Fall Float Colors abound along area rivers

Oct. 10, 2010

A FAVORITE
The Manistee is a great river for a fall paddle. It flows through
hardwood forests, and since much of the river is wide, it doesn’t
require constant vigilance like smaller streams. You can spend more
time observing the shoreline and a collage of colorful trees.
Some friends and I from Traverse Area Paddling Club tried a new
section last fall that none of us had ever done before. You end up at
the landing by the new roadside park on U.S. 131 by the Manistee River
Bridge. I had floated the section from there down to Baxter Bridge,
but never floated down to the roadside park.
We put in at Lucas Road Bridge, which makes a nice launching site
(head down County Line Road north of the park to the east). Another
nice thing; it’s a short, easy shuttle to spot your vehicles. The
area isn’t served by a livery. It’s about an eight-mile drive between
the two points. The float is approximately 10 miles long and took us
about three-and-a-half hours of actual paddling time. That doesn’t
include a lunch stop, which added a half-hour to our paddle time.
This section of the Manistee turned out to be a delightful float.
It’s scenic with alternating high bluffs and lowlands that allowed the
forest to come right down to the river. There were few cottages, and
the solitude was nice. Much of the float was through unspoiled
forests where you could spot animal tracks leading down to the water’s
edge in the sandy sections of riverbank. We didn’t see any animals,
but I did see lots of varied tracks.

ROLL-A-WAYS
You could see the old roll-a-ways along the horseshoe bends of river
where a century or so ago lumberjacks dropped massive amounts of logs
into the river to be floated downstream to a mill. The scars still
remain, but in some cases they’re starting to mend with vegetation
beginning to fill in -- 100 or so years later. It was a good reminder
of how we can impact our landscape and how long it takes to heal.
The river current through this section is a nice steady pace. There
are long stretches of light riffles interspersed with long, deep pools
where the river slows.
It allowed for a lot of leaf peeping, and the colors were really
starting to pop, especially the reds and oranges, the day we went. It
was early October and the sugar maples were in full bloom. Many of
the trees were hanging over the river, and, with the bright sun, the
reds seemed almost ablaze. The reflections in the deeper, slower
pools were almost as brilliant. It was a beautiful day to be on the
river.
Another portion of the Manistee that also normally has good fall color
is the section between Baxter Bridge and Harvey Bridge (between US-131
and M-37 south of Kingsley). Much of that section is encased in tall
bluffs. You float right by the overlook platform at High Roll-a-Way,
which is high above you. The drawback to this float is its length.
It’s a little over 20 miles and takes a good six hours to do the paddle.

OTHER OPTIONS
Other rivers that I like for fall floats are:
• the South Branch of the Au Sable;
• the upper Platte River in Benzie County;
• and the section of the Boardman River between Brown Bridge Dam and
Beitner Bridge.
All three have abundant hardwoods offering good fall color. A float
on Brown Bridge Pond (near Ranch Rudolf south of TC) also offers lots
of beautiful color this time of year.
Fall colors along rivers and lakes often lasts a couple of weeks
longer than what you find inland. Pick a sunny day and go for a
paddle. It’s a great, relaxing way to enjoy a fall color tour. Just
let the river pull you along. You won’t be disappointed.