Escanaba, M.Br., MI
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A) White City Falls to 1.2 mile above CR565 (9.3 miles+1.6 miles for lower)
Class II-IV+
9.3 Miles
Avg Gradient 18 fpm
Max Gradient 50 fpm
Gauge Information
| Min Sug. Level: |
200 cfs* |
Max Sug. Level: |
550 cfs* |
River Description
More like 'drop/lake' than 'drop/pool'. (Much flatwater between drops, but the drops are good!) The first three drops (while not overly complex) can be the most troublesome (I.E., most likely to be portaged, or cause major thrashings). With high water, almost all of the drops on the run will be plenty intense!
Since this is a rather long run, with extended flatwater between drops (one stretch of nearly 3 miles, another nearly 2 miles, and two others over a mile each, as shown in the table below), boaters feelings about this run tend to divide into two categories. Many boaters will 'pass', or do it once or twice and say "Never again!" Others will consider the flatwater a reasonable price to pay for the variety and challenge of drops it contains, and will keep it on their list of favorites to hit each year. This is especially true since this river tends to have a longer 'season' (run a bit later or more often) than most of the U.P. creeks.
This table details the full run (I.E., includes both this section and the Lower section).
| River Mile |
Feature |
followed by flatwater miles |
| 0.1 |
White City Falls |
0.6 |
| 0.7 |
"Second City Falls" |
0.6 (interrupted by a couple small ledge drops) |
| 1.3 |
Half-dome/Granite Canyon |
2.9 (interrupted only by a couple minor rips) |
| 4.2 |
Squeeze/Rock Island/Play Waves |
1.0 (interrupted only by a couple minor rips) |
| 5.2 |
Jumblewood Sluice |
1.8 (interrupted only by a minor rip) |
| 7.0 |
Warmup & Farmstead Falls |
1.2 |
| 8.2 |
Middle Finger |
1.1 (interrupted only by a couple minor rips) |
| 9.3 |
Put-in for Lower Run |
0.3 |
| 9.6 |
Rock Hump |
0.4 |
| 10.1 |
Logjam Island |
minor |
| 10.4 |
Boulder Garden |
minor |
| 10.5 |
Five-Sixty-Five Rapids |
minor |
| 10.6 |
Lower 5-6-5 |
minor |
| 10.8 |
Island Falls ("Homme Side"/"Sweet Side") |
minor, back upstream to take-out |
Shuttle Information: Distance (each way): 14.7 miles, Approximate Time (each way): 37 minutes
Put-in is on a gated, dead-end road. Park in one of the few wide spots to allow other vehicles to be able to pass. While it is unlikely you will encounter the owners, please be respectful of the private property here.
Take-out is at a dead-end road which branches west from CR565 about a mile north of the river. Land at take-out is privately held, but owners have been 'boater friendly' on all occasions I have encountered them. Please be respectful of the private property and leave no trace of your passing, so we may continue in their good graces to use this access.
Or, most boaters who do this run will wish to continue to the Lower M.Br.Escanaba. Alternately, boaters looking for a quick run with little flatwater (and mostly boat-scoutable drops) should consider that run instead.
Regardless which take-out is used, it's a long run, and a correspondingly long shuttle.
If at all possible, plan to meet at the take-out. Change and leave dry clothes and 'drop vehicle(s)' there (if possible, with enough space for all boaters, and rack space (and straps!) to handle all boats.) Put all boats/boaters on/in other vehicle(s) and drive to the put-in. This will save time by avoiding the need to leave people sitting and waiting (well over an hour for the round-trip!) while shuttle drivers run vehicles down and back before the run. (Obviously, some vehicle(s) will need to make the trip back to the put-in to pick up the vehicle(s) left there, but the point is, that is done after boating rather than delaying boating.)
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Additional description and images on Midwest River Inventory
StreamTeam Status: unverified
Last Updated: 2008-04-29 09:34:31
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