So now that the rivers have had a week to recede, we are going to do our favorite Pelican River, weather permitting. Rhinelander’s forecast looks better than ours on Wednesday.
Ever the optimist, here is the info for the Pelican River trip. We will try to meet at the River Bend Road take-out point by 8:30 am. We will leave a couple of cars there at the bridge and drive all the boats and people to Dam Road to put in, where there is more room for parking. To reach the landing from Mercer, take Hwy 51 south to Woodruff. There turn left onto Highway 47 to Rhinelander. Stay on Hwy 47 past the intersections with Cty K, Hwy 8 and Hwy 17, then turn right onto Germond Road. There is a sign for the road, and a stoplight at the corner. Take Germond almost to the very end where it runs into County G, but turn left before you hit Cty G and you will be on River Bend Road. Follow it around to the river. (Beware the sharp left turn that the road takes just before it crosses the river.If you miss that turn you will be back out at Cty G.) It is more than an hour from Mercer, so the carpool from Mercer will meet at the Faith Lutheran Church parking lot at Kichak’s Landing, across Hwy J from Mercer school by 7:00 am and try to be underway by 7:15.
This river is a favorite, worth the long drive to get there. It is beautiful, and it also has several fun rapids. My paddle book describes it as a good river for beginner rapids – they are mostly Class l, a couple of Class ll. So if you’ve never done rapids, be sure to come along and we will give you some pointers and help you learn how to navigate them. The trip is about 4 hours of paddle time, plus a break for lunch. Be sure your lunch and valuables are in a dry bag and plan to wear your life jacket. You probably want your spray skirt, and if you don’t have one, bring a bilge pump or at the very least a large sponge, as it is likely that some water will splash into your boat. As I say in my talks, the rivers in our area are low risk, but not no risk. Please let me know if you are coming.