# Our FIRST Detroit River Kayaking trip Belle Isle to Wyandotte ((pics))



## Rembinski (Mar 7, 2012)

I think the Detroit river gets a bad rap! Especially the whole Belle isle thing! although Detroit and *belle isle are NOT what they used to be the whole river system is the cleanest it's been in roughly 100 years!! there are species of birds thriving in the watershed that have not been seen since the 50's-60's!
*the sturgeon population is up and people are actually catching them in the Detroit river! me and my brother were born and raised 1 mile from the ambassador bridge. we went fishing 3-4 days a week with the old man during the summer in the 80's & 90's. we though it would be a cool idea(and photo opportunity) to get up close and personal with the river last summer by plopping a few kayaks in the water and exploring! My big bro lives in Charlotte now and comes to Michigan maybe once every 2 years! we had to do something memorable! *we launched @ belle isle & made our way down the river to Wyandotte roughly 18 miles away! I had my wife pick us up and drive us back to belle isle to pick up my car. we took our sweet time & did some serious fishing(caught 4 walleye & some perch) we also took a ton of pictures that I'm sharing below. we started off with the water smooth like glass! then we got caught in some cold rain and rough water! (typical michigan weather) we didn't miss a beat! the *whole trip took up around 6 hours with little to no physical exertion as we were going WITH the current! *from what I gather the river stretch we took has a current of around 4mph. please note: me and my brother are NOT some kind of super athletes, professional Kayakers or anything like that. we're just 37 and 40 year old married regular old Joes!!**this was my older brothers FIRST TIME ever being on a Kayak. and probably my 10th time ever bringing out on my Kayak. It was also my FIRST time ever Kayaking the Detroit River!**so if you think something like this is not for Newbies or Beginners you are dead wrong! Just Use common sense*(like any trip) and you will have a blast! *The kayaks we used *are NOT high-end by any means!*my bro took my Future beach angler 144
(sit on top...$350 @ dunhams) and I took a used sit on top tandem (piranha i think) that I bought on Craigslist for $200 *below are some pics of the trip.*That I took with a waterproof Kodak Playsport camcorder/camera. I highly recommend this $100 Kodak by the way...amazing build quality and takes awesome pics!


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## Zofchak (Jan 10, 2003)

Very cool trip! :coolgleam

A good friend and I have plans to make the run from Belle Isle to Lake Erie later this summer. We hope to make it a two day trip and stay on the river someplace before paddling back to Erie Metro in the morning. 

Did you stop along the way anywhere? We were considering paddling up the Rouge or maybe over to the Canadian side for a bit of the trip depending on the conditions.


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## Rembinski (Mar 7, 2012)

We stopped all over the place off the river!! (actually discussed camping off the river next trip due to the virtual wilderness ant ton of uninhabited islands there) we Actually got out and had lunch @ historic ft. Wayne & caught walleye right off the shore. we didnt see one person there! 
the trip was awesome! if we had the time we would have taken the trip to lake Erie. although would not want to paddle from lake Erie to belle isle due to the current!! someone in thier 20's with ambition could do it no problem I bet...not us! please post pictures of the trip when you do it...


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## weekendredneck (Feb 16, 2002)

You never text me back. When are we going next? Are we taking the yaks or is your boat working?


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## Steve (Jan 15, 2000)

Very cool. Nice pics, thanks for sharing.


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## fisheater (Nov 14, 2010)

Sounds like a great trip. Was this recent? I missed the last recent shorts day! Went back to the pics, are there leaves on the trees downriver already??? That last question was a joke, I'm not that dense.


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## Rembinski (Mar 7, 2012)

It was last summer actually. It was one of those Weird 60 degree summer days. My brother lives in the south now (the land of 50degree winters) and lost his* "Michigan thermostat" I*had a great time busting his balls & watching him shiver like a wuss when we got rained on!! I can't wait to get out there again this summer....We might shoot for the belle isle to lake Erie trek this time & make an entire Day of it...why not?


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## flyfisher4life1 (Sep 5, 2011)

How did you guys catch the walleyes? I want to make the trip with my dad any tips for paddling the Detroit river?


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## engineer20 (Apr 17, 2015)

i went to the bait shop on jefferson north of downtown not far from belle isle, the guy said 3.75 for miexed minnows, so it was cheap, but he said they have bene catchin crappie for the last 2 weeks at the ponds on belle isle? i visited one of those bponids, which are deep in the park, where you go further in, after "civilization" ends and it's grasslands again, but then near the en d of that gtrail, by the park, civilization is back and it's like a park again, but which one of those ponds are good, and have crappie, is he eserious or was he just miseesing with me and where on those 2 ponds can you catch crpppie? what other fish are in those belle isle lakes/ponds? Thanks towards the northeast side of the island.


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