Delhi to Hopkinton:
A tale of one river through two landscapes, this trip begins as an absolute blast past gorgeous geology and fun riffles beneath the towering edifice of a gargantuan dam, then plateaus through a slog of humdrum croplands before spiking up one last time at the take-out, where the remains of a small dam provide a bony bump and ride through Class I+ rapids.
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆
Trip Report Date: February 24, 2024
Skill Level: Beginner
Class Difficulty: Quietwater with occasional Class I rapids
Gradient:
≈3′ per mile
Gauge Recorded on this Trip:
Manchester: ht/ft: 3.8 | cfs: 83
Recommended Levels:
This is the minimal recommend level. Ideally, look for 150-175 cfs to avoid scraping but still partake in clear water.
Put-In:
Upper Maquoketa River Water Trail Access #16, 263rd Street, Delhi, Iowa
GPS: 42.40987, -91.34268
Take-Out:
Mill Street park, Hopkinton, Iowa
GPS: 42.3375, -91.25744
Time: Put in at 1:15p. Out at 4:15p.
Total Time: 3h
Miles Paddled: 9.5
Wildlife:
Bald eagles, hawks, wood ducks, nesting geese (in February?!?), deer, mink, and beaver.
Shuttle Information:
10.5 miles by vehicle or bicycle. Doable on two wheels, but not recommended.
Background:
In the indispensable guidebook, Paddling Iowa, author Nate Hoogeveen lays out four total trips along the Maquoketa River – of which this is his first. Years earlier, I had paddled several segments downstream (Hoogeveen’s sections 3 and 4, as well as what might be called “beyond 4” and even “5”), not to mention way upstream. But, typical for me, I hadn’t first done 1. And while I had a strong intuition that I knew which section of the Maquoketa is the best (more bang for your bluff?), I felt obliged nonetheless to return to this wonderful river and paddle the Delhi to Hopkinton stretch; I was working on a guidebook project of my own, after all…
Thanks to a fluke of carbon-fueled freak-warm weather in February, I ventured out for come-what-may on the mighty Maquoketa.
Overview:
The wake of riffles coming from the dam whisk you along a truly dreamy landscape right off the bat. A ridge of handsome rock outcrops lies dead ahead of you (technically river-left). As is the case with so many Driftless Area rivers, once the trees leaf out, the geology show will be more difficult to discern. This is especially true for the Maquoketa, so it’s best to get your miles padded in early spring or late fall, if possible. To be fair, the exposed bedrock here is stately but not statuesque. If you want to go big (and tall), you’ll want to venture into the heart of the river, which lies in between the two dams in the towns of Monticello and Maquoketa. But 50′-tall bluffs ain’t nothing to sneeze at.
The river abruptly bends right to dive south for over a quarter-mile, briefly passing a house or two on the right. Then it gently sways to the left to head east for three-quarters of a mile – a pattern that will happen again. Before you know it, you’re surrounded by the first of two wildlife areas, this one called Shearer. About two miles into this trip you’ll pass by a second landing, also on river-left, at the Retz Wildlife Area. By and by, these first four miles and change are remarkable in that there’s next to no development along the river. Instead, it’s a dominion of wooded wonder, with sweeping bluffs, huge boulders, sandbars galore, and several riffles calling all the shots. This stretch may not possess the grandeur or drama alluded to downstream, but it’s plenty impressive in its own right – and quite rare for Iowa.
Intimate it is, cozy it’s not. Even here, in what might be called the end of its first third, or the “lower upper,” the Maquoketa is already over 100′ wide. As such, the broad river flows in long straightaways, not kinky meanders. This is relevant for a few reasons – wind direction, type of boat (preferably longer), skill level of paddler (re: beginner), etc.
A short dip southeast takes you to the first bridge, at Pioneer Road, where there is an official access on the downstream side, river-left. That said, this access is particularly tricky in that it requires a steep schlep up 40 stairs from the river to the road/ parking area, not to mention a platform at the bottom that, depending on the river’s level, could well be 2′ above the water (more of an issue for kayakers than canoeists, but still relevant). Now, before you say “hell no!” to that premise, the rest of this trip (i.e., the next 5.25 miles) is nothing like the reverie up to this point.
Why? The entire environs change after Pioneer Road. Gone are the bluffs and boulders, and with them the rock outcrops. In their stead are scraggly flats and miles of ugly riprap along the banks. The difference in look and feel is like a daydream that turns into a nightmare. Unsurprisingly, you’ll pass farm after farm – especially on river-right. (The human tread is lighter on the left side, but it’s still present.) On the plus side, the river is lively with riffles now and again.
OK, maybe not “nightmare” so much an anxiety-fused uncomfortable dream.
There is a second bridge, at 295th St, but it has no access. Below the bridge the banks are quite flat. The bridge is notable if only to point out that in 1.5 miles the river splits in two – and the channels don’t reconnect until after the next bridge, which is where the take-out is located. Paddlers paying attention should have no difficulty reckoning which channel to take – the main channel is on the right; it will have more volume. But to be clear: TAKE THE RIGHT CHANNEL! (Honestly, if you somehow missed this and ended up in the left channel, where it reconnects with the main channel is only 500′ from the dedicated landing, but it would be tough sledding as the current here is strong).
