Open Canoe on the St Louis River - Swinging Bridge - Jay Cooke State Park, Minnesota

My first run down the lower St Louis River in 2010.  

The Lower St Louis River, Swinging Bridge Rapids.  

Northern Canoe Country’s ultimate whitewater river.  One drop after another- table saw, Highway 210 drop, the Sisters, OCTOPUS, the boneyards, swinging bridge into the hanging pool, and Snake Bite (if you dare).

Before getting on the Lower St Louis the skills a canoeist will need are:

• a solid roll (or be able to self rescue)
• confidence in your ability to catch small eddies
• proficient in fast water river ferries

Get the skills, then get a good crew of boaters that know the run.  The St Louis is dam released, I love the river at the normal 350 cfs-fishflow, and it is even more fun (or scary depends how you look at it) at a 650 cfs release.

The Training, the Inspiration, the Equipment

The Northern Open Canoe Access Project