Flint River in Michigan

Trip Overview

Our plan was to float the Flint River from Irish Rd to Mott Lake where we would take out at the Stanley Rd boat landing. So we loaded the canoe on top of the truck and took off. My wife was kind enough to drop us off at the chosen spot. The Irish Rd parking area where we put in is right next to Richfield Park in the Davison area.

Right off the bat I was amazed at how beautiful it was. The fall colors were not quite in full effect yet but they were starting to turn. Being as late in the year as it was there wasn�t much of a current and the water was a little low. We ended up having to walk the canoe through one stretch but it wasn�t very far before it got deeper again. The really neat thing about this trip is there were no houses at all through the whole trip and it was really quiet. It really felt like we were on some river in northern Michigan.

The trip went really smooth. We stopped at a few places and tried our hand at fishing but didn�t do that great. I don�t believe it was for the lack of fish though. As you get closer to Mott Lake the river starts widening. This is a good spot to stop and fish. We caught a couple of nice bluegill there and if we would have been there a little later we probably could have done well.

I have to give a warning about one thing though. The last forty minutes or so your heading due west in an open lake. If the wind is coming from the west you will have a wind hitting you right in the face and it makes for a little more difficult paddling.

All in all, I think this is a beautiful stretch of water and was surprised to see only one kayaker throughout the whole day. I had read somewhere that this was a two hour paddle but in reality it is probably closer to three hours. I highly suggest this river if you are in the area. It is worth taking a look at. We saw a lot of wild life and some beautiful scenery.

Accommodations:

Parking area on the east side of Irish Rd. just north of Richfield Park

Fees:

none

Directions:

North on Irish Rd just past Coldwater Rd.