I think if a leaf had fallen off a tree and landed on the kayak I would have been swimming…

Thank you! I appreciate that comment.

That is what we were attempting to do here, just didn’t work out for us. I am sure we will be back, this river is a gem!

@@BRUjank i would highly suggest it. Just go into it expecting a few portages and some shoving over trees and it’ll be a great time. Good luck👍🏼

No it’s not challenging at all! there is some elevation change on the far north end of the island but it’s not much. thanks for the comment!

SO MUCH FUN! I look forward to watching the video and re-living some memories for myself! Just remember when you finish up to reflect on the fact that the canoe marathon people do that entire stretch in about 14 hours 🤣😂🤣 I would recommend taking it a bit slower than that.. your going to have a blast!

@@BRUjank That literally blows my mind that people do that in 14 hours! lol. I have done 50 mile trips before and based off of that, I am going to give myself 6 days to do this, but I am going to allot for 7 days just to be safe. I want to enjoy it and not just paddle as fast as possible too. I'll be sure to post a comment once I get the video done!

It’s honestly the best..

We rented! There are a couple of places local.

Thank you for the comment. I appreciate that.

I often wonder why they don’t just fly the other way.. I’m going to think of them as scouting and leading me forward for now on, I like that!

I was looking for coordinates for you, but couldn’t find any from my pictures.. it was past Peterson bridge and before the sand hill which should both be marked on google maps.. so towards the end of the river.

@@BRUjank that’s about where I figured it was. Thanks. Seen it in other videos. Great site

Please calm down.

We prefer, “learned a valuable lesson..” but yea, we weren’t having the best of times, we went home.

It’s gorgeous there..

We don’t make it to Muskegon enough! We always talk about kayaking the river right into the big lake though.. maybe next summer!!

There are different rules for dispersed camping depending on if you are in state or National Forest, or wilderness/game area etc... It’s helpful to read up a bit on them if you are looking to have that kind of experience. The Manistee runs through a ton of state and national forest, I think there are lots of options for riverside camping along the upper Manistee, but I have not done this portion myself… as for the portion of Manistee below Hodenpyl dam, the camping is all marked in designated areas, but it’s abundant! So, depending on what kind of experience you want, camping shouldn’t be a problem for you along the Manistee! If you were looking to just camp anywhere along the river it helps to have an app telling you ownership of the parcel of land you are on, but these cost money.. otherwise make sure you have some idea where you are going before you embark on the adventure!! If you’re trying to make it all the way to Lake Michigan, there is not a ton of camping along the lower portions of the river, I do know that from experience..

Thanks!

Good advice.. the campground wasn’t much.

Probably a really fun river to raft! That is awesome.

Yea this is great advice.. duct tape is being added to the dry bag immediately.

I kept a boat for over half a summer with duck tape. My bud was going to trash it. I used it for 2 1/2 months free. Well minus the expense of the tape.

It’s beautiful 🙌

Everything in that section beyond Mio is great.. such a great stretch for overnighters!!

Did not know there was a distinction. Thank you..

Oh wow! It’s always been on the wild side i guess. I have been told that from Hesperia downstream it’s pretty navigable.

Thanks

I’ll bet it was the best! It’s a special river.

Thanks

Yea! Bar on board the boat!

Haha I’m sorry that was your perspective, there is no under appreciation from me ever. We had been on the river for three days.. not rushing anything. On the last day we experienced over 20 mph headwinds off Lake Michigan which actually pushed us upstream when we rested. Justin also had half a paddle by like ten AM. We were already well past the time we allotted ourselves to be on the river that day, and we were exhausted. Before the situation actually turned dangerous, we decided to pull over before paddling on to Lake Manistee. Because our original ride was over an hour away, we just decided to call a cab! No shame or under appreciation here. Just couldn’t beat Mother Nature that day..

It helps to know the rules for dispersed camping in the state and national forests.. you usually need to pair that with a gps app that has land ownership overlay to avoid those pesky trespassing charges, which will usually cost you money (the charges and the app). I do agree with you though, for the amount of riverfront we have in our national forest in MI, there should be endless ways to find easy camping options..

Haha all on an island too, with no where to run…

Oh I’m looking into this for sure haha thanks!

Thank you for the comment! We saw lots of evidence of tubers on our float through Big Rapids haha I imagine the college kids love it.. I’m with you though, kayaking is better.

Yes it was. We were using a service to rent the canoes to thankfully they came and picked everything up for us and helped us start off. All we had to do was get the canoe to the drop off before they came to pick it up!

That’s awesome. I can’t wait to explore more of this river it’s gorgeous!!

Yes. Really..

This is true!

I really appreciate the comment! We had so much fun.

Thanks for your comment!

Yea kayaking is beefing up any numbers for me haha thanks for subscribing, I appreciate the comment!

Thank you, I appreciate the comment!

Thank you! I really appreciate that comment.

We take leave no trace principle pretty seriously when we are out in nature, including collecting all the butts in a receptacle if you smoke! No cigs in the water with this group..

@@BRUjank Great! I pick up as much as I can when camping/hiking. Especially, little pieces of plastic and balloons.

Most don't care. They think the river is just for them. I find beer cans and trash all along the banks. I watched some little asshole empty his canoe of trash in the water.

That’s awesome, I’m a bit jealous.. that’s a great spot! Probably awesome fishing too.. Enjoy it!!

@@BRUjank we didn't catch any thing we haven't caught trout yet we want to

The hardest trips often end up being the most memorable ones! We still had fun at least. Im a fan of your channel too btw, maybe I’ll see you out there someday!

@@BRUjank Thanks, that would be cool ✌️

I think we did two nights at the first site and one night at the other site. No reservations needed! They were free too..

@@BRUjank thank you for your quick reply. It is appreciated. Subscribed because your content was very helpful and inspiring to get back to traveling. Hope to see more of your travels.

Thank you for the tip! I really appreciate that. That was our first time on the river and because of the day we were having, we just decided to call it. Looks like Hesperia downward is the way to go.. can’t wait to check it out.

No Ferry to North? Oh no. I have not heard of anything going on. Hopefully you can get there! I hear South is very beautiful as well though so hopefully it’s still worth the trip even if you had to resort to plan B!