Submit a trip report! 20 Miles on the Lower Wisconsin: 3 day weekend, mid-August, 2001 Location: Muscoda to Boscobel, 4+ hours from Chicago Class: Unknown  [more info] Rafting the Pacuare & Sarapiquí Rivers: 4/1/2002 Location: Costa Rica Class: III-IV  [more info] Vermilion: May 1 2005 Location: IL Class: I-II  [more info] Red River: May 6, 2007 Location: Near the Wolf River in Wisconsin Class: none  [more info] Big Fun on Gauley Tributaries: Memorial Day Weekend, 2001 Location: Southern West Virginia Class: III-IV  [more info]

Trip Report Detail 20 Miles on the Lower Wisconsin: 3 day weekend, mid-August, 2001 Location: Muscoda to Boscobel, 4+ hours from Chicago Partners in crime: Sandi Class: Unknown Flow Level: Muscoda to Boscobel, 4+ hours from Chicago Full Report: The Lower Wisconsin offers some 90 miles of riverway with no rapids, falls or portages between Sauk City and Wyalusing. River currents range from 3-5 mph upstream, to only 1-2 mph below Muscoda. Two-thirds of river users are reportedly found on the 25 mile stretch between Prarie du Sac and Spring Green. The Spring Green to Boscobel section is less traveled. Weekend use is 5-10 times heavier than during the week. River access is available throughout, every 5-7 miles. Camp at any of the many islands or sandbars. We chose to put in at Muscoda, to avoid congestion and competition for primo campsites. I’m not sure that it was necessary. We saw only 3 other groups on the river, plus a few fishermen, the whole weekend. Anyhow, we drove up on Friday afternoon and arrived at our intended campground, “Riverside Park” in Mucoda, around 7PM. I suppose it was nice enough, although the sites were pretty close together. We could see vacant sandbars just off shore, and briefly considered loading the canoe and ferrying out to one... but we were just too tired and hungry. On Saturday morning, after breakfast at Mary’s Sunshine Diner in Muscoda (can’t recommend it) we drove to our put in at Riverview Hills Canoe Rental on the other side of the river a few miles up from Muscoda. Pete and Cindy are the owners and very knowledgeable about the river and the area. They will shuttle you for a fee ($25 in our case). I found outfitters at almost every access point that offer shuttle services, although when busy, not all will shuttle you if you aren’t using their canoes. If you want to run your own shuttle, there are public landings, some with facilities, throughout. The stretch from Muscoda to Boscobel is 20+ miles. The plan was to paddle about 5 miles Saturday, 10 on Sunday, and the last 5 on Monday. We put on at around noon and started floating down river just behind a group of day trippers. We only saw them twice more that day. The river flows around islands and sandbars forming channels that may or may not be passable. You can give your river reading skills a workout trying to avoid getting stuck on a sandbar, or get out and drag your canoe the few feet to the drop off. Some of the drop offs can be steep, be careful where you walk. We favored the left hand channels in most cases as we scouted for the perfect secluded campsite. My criteria: off the main channel, nice beach, deep water in front for swimming and bathing, sunset view and clear access to the island interior for when nature calls. This last item is worth considering, as most of the islands are rife with poison ivy. At around 4PM (guessing, we had no watch) we pulled up on a sandy, curving bay on the river left side of a large island. We saw no other people for the rest of the day. After setting up camp and having a snack, we set off to explore our island and collect firewood. We saw tracks from deer, raccoons and birds both large and small– no human footprints aside from our own. After sunset we endured an hour or two of fairly bad mosquito attack (Cindy had warned us), but once the wind picked up and the temperature dropped they moved along. The night was clear and cool and the stargazing was world-class. The next morning, after a swim and a leisurely breakfast, we packed up and headed down river. Paddling was made tougher by a head wind most of the day. Around lunch time we ran into a guy who was fishing one of the many deep holes along the banks. He had some good-sized catfish and a couple of stories to share. Turns out that a local guy once caught a Piranha in the river. Yup, and if that isn’t enough excitement for you, another guy once caught an alligator... well, almost caught it... it broke the line and got away. So, making a mental note to be more careful where I swam, we moved along and pushed to make some miles. We stopped at a couple of islands to stretch our legs and have lunch before finally choosing a site along a narrow channel facing some park land on river right. We had at least a hundred feet of beach to call our own. The predicted thunderstorm passed to the east and gave us a great light show between a spectacular sunset and the night’s main event, the Perseid meteorite shower. The next morning we put on fairly early (well, early for us, anyway). This last stretch is not as secluded because highway 60 runs alongside for a few miles. It wasn’t without charm, though. The view of the road along the tree covered hillside was kind of exotic and reminded me of a lot of other places, none of them Wisconsin. At one point an eagle flew across the river just a few feet in front of us. We made the Boscobel landing at 11:30 and after packing up we drove into town in search of lunch. If you are starved for a taste of civilization at this point, it’s worth noting that there is an A&W and a Dairy Queen within a mile of the take out. We chose the Unique Cafe on Boscobel’s main drag. It’s historic, homey and has great food. The pie looked noteworthy as well, but I didn’t have room for a taste test. Once my belly was full, my aching shoulders needed a little attention. My pre-trip research had uncovered pool, sauna and whirlpool facilities in Richland Center (about 10 miles northeast). The Symons Recreation Center is on the UW grounds just off highway 14 and is open to the public. $2.50 each bought us access to hot bubbling water and warm showers. Well worth the side trip and much appreciated after days on the river. Resources: Riverview Hills Canoe Rental– 608-739-3472 The web site where I started my research– http://members.aol.com/Mmcbs3/wisconsin.html