Best Grand River Spots To Kayak In And Near Kitchener-Waterloo
Kitchener-Waterloo and the surrounding area provide some great opportunities for kayaking and exploration of the wilderness. The Grand River is large and has many hot spots that the locals don't want you to know about!
Of course, to kayak you must own one. Do you own one of our Clearwater Design Kayaks? They are made in Picton, Ontario, come with a 5 year warranty, and come in a variety of styles and colours for beginners to expert kayakers.
So let's take a look at some great kayak spots!
The Grand River stretches very far, with the northern tip near the Fergus area, it eventually empties out into Lake Eerie. The Grand River provides some white water paddling due to the spring run-of, however once the river drops to its normal water levels it can be paddled by any novice paddler. It's very hard to go upstream on the Grand, as the water will go too fast so it's always a great idea to setup north, and plan your trip down. Some common local spots are:
- Most bridges you will find near New Hamburg and Paris. Most of the bridges are about two to three hours apart (via kayak). A common run is starting from the bridge in Canning and finishing up in the south end of Paris.
- There's a rental spot on old King St. just after entering Kitchener run by "Canoeing The Grand Inc". This is a great spot for novices to launch their kayak as the water is smooth and steady. You can paddle upstream here as the water isn't too quick. You can of course, go down stream and pass by a lot of great forestry as well as a few golf courses, very relaxing!
- From the same area, you can go upstream and take a trip to Breslau. There's many small areas there that you could land back on and be done for the day. The area is full of forestry and near the Waterloo Wellington airport so you might catch some planes flying in!
- As mentioned, New Hamburg is a great spot to launch from. Find a bridge near Highway 8 or one of the other roads and you're set! Launching here, you can go on for as long as you feel good as the river will go down stream all the way down to Paris (long trip!) and keep going. However, you can easily make a short trip by docking back in one of the man other towns, it's a perfect area and close enough to Kitchener-Waterloo to not spend much time getting ther.e
Here's a map of some of the routes you can take. When it comes to the Grand River, your possibilities are nearly endless but these should get you started!
<br /><small>View Grand River Kayaking Trips in a larger map</small>
You will find the Grand River is very versatile with some areas being quicker than others. If you start near Kitchener you'll find a lot of slower and shallow water making it great for beginners. As you get better, you can try out some areas in New Hamburg and down south towards Paris.
If you're still looking for a kayak, make sure to check out the Clearwater Design Kayaks we stock at our store. Additionally, many of our staff own kayaks and have run down the Grand River so are happy to answer questions on paddling down it, or what some great spots are.
Happy Paddling!
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