Saturday morning of the Labor Day weekend dawned pleasantly cool and sunny. With a 9:45am launch from the south side of the CCC Bridge, we hit the river ahead of the holiday crowd. The group included club members Susan & Gerry paddling one double canoe and Pam in a solo canoe, with the rest of the group (Harold, Lois, John, Mark, Marv, Marlene, Marvin and Tracie) in kayaks. For the first few miles, this section of the Manistee is relatively wide with a moderate current. In many locations the low sandy banks are protected by woody debris, none of which is an obstacle to paddling. The stream-side landscape includes a number of cottages but otherwise is forested down to the river’s edge.
The air was dead calm and in the middle section of our trip the temperature rose making this early September day feel very summer-like. Here the bottom was more gravelly and a number of fly fishermen were seen on the river. The river widened and from time to time there were sandbars to be avoided. There were also a few downed trees that necessitated a bit of maneuvering. Nearing lunch time, we paddled past a pull-out location that was crowded with kayakers. We chose an open wooded location for our leisurely lunch stop and watched as the crowd passed us by.
The character of the lower section was much like that of the middle section. We saw a few other canoeists and kayakers but nothing that would be called a crowd. From time to time, a few ducks watched us pass by and a bald eagle circled. Again, there were a number of fly fishermen on the river. At one point the river divided and the left-hand course appeared to be blocked. John stopped and took up a position mid-stream to advise the paddlers toward the rear of the pack. Further down, there was another major division and Lois made an “executive decision” to take the left course which proved to be a good choice.
As the end of the trip approached, there was a sign announcing the approach of ”Sharon Falls” which proved to be no more that a few small mid-stream waves. Continuing on, we proceeded under the Sharon Bridge and then downstream for another ten minutes to the take-out on the right. Here the bank is stabilized and a dozen steps lead up to a parking area. When we arrived, there were a few other paddlers getting off the river. We did a reverse-shuttle back to the CCC Bridge to retrieve our cars and by the time we returned the small parking area was packed with outfitters' vans and trailers. The resultant minor delay in loading our boats and gear didn’t spoil what was a glorious end-of-summer day on the Manistee.
Written by Mark O’Reilly with photos by John