers >
      • Current River (Ozarks)
    • Wisconsin Rivers >
      • Fox River WI
      • Sheboygan River
      • Wisconsin River

Fox River Trip report: Yorkville to Ottawa

6/7/2015

Comments

 
My wife and I wrapped up a 35 mile trip down the Fox river, starting in Yorkville, and ending in Ottawa. We passed through Millington, Sheridan, Whedron, and Dayton. We wound up doing 13 miles on day 1, and 22 miles on day 2. Yes, somehow we muscled out 22 miles and  one .5 mile portage in one day. Thank you bad weather forecast! Overall, it went well. 
The first leg was Yorkville to Sheridan area. It was a calm part of the river, with many trees and animals, nothing terribly outstanding. It was nice and relaxing though. The current was strong, and we were able to coast a while. There were no dams or major obstacles for this point. Finding suitable campsites was an issue, but there are 4-5 decent options once you start hitting the last few islands before Sheridan. 
Our second leg was Sheridan to Dayton. This was the best part of the trip, because of all of the dell areas. The rock formations rival the Starved Rock area. They start shortly after Sheridan, and continue until just north of Whedron. It is something that has to be seen. The water flow is nice. please note, there are a couple of canoe rental locations in that segment, and they special in providing drunk and loud boaters, who are just aiming to drink and float. 
After you pass Whedron, the current dies, and you have to muscle 4 miles to the dam. At the dam, you have a rough uphill and downhill portage to get back in the water. There is a parking lot to potentially end the trip, and next time, that is what I'll do.
The last leg was the hardest and not exactly worthwhile. The current picks back up about a mile past the dayton dam (around rt. 80). There is next to nothing for camping areas though. Looking back, we should have just stayed at 1 of the 2 campgrounds provided at the dam portage. All islands are overgrown, and all banks are steep, making it very hard to get a boat up.

Ottawa is not for canoes. There are way too many rookie powerboat owners who are oblivious as to how much wake they are creating. We came close to spilling on 3 different occasions. I doubt I'll every canoe through there again. Kayak might have been a bit better, but it was really wakey.
Picture
To summarize:
Yorkville to Millington is a simple float, very remote.
Millington to Sheridan is just as remote.
Sheridan to Whedron involves the awesome dell areas
Whedron to Dayton dam is a hard paddle on a wide river, with not as much scenery
Dayton to Ottawa has some scenery, but is a trap for small boats.
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

    James T.

    The Kayak Maniac

    Archives

    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015

    Categories

    All
    Gear
    Journal
    News
    Routes
    Tips

    RSS Feed

All maps and information are for research purposes only, and are not guaranteed to be 100% accurate. Do your own research before embarking.