Rock River – East Branch
Often overlooked by paddlers, this is actually a pleasant water trail. Some stretches are marshy, especially the last leg which runs through Horicon Marsh.
Trip Reports
Hillcrest Drive to Hwy DW
Date Paddled: October 22nd, 2022
Distance: 4.1 miles
Time: Expect 2 hours
This is a mediocre stretch of the far far far upper Rock River. Highlights include clear water, lots of fish, attractive cattails, and open vistas. But there are a few logjams to deal with.
Read More...N. Pole Road to Gill Rd
Date Paddled: July 10th, 2021
Distance: 6.0 miles
Time: Expect 3 hours
Although the Rock is known primarily as a wide and very slow river, this section near the river's headwaters was an enjoyable paddle----perhaps one of the nicest stretches on the entire river.
Read More...Gill Road bridge to Furnace Bridge Dam
Date Paddled: August 2nd, 2014
Distance: 8.25 miles
Time: 3 hours 35 minutes
For the most part, a weak paddling prospect, with slow, dirty current and open, scraggly banks. But…the river does have redeeming attributes and nearby sections of the river have potential, so keep reading… When you think of Wisconsin’s mighty watersheds…the Fox, Wisconsin and Chippewa all come to mind, but ultimately the Rock is larger than […]
Read More...North Main Street to Green Head Road
Date Paddled: June 27th, 2015
Distance: 8.1 Miles
Time: 4 hours 13 minutes
Located northeast of the Horicon Marsh, the East Branch is a good prospect with few obstructions, fun rapids and nice boulder gardens.
Read More...Green Head Landing to Horicon Marsh Boat Tours
Date Paddled: June 9th, 2012
Distance: 10 Miles
Time: 5 Hours
This is a trip that takes a lot of planning to get right. Basically, the Horicon area is a drained swamp that has been artificially restored by a dam near the center of the city of Horicon. As you probably know, this is a VERY popular area for birds. While there are different canoe/kayak options, […]
Read More...Overview Map
Detailed Overview
East Branch:
- Upstream of Hillcrest Drive: I believe these portions are too congested to paddle.
- Hillcrest Drive to Hwy DW: 4.1 miles.
- Hillcrest Drive to Riveredge Park: 0.9 miles. Scenic stretch through the outskirts of Allenton with good clarity. However there are two major logjams to portage, and several minor logjams to squeak past.
- Riveredge Park to Hwy DW: 2.7 miles. An open stretch through wetgrass and a state natural area. One logjam needs to be portaged.
- Hwy DW to Hwy D: 5.5 miles. Outside of one nasty logjam cluster this is a pretty open creek paddle through a protected wildlife area that might be decent.
- Hwy D Wayside to N. Pole Rd. Launch: 7.3 miles. A good wetland paddle prospect through Theresa Marsh. Maybe 1-2 downed trees on the upper part.
- Kohlsville River: Note, the Kohlsville River joins the East Branch here, but it seems too congested with downed trees to be feasible.
- N. Pole Rd to Gill Rd(East): 6.0 miles.
- N. Pole Rd Landing to River Edge Park: 1.3 miles. Slow, open, and marshy channel. Nice though.
- River Edge Park to Rock River Street/Dam: 0.5 miles. A nice town paddle through the community of Theresa. One dam to portage.
- Rock River Street/Dam to Hwy AY: 3.5 miles. One of my favorite stretches on the entire Rock River. While shallow in spots, it is scenic with nice woods, small boulder gardens and multiple light rapids.
- Hwy AY to Gill Road(East): 0.7 miles. A brief wooded stretch that is a nice paddle.
- Gill Road(East) to Hwy 67/Dam: 8.3 miles.
- Gill Road(East) to McArthur Road/Fink Creek: 4.7 miles. Starts boring, weedy, and slow, but gets nice with clear water and rocks later on. Gill Road(West) may be a viable halfway access.
- McArthur Road to Hwy 67/Dam: 3.6 miles. A less interesting paddle through a flowage and downtown Mayville with numerous alt take-outs.
- Hwy 67 to Green Head Road Ramp: 6.4 miles.
- Hwy 67 to Hwy Y/Ziegler Park: 1.9 miles. One of the best paddling stretches on the entire Rock River with good current and small boulder gardens.
- Hwy Y to Hwy TW/Kekoskee Pond Ramp: 1.9 miles. A good stretch that includes a little bit of flowage paddling.
