Sauk
K. of C. Park to Mississippi River (4.1 miles)
| Difficulty | I-II |
| Length | 4.5 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 10 fpm |
| Gauge | Sauk River Near St. Cloud, Mn |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 503 cfslow runnable |
| Reach Info Last Updated | March 30, 2005 |
River Description
A fine 'in-town' run with short, pool-drop, class I-II rapids, and scattered small surfing waves.
There is a lowhead dam about halfway down the run, easily recognized since it has a wooden footbridge passing over it. The dam has crumbled between the pylons and the shore on either side, making both sides runnable. However, the dam is still intact in the middle, and could be a death trap at some flows.
Put-in: Knights of Columbus Park, near intersection of 8th St.N.(Hwy.4) and 54th Ave.N.(Hwy.138)
Alt.Put-in: behind the VFW Hospital (approx.coords.: 45.5770?N, 94.2103?W) This is where the gradient starts so it cuts down on some of the flatwater paddling.
Take-out: At the confluence with the Mississippi River -or-
Alt.Take-out: Continue about 1/2 mile down the Mississippi to play at Sauk Rapids (under 1st St. N. bridge).
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportPaddled it at 850 which is maybe 100-150cfs above sweet spot but still lots of fun. Waves by Whitney Park are great for surfing and there's good eddies on both sides that you can kind of jet ferry across.
A couple of things in main description that are inaccurate: the low head damn is gone, there are some remnant chunks of concrete but nothing seems retentive in any way. It also mentions the 'VFW' hospital but it is actually the federal VA hospital. Their security doesn't screw around and you'll end up with federal citations if you're there uninvited. The paddle from KC park adds maybe 20 minutes. Some folks launch from the shoulder of Hwy 15 but there's lots of poison ivy and 70mph traffic
So many turtles on this whole stretch, including many large softshells and map turtles if you're into wildlife
Everything is buried at this level. Just a couple big waves and some big rocks that you can splat or rock slide. Eddylines are great if you have a slicy boat. Water is fast and the 4+ miles from KC Park took about an hour with a bunch of messing around along the way. Still beats a day at work
This is a fun level, one bigger wave by Whitney Park washes out but eddy lines are sharper and more little surfable waves appear. Zero banging the bottom with paddle. Fun stuff is mostly all downstream of Hwy 15. 30 minutes from KC Park to Hwy 15, 75 minutes from KC to Mississippi with some screwing around along the way.
Nice first paddle for my daughter to break in a new boat. Mostly flatwater until you go under Hwy 15. Probably wouldn't float it below 400cfs. Lots of eddies and small waves to work on ferrying and attainment. A number of surfable waves but everything is pretty shallow. Just fun farting around on the water. Tons of waterfowl, a mink, and a giant soft shell turtle. Plenty of trash along the shore, river could use a little love and a good cleanup day.
Paddled the sauk the other day at flood stage around 8 feet or 4500 cfs. It is a much different river at this level, with lots of strainers and much bigger waves. There is one rapid that is pushing a class 3 due of the size of the waves and a stong lateral wave pushing you towards some trees. The river would be very dangerous if you went for a swim however was much more fun than the normal old sauk. Make sure you are familiar with the normal current line before you run it at this level since much of the river is flowing through tree tops