Stateline Paddlers

Trip Report

Date:  09-12-2010           Leader: Walter Loos                                                        Co-Leader:  Jeff Reuter and Stacey Loos

Body of Water:   Rock River                                      From:    Beloit, WI                                                               To:  Macktown

Gage Station: USGS 05437500 ROCK RIVER AT ROCKTON, IL    Gage Height: 5.12      Discharge:  5870

Outdoor Temp:     84          Cloud Cover:  Sunny

Number of Kayaks: 18           Number of Canoes: 6            Total Boats:  24

I this paddle we had to portage around the Rockton Dam.  To go around the dam we when to the right side of the dam where there was a path.  The path was about 100″ to get back into the water.  After getting back in the water you have to paddle out to the middle of the dam and then straight thought.  Do not take the first pass thought because it is blocked by a tree.  After doing a portage and also with a Voyageur 22″ canoe no one fell in.  Grate paddle and a grate day to do it.  You can see where we went  below and with these tracks.

Trip Report

Date: 09-14-2008                                     Leader: Jeff Reuter                      Co-Leader:

Body of Water: Rock River               From: Macktown Park        To: Atwood Homestead

Gage Height: 5.5 Ft.                                       Discharge: 6500 CFPS

Outdoor Temp: 63              Cloud Cover: Must Cloud with Rain

Number of Kayaks: 7          Number of Canoes: 0            Total Boats: 7

Jeff, Bill, Kathy, Wayne, Ellie, Bob, and Jean

Date: 08-31-2008 Leader: Jean Burleson                                 Co-Leader: Bob Hollander

Body of Water: Horicon Marsh

From: Green head landing To: Legion Park    Distance: 7.5 miles   Avg. water depth 4.5 feet.

Outdoor Temp: 65        Cloud Cover: Cloudy

Number of kayaks: 7      Number of Canoes: 1  Total Boats: 8

Paddlers: Jean, Bob, Kathy, Wayne, Al, Bill, Ellie, Carol

Put in at Green Head landing and had a fairly easy 7.5 mile paddle through the marsh to Legion Park in Horicon. We followed the poorly marked Horicon Marsh Canoe Trail and a series of markers Bob had left the week before to Horicon and down river to Legion Park.

The day was cool, partly cloudy with a slight breeze. Most of the trip was through a cat tail marsh with a short paddle on the Rock River at the beginning and end. We saw several species of birds including several large formations of geese, but there were no hunters. Fall colors were beginning to appear. The paddle took about 4 hours.

Greenhead landing is about 1.5 hours from Janesville, WI.

Date: March 22, 2009                  Leader: No leader, just a casual  informal paddle
Body of Water: Pierce Lake Rock Cut State Park
Sunny, light winds. Air temp about 65 degrees while the water temp. was a tepid 38 degrees.
Present: Bob H., Jean B., Jeff R., Bill D., Ellie S., Kathy S., Wayne. S.

While this was not an organized trip, I thought I would put it in just to let people know we are on the water again. It all started when I brought the skin on frame boat built in the Paddle and Trail class for the other class members to paddle. I had won the boat in a among the class members, and taken it home and finished it off. We then started talking of paddling on Sun. and told all we saw to join us. Kathy brought some Bavarian cream filled dough nuts which I believe were home made. We paddled around the lake a couple of times and saw migrating loons, several types of ducks, herons, and the rarely sighted Canada goose. I was a very pleasant paddle and a great starter for the season. Bill and Jeff even managed to chase down and haul in a large motor boat which drifted off after the owner neglected to tie it to the dock.

Date 6/7/09
Leader Bob Hollander  Co-Leader Jean Burleson
Body of Water  Lake Koshkonong and the Rock River at Neuville from Dalman’s County Park  to DNR Station at Neuville
Gage at Neuville 9.2
Paddlers 9 single kayaks
Participants: Bob Hollander, Jean Burleson, Ellie Soper, Lori Merriam, Bill Dodds, Jeff Reuter, Lynn Meyers, Wayne Shippee, Kathy Shippee. Honorable Mention: Bill Hamm

Mother Nature and a thunderstorm forced a change of plans before the trip ever go underway. After meeting at Culver’s, we decided to eat at Deb’s Squeeze Inn rather than wait to eat until midway through the trip as was originally planned. We all ate breakfast (some had the blue gill and egg special) and then proceeded to Dalmans to put in. While shuttle took some time, it was completed rather smoothly and all were underway at about 10:30. Initially, the lake provided some 1 foot waves but nobody seemed to have much trouble. Even the new paddlers did well. The wind was from the northwest so as we proceeded down the lake toward the river, everything flattened out and the river was quite smooth. We paddled about 4.5 miles in all. Since the gates to the landing were locked, we had to take out at the DNR station next door. I had gotten the mysterious Brian’s permission to do so earlier in the week, and this proved to be no problem. After retrieving cars we loaded and stopped at Fin’s for drinks, appetizers, and, of course, black bean bread. The trip went well in spite of the storm and everyone seemed to go home happy. I would like to give a special thanks to Bill Hamm. Since he had been working all night, he skipped the paddle, but drove the 40 miles up to eat breakfast with the group and to help with the shuttle and launching.