- Hwy TW to Green Head Road Ramp: 2.6 miles. An ok stretch as the river really slows and starts to turn into marsh.
- Green Head Road to N. Nebraska St. Ramp: 10.0 miles. The most popular route through Horicon Marsh known for its waterfowl.
South Branch:
- Upstream of E. Rock River Rd.: I suspect downed trees are too much of an issue for this to be navigable.
- E. Rock River Road to Hwy 49: 1.6 miles. Perhaps a cluster of downed trees in the middle and an electric fence upstream of Hwy 49.
- Hwy 49 to Waupun Park: 1.7 miles. Hwy 49 is not ideal for launching, but should be doable. A good prospect mostly through a golf course. Maybe 2 logjams?
- Waupun Park to E. Waupun Road: 7.2 miles. A good section.
- Waupun Park to Tanner Park: 3.1 miles. Great section though downtown Waupun. Alt access at Pine Street Park, Meadow View Park and Harris Mill Park.
- Tanner Park to Roadside Park: 3.2 miles. A pleasant paddle through a mixture of woods and open areas. A couple of logjam squeakers and one major portage.
- Roadside Park to E. Waupun Road: 0.9 miles. River widens, slows, and gets less interesting.
- E. Waupun Road to Dike Road: 10.0 miles. This is the northern unit of Horicon Marsh and is off limits to paddlers per National Wildlife Refuge rules.
- Dike Road to N. Nebraska St. Ramp: 5.6 miles. Am 80% sure you can drive on Dike Road from the east to launch in the ditch. Mostly a long straight canal paddle through Horicon Marsh with perhaps interesting side canals to explore. You can also launch in a west canal by Burnett Ditch Road. The city of Horicon marks the confluence of the South and East Branches of the Rock River.
West Branch:
It’s a neat prospect, but I suspect the logjam situation is too much (I could be wrong).
Main Branch:
- N. Nebraska St. to Legion Park/Dam: 0.9 miles. An ok section through downtown Horicon.
- Legion Park to River Bend Park: 1.1 miles. Simple river segment…probably nothing too special.
- River Bend Park to Lions Park: 8.8 miles. A large and probably uninteresting flowage. If you get permission to take out at Ox-Bo Marine, you can avoid much of the flowage paddling.
- Lions Park to Elmwood Park: 7.2 miles. Trip starts nice with a great boulder garden, but becomes less interesting as the current dies.
- Elmwood Park to Hwy MM: 4.4 miles. An interesting prospect recommended by Frank Piraino.
- Hwy MM to Harnischfeger Park: 6.9 miles.
- Harnischfeger Park to Kaul Park/Hwy CW: 5.1 miles. Nice section with more wooded banks.
- Kaul Park to Kanow Park: 5.7 miles. Nice prospect.
- Kanow Park to Hwy F: 5.0 miles. Mediocre prospect.
- Hwy F to Hwy P: 6.0 miles. This isn't an elite trip with slow current and no exotic scenery. But it is pleasant and one of the nicer legs on the Lower Rock.
- Hwy P to Dam1st/Front St.: 5.6 miles. Probably an uninteresting flowage paddle.
- Dam1st/Front St. to Dam2nd/S. 1st Street: 2.6 miles. Possibly a unique paddle through downtown Watertown.
- 1st Street to Hwy 26 Launch: 3.5 miles. Mediocre prospect.
- Hwy 26 Launch to Hwy B: 10.9 miles. The put-in is SE of Hwy 26 via Jefferson Road. This segment is more undeveloped, but is still probably not interesting with the highlight being I94.
- Hwy B to Lubahn Park/N. Watertown Ave: 4.1 miles. Probably uninteresting.
- Lubahn Park to Tensfeldt Park: 2.3 miles. Paddling through downtown Jefferson might be unique, but there is a dam to portage. Many alt landings in Jefferson.
- Tensfeldt Park to Klement Park: 4.2 miles. Probably an interesting tweener section between Jefferson and Fort Atkinson.
- Klement Park to Lorman Bicentennial Park: 3.1 miles. A weak prospect through downtown Fort Atkinson.
- Lorman Park to Hwy 26 Ramp: 3.3 miles. A weak prospect.
- Hwy 26 to E. Knudsen Road Ramp: 11.8 miles. Mostly boring paddling on Lake Koshkonong. Many other launches on the lake.
