This past Saturday, I got out on the DuPage river during a near flood. I went from Wiegand park in Naperville to Rivertowne Parkway in Plainfield, about a 15.3 mile journey. Nearby river gauges indicated a near flood scenario, as the water levels were just below flood stage after a few days of heavier rain.

I cruised. It took about 3 hours total, we me breaking for an on river lunch. I paddled hard for half of it, then eased up for part of it as well. 5 MPH rate.

Gauge height readings were as follows:
-Shorewood was at about 5.5 feet (flood stage being 6.5)
-Plainfield was at 10 feet (action stage is 10', minor flood 12)

The river was definitely spilling its banks at points. There were few floating obstacles. If anything, the higher level made it easier to dodge boulders. While the shorelines were consistently at or below the river's water level, the DuPage never felt out of control, or unsafe. It was a fun quick paddle. Not for amateurs. 

In late summer, I made two trips down the DuPage River, specifically the rapids section. Spanning from Hammel Woods to Channahon State Park, it is a 10 mile stretch with many twists and turns, and rapids. The height was pretty low, measured at 2.5-3 feet both times at the shorewood USGS gauge

Here's another video of the rapid section in full. 

For Labor Day weekend, my wife and I took a canoe 36 miles down the Fox river, from Yorkville to Ottawa, Illinois. It's a clear river trip, past silver springs state park, shuh shuh canoe launch, Sheridan, Fox River Dells and portage through the Dayton dam area. 

This section is obviously very scenic. There are day trips you can take through the different areas, but the entire stretch is possible. Official campsites are non-existent, but there are a few islands and sandbars you can go on. 

The water level was lower than I've seen personally in my handful of trips.  Dayton's USGS gauge reading was at about 6.5 feet. Flow was at 1500, up from the average of 700 CFPS. Not sure I believe the averages, but the readings are what they are. There were plenty of rocks and boulders I've not quite seen on other trips, and I've gone in a dry October before.

Here are some shots of the portage. You get out at river left and drag along the shore bank. Then up a slight hill, and up over the dam. Then down a steep hill and back over some rocks to get back into the river. It takes about an hour, if you have 6 bags and a canoe like we did. There are signs clearly marking it, so it is easy to pass through.

Here is where we camped. Bit closer to jail than I'd prefer, but it worked. It was a nice sandbar with some tree coverage. Heavy on spiders, but not much in terms of mosquitoes.