Bad Axe, Wisconsin, US

Possibly two N.Fk. options, one S.Fk option (4 - 7.8 miles)

River Description

This part of Western Wisconsin is known as the "Coulee Region". With all its rolling terrain, any boater with any imagination who has driven through or looked at it on topgraphic maps would have to surmise "There MUST be some good whitewater here!" Unfortunately, there are serious downsides of all that steep coulee terrain. By its nature, it fractures the watersheds into such small subdivisions that where there is gradient, there is not generally much drainage area. By the time there is decent drainage area, you are in the 'bottom lands' where there is not much gradient. Being such smaller drainages, they are likely prone to have little flow most of the year, thus will be likely to have much overhanging or encroaching shrubbery, deadfall, and snags.

All that said, the Bad Axe is one drainage which (beyond its suggestive and colorful name) appears to have some promise. We say 'promise' because we have no specific knowledge of how feasible any of this may be in truth, whether any whitewater boater has ever tried any runs here, and (if so) whether any real whitewater of merit can actually be found (at adequate flows). While the gradients suggest whitewater is possible, if it is spread too evenly, and/or without encountering any bedrock, rock, or narrows, the result could be just 'swiftwater' with no real whitewater features. (Because of this, the currently listed rating for this reach is only very tentative, and subject to revision after any reports or further review.) Doing a 'flyover' (via Google satellite views) seems to suggest much of the listed sections is fairly 'open' (not running through too much wooded area), so deadfall and snags may not be as much a problem as otherwise might be expected.

There may be two sections possible on the North Fork of the Bad Axe, and possibly one on the South Fork Bad Axe. The following chart details some stats for these 'theoretical runs':

So, has anyone out there actually looked at this, firsthand? Has anyone tried to boat any of it? Or is it really just too small and logistically awkward to bother with? Report!