Backpacking and backcountry camping appear regularly on our calendar these days, but ever since I started watching Canadian canoeists I knew I had to find a way to make canoe camping part of my life. We’ve been adventuring in our canoe for around 10 years and have had some interesting experiences. Standing in it at Lake Logan and bowfishing for carp comes to mind. Wish I had pictures of that one. I’m still not sure how we didn’t dump the canoe. We’ve had several beautiful floats through Blackhand Gorge State Park on the Licking River. We even had one harrowing adventure on Buckeye Lake when the wind picked up suddenly (never again in a canoe) and we were nearly smashed into a seawall.
View of rock formations in Blackhand Gorge State Park from on the Licking River, Licking County, Ohio
Hoover Reservoir in Delaware County, Ohio
Stormy skies in Oakthorpe Lake, Fairfield County, Ohio
But Ohio is far from a paddler’s dream. Sure we have some beautiful floats, but if you’re interested in a true backcountry canoe camping experience you’ve got to look elsewhere. Places like Boundary Waters Canoe Area and much of northern Ontario are of course ideal, but when you have to squeeze your adventures into a weekend, driving 12+ hours is usually off the table.
We’ve recently found a love of outdoor activities in Michigan, which began with a trip to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. We did a little paddling on Au Train Lake where Nic caught his first Pike and learned about the Au Train River Canoe Trail (see here for more info: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/hiawatha/recarea/?recid=13322). This one’s still on our bucket list, but requires more days than we have due to the driving distance.
Peaceful Au Train Lake in Au Train, MI
Several years later we spent some time in Oscoda, Michigan, and discovered the beauty of the Au Sable River https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/hmnf/recarea/?recid=18540 and is perfect for longer or overnight paddles. It’s been designated a National Wild and Scenic River and is worth a visit whether you’re paddling or not. We stayed at a rental on Van Etten Lake and paddled several miles upriver. This is worth a return visit, too.
But for our first canoe camping trip we’ve decided to head a different direction, and check out Mammoth Cave National Park. There are multiple great put in/take out options on the Green River, and due to its depth it’s rarely unnavigable due to low water.
Once we decided where we were going, we had to find an outfitter. We knew we’d need help with shuttling so we reached out to Green River Canoeing and Kayaking (https://greenrivercanoing.com/) for their services. They have several mileage options for an overnight trip, and we settled on a 20 mile trip from Dennison Ferry to Houchins Ferry. We also decided to rent one of their canoes since we’d have camping gear and Samson with us and their canoes are bigger than ours.
A week out from our trip the water is too high for the outfitter to run trips, so we are waiting patiently, hoping that it will return closer to normal over the next week. The massive rains they were having in the area have ended but the lakes are now being let out to manage their water levels, so that is also of course impacting the river. Checking water levels is crucial before any river trip. Too low and you could be dragging more than you’re paddling, and too high and you could find yourself in faster than normal currents and flooded conditions.
Images from NOAA Water Prediction Service site
Use the NOAA National Water Prediction Service to check water levels at their site www.water.noaa.gov. Simply type the name of the river into the search box, and then identify the most relevant location for your trip.
Image from NOAA Water Prediction Service site
Happy paddling!
Emily