Portage, OH

Gauge Information

River Description

Portage River Woodville, Ohio to Elmore, Ohio

Distance: 3.8 miles / 4.3 miles depending on which put-in.

River description

The Portage River drains a rather small watershed, and as a result it flashes up and down very quickly. It can be runnable in the morning, and too low in the afternoon. So pay attention to the gauge and to rainfall in the area before driving long distances. And since the Portage sits between the Maumee River and the Sandusky River, both with larger drainages and wider windows of opportunity, it isn't run very often even by locals.

However, if you can catch it when it's up it's still worth doing - if only for the one (sometimes two) big surf waves just north of the Ohio Turnpike.

The run starts in Woodville, Ohio; at either Trailmarker Park or Faye's Whippy-Dip.

At very high levels, interesting eddies are formed behind bridge piers at Trailmarker Park, and behind the railroad bridge piers at Faye's Whippy-Dip.

As you continue downstream out of Woodville, you'll encounter small surf waves at ledges and small eddies along the shore. The rapids on the Portage are formed by water dropping over small ledges on its way to Lake Erie, so there are no mid-stream eddies. Use the small waves and eddies to get loosen up thouroughly.

About halfway down the run, there's a yellow brick house on river right. Behind that house, there's a tiny dam. Very tiny, it's only about 6" tall. It produces a small, perfectly straight and symmetrical wave that spans the river. It's a great spot for learning the basics, and the last time I was there the landowner was friendly to kayakers. He built the dam to make a nice place to ice-skate in the winter.

Just below are some ledges and miscellaneous surfing waves. Watch for them, they move around with different water levels.

After that, you'll pass under the Ohio Turnpike / I-80. There are two very dynamic surfing waves just after the Turnpike, one is on river left and the other is on river right. The eddies move around a bit with different river levels, so sometimes you can surf these waves repeatedly and other times you get just one shot at them. Both are rather steep, and require skill to catch and even more skill to stay on them.

About three-quarters of a mile later, take out at the park in Elmore on river right.

GPS coordinates:

Put-in: Trailmarker Park; Woodville, Ohio N 41.44847° HO 83.36784°

Alternate Put-in: Faye's Whippy-Dip; Woodville, Ohio N 41.44904° HO 83.35883°

Take-out: City Park; Elmore, Ohio N 41.47662° HO 83.29578°

If you're hungry, Elmore and Woodville both have at least a couple nice restaurants.

Best, Doug Grosjean

The Maumee River is only 30 min. away and has a fun 5 mile run or P+P at Turkyfoot

The lower Sandusky River is fun and close by
The Upper Sandusky River at Tiffin is only 35 min. away and can be fun too.