Honey Creek – Walworth County
Located in SE Wisconsin, Honey Creek is an underrated stream for paddling. Highlights include clear water, good wildlife, and clean substrate. It many ways it is very similar to its more popular neighbor in Turtle Creek.
Trip Reports
Carver School Road to Bell School Road
Date Paddled: May 26th, 2024
Distance: 3.7 miles
Time: Expect 2 hours
Honey Creek is one of the more overlooked and underrated paddles in southeast Wisconsin. Highlights include good water quality, wildlife, and a clean substrate. Think of it has a smaller version of Turtle Creek.
Read More...Bell School Road to Hwy 20
Date Paddled: June 18th, 2022
Distance: 3.3 miles
Time: Figure 1-2 hours
This is a nice creek located in Southeast Wisconsin similar to the Bark River. Highlights include clear water, a gravel bottom, and an opportunity to do some train watching.
Read More...Overview Map
Detailed Overview
To see an overview map, click here.
- Townline Road to Church Street: 1.3 miles. Looks very open and nice. Flows through a former millpond by the community of East Troy. Streetview image of Townline Road is scenic.
- Church Street to Carver School Road: 3.3 miles. Much of this looks scenic...but. There are likely 8 major logjams and a fence by I-43 might be a major problem. Carver School Road is a poor access.
- Carver School Road to Bell School Road: 3.7 miles.
- Carver School Road to Hwy 20: 0.9 miles. Nice marshy stretch with a cool gazebo. Carver School Road is a bad access...Hwy 20 isn't great either but is better.
- Hwy 20 to Bell School Road: 2.8 miles. Starts with a millpond and an easy dam portage. After that it opens up with good clarity. Overall a nice leg.
- Bell School Road to Hwy 20: 3.6 miles.
- Bell School Road to Hill Valley Road: 2.1 miles. Nice rocky stretch with clear water. Starts shallow, but gets deeper by the railroad tracks.
- Hill Valley Road to Hwy 20: 1.6 miles. Another great stretch with more clarity. Nice wooded leg near the take-out.
- Hwy 20 to Hwy D: 3.0 miles. A good prospect, but maybe a logjam or two. Likely not as nice as the upstream legs.
- Hwy D to Old Hwy DD: 0.8 miles. Creek starts to widen, but should still be nice. Maybe one logjam.
- Old Hwy DD to Hwy DD/Honey Lake Public Beach: 2.3 miles. Maybe one to two logjams.
- Hwy DD to Spring Prairie Road: 2.5 miles. Starts with a narrow old millrace that looks interesting. Then opens up into a marsh area. Maybe one logjam.
- Spring Prairie Road to Echo Lake Boat Launch: 0.9 miles. Simple stretch slowed by a downstream dam.
- Downstream Options: Echo Lake marks the confluence of the White River, Honey Creek and the Illinois Fox River. There are additional take-out options on Echo Lake as well as downstream trips you can take on the Illinois Fox.
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Comments
I was surprised too!
Great review as always, thanks for the content! I'll put it on the list. It's amazing you encountered a shallow spot considering the 5 inches of rain last month.
So are you looking to do like fishing? If so, waders would be your better bet. That leg of the creek is pretty shallow and will be at this time of year.
Hi! Great post on Honey Creek! I’m planning on accessing this same section of stream in a few weeks and just wondering: if I’m looking to explore the first 0.5 miles downstream from the Bell School Road would I be better served in a canoe or waders? From your pictures it seems very navigable by foot—or am I being fooled by camera perspective? Thanks!!
How did your trip turn out? Questions or comments? Feel free to leave your feedback.
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