Mississippi River (County Road 15 to Fall River)

On an early October afternoon (10C but sunny), I headed out for a leisurely paddle on the upper Mississippi River.  Today, I was planning to explore the section from County Road 15 to the mouth/junction of the Clyde River.  I found that there’s a great small boat launch at the County Road 15 bridge. 

Mississippi River, CR15 to Fall River

Going up-river from County Road 15, it’s an easy 2 km paddle to the highway 511 bridge. It would be nice to get in the water at this bridge, but it’s not clear if that is possible. Next time, I would check the possibility of putting-in on the northeast corner of the 511 bridge. Launching at the CR511 bridge would save 4 km of paddling to get further up-river.

From the 511 bridge, it’s a 3 km paddle to the mouth of the Fall River. I went up the Fall river a short distance and then reversed my paddling back to County Road 15. The paddling distance covered was probably close to 10 km. I was going with the current (light) on the way back, but a small headwind created a bit of wind chill (i.e. cold fingers).  

This section of the river is also tranquil and mostly undeveloped. The shoreline in this section is mixed with some marshy areas and higher rocky shores (treed). The trees are starting to turn, and it should be a great fall site in a few weeks. I did not see much wildlife except a few Blue Herons, one Kingfisher, C. Geese, and some ducks. 

On future outings here, I would try to start at the highway 511 bridge and then make it all the way to the Clyde River and Stewart’s Island. Also, it would be fun to paddle up and explore the Fall and Clyde rivers.

Note: This trip is route #4 in the MVFN paddling list for Lanark County. Click HERE.

Mississippi River (Fergusons Falls to Stafford Island)

On a calm, overcast early October afternoon, I picked up the 14ft Widgeon kayak from our storage unit (Sweet Spot storage on Paterson St, Almonte) and headed out to Fergusons Falls. It's about a 20-minute drive to the canoe launch parking lot on the west side (upriver) of the bridge. It's a great canoe launching site with lots of public parking.

Mississippi River,  8 km paddle

I had a great paddle up the Mississippi and around Stafford Island, and back to the Fergusons Falls launch site. The whole distance paddled was about 8 km of calm waters and very light winds (approx. a 2 hr. paddle). It's a tranquil section of the Mississippi without much development. The water level in this section of the river is relatively shallow, so I'm not sure how successful fishing would be. Most of the riverbank is marshy and weedy; there are no rock ledges or any sandy beaches. Just before Stafford I., on the southern shore, I found a small section of rocky shore, which made it easier to go ashore for a break.

The paddle's highlight was a river otter that came to check me out on the backside of Stafford Island. The only other wildlife I saw were birds (C. geese, herons, etc.). I did see a recently built duck blind on the northern side of Stafford Island – so probably a popular spot for geese/duck hunters.

The section upriver from Stafford Island also looks like a good paddle, and it may be better to go downriver from the bridge at County Road 15.

Note: This trip is route #3 in the MVFN paddling route list for Lanark County.   

MVFN paddling routes

The canoe launch dock at Fergusons Falls

Muskrat lodges

Mississippi River (Below Dalhousie Lake)

On a beautiful Sunday morning (June 10th), I decided to go for some paddling exercise and selected one of the MVFN canoe routes (#8 Dalhousie Lake and Mississippi River downstream). From Almonte, it’s a 40-minute drive to Dalhousie Lake. I tried launching at the bridge, but the only access was a private launch with a $10 fee. But just east of the bridge on Hwy 8, there’s a fire truck re-filing station on the Mississippi River. A good place to put-in – just be careful where you park.

Note: The fire truck access is now off-limits (check the signage).

Mississippi River, below Dalhousie Lake

I was a little worried about going down the river too far, but the current was light, and I would have a tail breeze on the way back.  In general, it’s a relatively secluded and quiet section of the river. I paddled just over 4km to reach the entrance channel to McCullochs Mud Lake and the Byrne Big Creek Nature Preserve.  The nature preserve contains a fen (floating mat of vegetation).

The first wildlife I saw going down the Mississippi was a curious pair of loons. Further along, I observed a muskrat, a swimming chipmunk, a few blue herons, birds (red wings, swallow, etc.), and lots of dragonflies.  In McCollochs Mud Lake, an osprey was flying about, and on the return trip upriver, a bald eagle made a brief appearance.

I did make a pit stop at a lovely little sandy beach on the north side of the river, where the owners have provided a couple of benches in the shade of a large tree.

There are lots of deciduous trees along the river, so a fall paddle would be great!

Update: Kayak paddle, Nov 6th, 2020.

I did take a paddle on this section of the river during a nice warm November day (2020). My launch point was at the Sylvania restaurant/lodge ramp this time. Below are my track and a few pics from the day. Next time, I will get all the way to the Sheridan Rapids and maybe more exploration of the large McCullochs Mud Lake.

My GPS track for Nov 6, 2020 (15 km)

	Mallard Ducks