©2024 Women Who Kayak Design & Developed by Themes Glance
The Wisconsin Dells is a great vacation spot for America’s largest water park, the unique Ducks that drive on both land and water for one-of-a-kind tour, and of course kayaking on the Wisconsin River. There are two main routes to kayak including the Upper Dells and the Lower Dells. We chose the Upper Dells route which takes you right into downtown Wisconsin Dells at the end of the 8 mile paddle.
To begin this paddle, you drive north of Wisconsin Dells to River Bay Campground. Enter this address into your GPS: W1147 River Bay Rd, Lyndon Station. From County Road N, turn on River Bay Road and continue to the river and boat launch. There is a stand to pay a $5 parking fee and deposit via en envelope, so be sure to bring cash. Here is more information on the boat launch.
When you’re on the river, make sure to track to the right and head south towards Wisconsin Dells. There are many point to veer off of the main river including Witches Gulch which will be on your left hand side. As you approach the Chula Vista Resort on the left you’ll also see Roodes Glen and a small island. At the end of a narrow stretch Cold Water Canyon will be on your left. As you approach a large island called Blackhawk Island, there will be a fork in the river.
We recommend taking a right and going around the island to experience sandbars and another small island. At the tip of Blackhawk Island there will be a long sand bar, a good place for a stop, but watch out for the waves if you decide to park your kayak. As you get closer to town, you’ll see a boat yard on your left and a boutique hotel straight ahead before taking a sharp right for the last leg of the paddle.
Immediately after going under the bridge Kilbourn Dam will be straight ahead so you’ll want to take a quick left at the gravel road to pull out your kayaks. We easily called an app cab service to take one of our group members back to the cars, to drive back to the end point and pack up.
This trip is highly recommended and great to explore the little waterways and rock formations along the way. There were a few boat tour services and high speed boats that created waves, so going early in the morning and during the week is best!
Paddle Length: 8 miles
Paddle Duration: 4 hours
(This included going down many of the one-way routes to view the rock formations.)
-The Ladies of WWK