The Muskegon River flows through the Pere Marquette State Forest and the Au Sable State Forest from its source at Houghton Lake. This stretch of the river is south of M55, west of US127, and north of M61. I teamed up with my friend Dan on this trip. The river was at summer low water level. The river may be entirely different to kayak during high water levels.
Canoe Camp One is on Wexford Drive in Roscommon County. The orientation of the roads in this area can make driving confusing at times. The best way to find the camp is with GPS or Google Maps. A compass is always handy.
When you arrive at the camp, you will be surprised to find that there is no camp, just a clearing in the woods and some ORV trails. The clearing is visible on Google Maps satellite photos. A tall sand hill overlooks the river. A washout on the side of the hill provides river access.
On the first part of the voyage, the current is moderate over a gravel and rock bottom. Large rocks and small boulders are scattered about. In some places, the rocks have created riffles with swift current. Some of the riffles could be technically classified as Class I rapids, but I thought that they were mild and easy to negotiate. In other words, don’t be concerned. Basic paddling skills will suffice.
We encountered a few fallen trees on this first stretch of the Muskegon, but not very many.
The Jonesville Bridge spans the river towards the end of the trip. The bridge is over a hundred years old and is limited to ATV, UTV, and dirt bike traffic only. The Leota ORV Trailhead is next to the bridge. We did not see or hear any off-road vehicles on our trip.
Downstream from the Jonesville Bridge, the current slows and the bottom changes from gravel and rock to sand. On the day of our trip, there were a lot of fallen trees in the river. Our kayaking skills were tested. We had to portage trees several times, so be prepared.
Four Story Banks is a tall steep sand hill that rises up from the river’s edge.
The voyage ends at the Hiram Abif Park on Muskegon Road in the Clare County community of Leota. The park is on the north side of the bridge and on the west side of the river. The park features picnic tables and a port-a-john, but the boat landing isn’t the best.
The Leota Pit Stop has great take-out pizza. The Trails End Pub in Leota is a good choice for food and drink. Here’s one last look at the river:
KAYAKING SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN 