26th STREET BRIDGE TO HANSON PARK
It’s early October and still warm enough to kayak! I hooked up with my friend Dan for a Saturday color tour of the Kalamazoo River.
Kayakers of all skill levels will enjoy this stretch of the Kalamazoo.
Our voyage began at the 26th Street bridge over the Kalamazoo River. To get to the bridge, head south on 26th Street from highway M89, between the cities of Otsego and Allegan. Trowbridge Dam is next to the bridge.
The access site that we used is on the south side of the river, on the west side of the bridge. Parking is on the side of the road and a narrow footpath leads down a hill to the river, next to the bridge. There is another access that is right next to the dam, on the south side of the river. This boat landing is temporarily closed. The dam is being removed. The riverbed and the riverbank behind the dam are in the process of remediation from pollution.
The first part of the trip, from the access site to the Williams Road bridge, is remote.
There is no sign of civilization and the only sounds that you will hear are the river, the wind, and the woods.
There are islands to explore around. When trying to decide which side of an island to paddle, we always pick the channel that looks more difficult. We enjoy the challenge. We came upon a large island about halfway between 26th Street and Williams Road. The easy route is the north side of the island. We took the more difficult south channel. We had to get out of our kayaks several times to portage trees and log jams that blocked our progress. The extra work was worth it. The south channel was exceptionally scenic.
We continued on with our voyage and stopped for lunch at the mouth of a tiny stream, just upriver from the Williams Road bridge.
Downstream from the bridge, the current very gradually slows, almost to a stop.
The river gradually widens into a lake, the backwater of Allegan City Dam in Allegan.
About halfway between Williams Road and Allegan, we encountered two Bald Eagles perched high up in a dead tree.
We quietly paddled toward them until we were only two hundred feet away. We didn’t want to disturb them by getting any closer. They squawked at each other for a little while. I think they were talking about us. We enjoyed their company, but it was time to head downstream.
The river remains scenic as you enter the outskirts of the city of Allegan.
The river makes a sharp turn north and enters a lowland delta, with islands and channels. We arbitrarily picked a channel that traveled the east side of the delta.
We were rewarded with terrific fall colors along the wooded shoreline.
The channels of the delta merge into a wide waterway just upstream from the M89 bridge. After passing under the bridge, turn left, northwest. Hanson Park and the boat landing are dead ahead. The park has a wide dock flanked on each side by attached boat slides with grab rails. It’s the nicest kayak landing I’ve ever seen. Thank you, Allegan!
Hanson Park is easy to get to by vehicle. Drive a hundred feet north of the M89 and M40 intersection. Turn east on Hubbard Street. The entrance to the park is on the south side of Hubbard Street, between the Griswold Auditorium and the Allegan District Library.
This stretch of the Kalamazoo River, from Trowbridge to Allegan, offers beautiful fall colors and is equally enjoyable during the rest of the kayaking season!
KAYAKING SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN 