Little Muskegon River

This river was absolutely stunning.  I doubt our first run could have been more perfect.  Green heron, great blue heron, bald eagle, osprey, hawks, sandhill cranes...we saw it all.  Not another human on the river either, but of course we were paddling on a weekday in late August.

By the way, as the bald eagle left his perch, a downy little feather fell onto the water.  Still have it - even though according to Bart it's illegal to have any feathers from a bald eagle.  I doubt the DNR is coming after me.  But if the DNR is reading this, it could have been anybody's feather falling out of the sky. (but it was from the bald eagle, I know it!)

The river was small and twisting, relatively quick current and clear water.  High clay banks here and there, with only a few houses along the way.  The current is pretty quick with some tight bends. Add some fallen tree branches, and this is why this river is not recommended for beginners.  There are quite a few houses at first, but then it's on to the more remote part of the river. High banks of sand and clay, lots of woods all around, simply beautiful.

No campgrounds and really no camping options along this section of the river.  It's a relatively short paddle - three to five hours depending on how quickly you paddle.

The hardest part is just at the end, as the Little Muskegon River empties into Croton Dam Pond. The current slows, the bottom is sandy and you're paddling through some marsh. Head towards the left and under the bridge. There is a fair amount of motorized boat traffic - mostly fisherman and a few pontoons. The wind could be a major factor here - so save some strength for this last part of your trip!

There is a large public access just upriver from the Croton dam.  Watch for Swan Avenue and a small sign for the public access.  There are picnic tables in the shade, long drop toilets and plenty of parking.  This takeout point is quite popular with fisherman, so there will be quite a few watercraft in this area - mostly those with outboard motors.

We accessed the river on Newcosta Road/County Line Road/C.R. 607.  Yes, it has all three names depending on which side of M-82 you're on.  Just north of the river was the easiest parking and access to the river.  Traffic moves along pretty quickly here, and it's rather limited parking on the side of the road.  Access to the river was pretty easy overall.

As a side note, just below Croton Dam you'll see a lot of fisherman.  Depending on the season, there may be 25 or more people fishing.  And then there are the osprey, who are also fishing in that area.  Watch for them perched on the dead sycamore tree below the dam, or on the power line poles at the public access.