A quarter-mile-long straightaway precedes the bridge at Marion Street (aka Highway D47). Directly underneath and shortly after the bridge lie the remains of a removed dam, and here paddlers will encounter a brief but fun ride of light rapids (or grind, when the river is low). Writes Hoogeveen in the first edition at least, “On the main right channel, at the Dunlap Park access, the original low-head dam was lowered in the center, and boulders were added downstream of it. The danger of running it is unknown; assume it’s unsafe.” I can tell you that as of 2024 it is not unsafe. But it is hardscrabble. It’s very rocky and will be unrunnable in most kayaks at the water levels recorded on this trip or canoes at lower levels. But with good flow, it’s a great way to end a trip! The take-out is just past these rapids on river-right, where there is a small park named Dunlap.
What we liked:
The first 4.5 miles are fabulous and provide a small model – a riverscape maquette – of what to expect beneath the next big dam in Monticello and before the last dam in Maquoketa. It’s a beautiful segment worth enduring the preposterous schlep up all those stairs at Pioneer Road.
I’m no fan of dams – quite the opposite. I’m not sure I could name one that I didn’t think would look better with a touch of nitroglycerine powdered here or there. But there is a palpably lopsided sense of being below the top of this enormous prison wall. It’s quite surreal. The dam here creates fake Lake Delhi, a serpentine impoundment that is northeastern Iowa’s version of Lake of the Ozarks. Meaning it ain’t go anywhere. But starting this trip in its concrete shadow, plumb at the bottom of a mini-canyon, is pretty cool.
What we didn’t like:
There were two matters here – one my own doing (I won’t say “fault”), the other something nothing can be done about.
The first is logistics and accessing the river from the south. I own the first edition of Paddling Iowa, published in 2004. The corresponding trip map then has Highway X31 (aka 230th St) crossing over the river at the dam. In other words, one could access the dedicated landing coming from the north or south (again, then). Because I was alone and thus bike-shuttling, after dropping off my bike at the take-out I drove the back roads (i.e., west and south of the river) to get to the landing below the dam, to know what I’d be in for later, rather than the more direct and faster route via Highway 38 (east and north of the river, which I didn’t would be safe or fun for bicycling). But eventually you get to a point (re: the Omega Ave intersection) where modern-day highway signs tell you in no uncertain terms that the road you’re on will end. End? What do you mean end? Where? When?
At the dam itself – that’s where. Huh? Allow me a minute for a history lesson.
Following a biblical proportion of rain in July 2010, the Lake Delhi dam at the time breached and was rebuilt six years later. The raging swollen river devoured everything – up to and including the road that had bridged over the water and connected both banks. Again, my edition of the guidebook is from 2004, well before this catastrophe. As the Greg Brown song goes toward the tail-end, “the map was broken.”
Anyway, back again in February 2024, twenty years after Paddling Iowa came out, car-bound paddlers on the wrong side of the river face a dilemma. Here, you’re on the south side of the river, whereas the official access is on the north side. How do you get there from here? You can’t. As the song goes, can’t get there from here – well, at least not without backtracking quite a bit to the nearest bridge over the river. I’d already driven 2+ hours from home to get here, about to embark on a nearly 10-mile trip, and this was all late February on top of that. I was at the dam, albeit on the wrong side, and I just had to make amends. Which meant schlepping my boat and gear a good 600′ down a steep descent to access the water (which meant at least one separate trip back up the hill and down again since a 15′-long canoe and requisite gear is more than my two hands can manage in one go). Once there, I had/ chose to ferry like a madman from bank to bank to run a Class I+ rapid that was too compelling to skip. A lot of squeeze for that juice!
The second matter is how lackluster the landscape is below Pioneer Road (which is longer than the first “half” of this total trip). That’s the thing that can’t be done about. Not only is it dull, it’s an eyesore at times. The rocky rapids at the take-out are fun, but not so fun as to warrant paddling past Pioneer Road.
If we did this trip again:
While it would be a steep schlep off the water, I’d keep this a short trip and take out at Pioneer Road. Maybe install some kind of mechanical winch or pulley system like a dumbwaiter to traverse boats? There’s nothing “wrong” with the stretch below Pioneer Road to the takeout in Hopkinton, but it’s not worth going out of your way for. If I lived nearby, I’d regularly paddle from below the dam to Pioneer Road. After all, there are select times in life when all you have time for paddling is an hour-and-half. Combined with some of the Maquoketa’s most mesmerizing geology, plus a fun riffle or two, what can be better?
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Related Information:
Maquoketa River I: Quaker Mill Dam to Bailey’s Ford Park
General: Delaware County Tourism
Guide: Paddling Iowa by Nate Hoogeveen
Guide + Brochure: Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development
Outfitter: Monticello River Rentals
Wikipedia: Maquoketa River
Photo Gallery:
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