Kayaking the Upper Iowa River - Daley Bridge Access to McCaffrey Bridge in Decorah, IA - August 2024

Put-in at the Daley Bridge Canoe Access / Cattle Creek Road in Cresco, IA. Take-out at the McCaffrey Bridge Access / 244th Avenue in Decorah, WI. The put-in has a gravel parking lot, signage, and a low shoreline for launching. The take-out at the old metal McCaffrey Bridge also has a small gravel parking lot and a rocky shoreline. The trip was about 10 1/4 miles and took us about 3 1/4 hours at a very leisurely pace. The typical take-out would be at the Bluffton Canoe Access - Lower Landing which is just upstream from the McCaffrey Bridge. There were only four of us so we took out after the old metal bridge in order to enjoy that experience and the beautiful location.
Put-in: maps.app.goo.g...
Take-out: maps.app.goo.g...
The water level for this trip was 3.55’ or 280 CFS at the Bluffton Bridge in Decorah, IA. This was a very nice water level with limited scraping and plenty of water to clear obstructions in the river. Water quality was excellent with a nice current across the entire trip.
USGA gauge level for the Upper Iowa River at the Bluffton Bridge in Decorah, IA:
waterdata.usgs...