THE THORNAPPLE.The Thornapple river is a small tributary of the Chippewa in Northern Wisconsin. The stretch my paddling pal Mike and I took this summer is not, unlike most of the other rivers here, mapped or described anywhere I know of. That is why I have decided to document this stretch more thoroughly than the other rivers on my page. Why? Because this stretch is simply one of the most beautiful, unspoiled streams I have ever paddled. We put in at the bridge on Thornapple Grade Road (see map )on a sunny July day. The water level appeared to be at high, but not flood stage. A high water stage is essential to enjoy this stretch. The first mile and a half downstream from the bridge consisted of rocky but easy rapids interspersed with calm pools and gravel bars. Curious deer and even more curious otters watched us as we glided by. It is unlikely they see too many canoes. The uspoiled beauty found here was awe inspiring.
At about the 1.5 mile point, Skunk Creek comes in from the right above a quick drop, and a cabin is visible on the right bank. For the next few miles, the river meanders through a lovely meadow, and sand bars replace the gravel bars found upstream. The remains of an old logging dam signal the start of another rocky stretch. A cabin on the left bank marks the start of the biggest drop on this river section, but it is easily run. The last few miles to the takeout are probably the reason that this section of river is rarely paddled. The river enters a lowland woodlot, and downed trees crowd the river. We had to do two carryovers, two pushunders, two pushovers and one stepover of downed trees in this section. We also had to maneuver around many trees with only a few feet of river available. These conditions continued down to the takeout at Winter Road. There is another takeout about 2/3rds of a mile downstream at County J. I am guessing that river conditions are similar down to there.
This is a wonderful little river and one rarely paddled, as evidenced by the lack of human detritous commonly found on more popular rivers. We only found two human artifacts on the whole trip, and the only other signs of man are the three structures mentioned above. Although we fished some, it was a "bluebird" day, and we didn't get a bite. I would suspect that trout are plentiful in the upper stretches. If you don't mind a little inconvenience, this is a good river to try when water levels are high. One good rain should get the river up to this level, but it can drop just as fast. I had scouted the river upstream a few days before we descended it, and it had dropped at least a foot in that time. You will seldom find a prettier stretch of small river than the Thornapple. I hope to be able to try the river upstream from our put-in sometime, as it appears to be even more remote. |