- E. Knudsen Road Ramp to Hwy M/Dam: 3.4 miles. Boring flowage.
- Hwy M/Dam to Hwy 14: 8.2 miles. Probably uninteresting.
- Hwy 14 to Century Ave/Dam: 6.4 miles. A trip through downtown Janesville with several dangerous dams to portage (reviewed by AmericanWhitewater.org). There are also many other launch options in Janesville.
- Century Ave/Dam to Happy Hollow Park: 7.8 miles. A very industrial section.
- Happy Hollow Park to Preservation Park Boat launch: 3.2 miles.
- Preservation Park to Wooton Park Boat Ramp: 3.0 miles. Start of urban paddling in Beloit. Numerous other launch options in Beloit proper.
- Further Rock River Trips: From here on, you are in Illinois. For further information see “Paddling Illinois” or Rockrivertrail.com.
Nearby Guages
Videos
Weed Jam: 0:15
Friendly Carp: 0:28
Filthy Water: 2:03
First Dam: 2:22
Second Dam: 2:49
Scouting Downstream of Hwy V: 2:58
Scouting by the Mayville Sanitation Plant: 3:03
Scouting by the Hwy Y Bridge (Zeigler Park): 3:05
Comments
Thanks for the update! Yeah the portage path is new and not ideal, but is doable. Too about that logjam though.
Just did this run over the weekend. About 6.7ft and 750 cfs on the Horicon rock gauge. It only took a little over an hour to get to the kekoskee dam, so it was a fast fun ride for that part. All the boulder gardens were under water for the most part and were now secret rocks that you have to watch out for. Instead of dealing with the land owner at the kekoskee dam I just carried my kayak about a 2 min walk down the alley behind his house and there is a park there with a nice put it. It does mean you miss the little stretch of rapids below the dam though. And there is a very annoying log jam about a mile before the takeout. Theres no flow to speak of there so it is doable to climb on the logs and drag your kayak over but still annoying. Overall this is a great stretch of river.
Thanks for the comment. The bike trails by the marsh are very underrated!
I paddled the marsh in late June, 2023. It was quite hot, low 90’s, and the air was Smokey from Canadian wildfires. Nevertheless, I had a nice solo paddle from the Greenhead Landing to Horicon’s Blue Hern Landing.. I used Blue Hern’s shuttle service which was great and inexpensive. Other than the heat and smoke, conditions were fine, with just a slight breeze. I saw one bald eagle up close, and lots of pelicans, cormorants, and egrets.
I camped out at Ledge Park. He next day I biked along Dike Road and saw a lot more egrets and geese. Biking is another great way to experience the marsh. I look forward to paddling the marsh again, perhaps starting at Burnet Ditch next time.
A warning for paddlers. As of 2023-07-08, the marsh is way too low to be paddled.
I agree the Rock River is underrated. If/when that logjam gets cleared out, definitely let me know!
Rock river is very under appreciated. The dam in kekoskee is run by my fathers uncles family. The area where u went down the ladder was my grandmas house. My family still owns the land by the old ball diamond in kekoskee. I often put in there and paddle to the green head. Only one small log jam, but I will be clearing it out soon.
As of 2021-05-21, "breakaway bogs" or large blocks of vegetation have blocked access to the landings at the south end of the marsh. No word on when this will be cleared up. I suspect Horicon is starting to silt in from the Horicon dam. The DNR apparently has no interest in fixing the issue. https://www.wiscnews.com/bdc/news/local/movement-through-horicon-slows-down/article_7ae60214-ba1b-57ef-acea-d9287a328d19.html
Yeah...Horicon Marsh is great for wildlife but not so much for bathroom breaks.
We took a trip from the lower dam in Mayville in kayaks to horicon through the marsh it was a nine-hour trip but we seen lots of wildlife even a couple of eagles once you enter the marsh there is nowhere to get out of your kayak or at least 6 hours
I agree...I'm not sure why this stretch isn't more popular than it is.
7/5/2020 Just paddled from Mayville millpond dam to Kekoskee dam. 250-300 CFPS. Great trip, 2.5hrs approx. Beautiful paddle no logjams bumped a few rocks, no big deal. Cooper Shop bar was closed at takeout. Have eaten there in the past and it was good. This section of the Rock is definitely under-appreciated. I thank this site for directing us to it.
How did your trip turn out? Questions or comments? Feel free to leave your feedback.
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