LauraT7 13 Posted August 20, 2003 Share Posted August 20, 2003 Last weekend a handful of older scouts and 4 leaders set out to travel 25 miles down the Wisconsin River and camp out on it's many sandbars. the trip was everything that I remembered from my scout trips down it as a kid. We had terrific weather; balmy days and cool clear nights, no bugs to speak of, good company, good fun and no one dumped their canoe! the boys learned how to 'read' the water, and by the second day, they didn't run aground & have to 'walk' the canoes across quite as many sandbars as on the first day! The nights were so clear, that both nights we simply hung mosquito nets from the tent frames and slept under the stars - the first night, the moon was so bright it actually cast shadows and kept us awake! the second night, camping on a sandbar in the middle of a state forest area - the moon didn't rise until 3 or 4 AM - and we were treated to a clear view of the Perseids meteor shower. to anyone contemplating such a trip in Wisconsin or Illinois, I would highly recommend the books "Paddling Southern Wisconsin" (also Northern WI and Illinois - maybe other areas, too) by Mike Svob. these books were invaluble in their clear river descriptions, skill levels, river maps, directions and information to contact outfitters, campgrounds and shuttle services. the Wisconsin River is a wonderful river, made better by the various conditions and challenges along it's entire length - and typical of most Wisconsin waterways and lakes - all clean and sand-bottomed. You can take trips on this river from 1 day to a couple of weeks, and the wildlife is spectacular. We even saw a pair of eagles! laura PS - the tips you all gave me in my previous posts were very helpful - especially the one about the 5 gal buckets. i also found some smaller 2-gal buckets the boys used for personal gear - and they worked GREAT! plus - they made wonderful campfire stools, the lids made dinner prep surfaces and cutting boards, etc. Link to post Share on other sites
LauraT7 13 Posted August 20, 2003 Author Share Posted August 20, 2003 in case anyone would like to see our photos of the trip - here's a link to our troop website photo album - hope it works! http://groups.msn.com/BSATroop159Woodstock/wisconsinrivertrip2003.msnw?Page=1 Link to post Share on other sites
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