Bad, Wisconsin, US |
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| Usual Difficulty | II-III(IV) (varies with level) |
|---|---|
| Length | 7.1 Miles |
| Avg. Gradient | 28 fpm |
| Max Gradient | 70 fpm |
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bad at Conley Rd | ||||
| virtual-11123 | 175 - 500 cfs | I-II(III) | 00h42m | ~ 0 cfs (rc= -1.0 ) |
Almost certainly too low for decent whitewater. We need your input! Leave a comment or report! Virtual gauge based on drainage at put-in being 0.137 times drainage at gauge (way downstream). Correlation will not always be accurate. |
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| BAD RIVER NEAR ODANAH, WI | ||||
| usgs-04027000 | 1200 - 3280 cfs | II-III(IV) | 64d19h39m | 255 cfs (rc= -0.5 ) |
In Cayuga, the Bad is a meandering quietwater stream and stays that way for the first mile or so.
A railway line follows the Bad along the entire reach and the bridges provide a handy reference
point. At about two miles into the run, after the first railway bridge is passed, light boulder
bed rapids lead into a pair of nice ledge drops. These make a nice warm-up for the drops to
come.
The Conley Road bridge is encountered at 3.0 miles and can be used as an alternative put-in
(shortening the run to 4.1 miles).
The Bad starts accelerating downhill from here. Take care to count railway bridges as the river
builds to fairly continuous class II-II+ water. Just beyond the third railway bridge down from
Conley Rd, grab an eddy and scout river-right from the railway line. Rocket Railroad
Rapids, the most challenging drop on the reach, lies just below. Rocket Railroad starts with
a fast flume of water leading into a ledge (about 4' or so) leading into a steep boulder slide of
perhaps another 6'. There is a fair stretch of class II below this.
The river then alternates between fastwater and class II rockbed downstream with a pair of class
III boulderbed drops interspersed to liven things up. You'll pass two more railway bridges
downstream of Rocket Railroad with the last significant drop being located about a half mile
below these. After this the pace drops off and you'll be looking for the next railway bridge
which marks your take-out.
The Foster Junction take-out is located by driving 1.6 miles west of Mellen on Cty GG and looking
for a small dirt road turning to the left. A short distance down this road is a grassy area along
the railway. Walk an eighth of a mile or so down the railway to the bridge over the Bad, you may
wish to mark this location.
The best lodging deal in the northwoods may be at Cayuga Hotel Saloon, whose backyard is the
put-in: $10 a night (as of this writing (in 2000)) includes coffee and sweet rolls in the morning
with the owners (if they're awake).
*This is a virtual gauge. The only currently active USGS gauge on this watershed is about twenty miles downstream, thus is not completely reliable for water levels in this reach. Specifically (obviously) this reach will flow sooner than the downstream gauge rises to a level which results in the virtual gauge showing as 'boatable'. Similarly, this reach will fall to unboatable levels well before the downstream gauge falls enough to flag this reach as unboatable.
Drainage area at the USGS gauge is 597 square miles. A gauge (not currently active) at Conley Road listed drainage area of 82 square miles, or 0.137 of the Odanah gauge. That multiplier has been used to create this virtual gauge.
Visual inspection from Conley Rd bridge is recommended.
The listed "recommended minimum" is based off of the '10% flow' (which tends to be a good starting point to approximate the runnability of many 'upper Midwest' whitewater streams). The listed "recommended maximum" is a 'guesstimation' based solely upon streams of similar sized and character. As such, both of these values are highly tentative. We encourage anyone who has run this river, and who can provide info ('data points') on gauge readings versus runnability, to do so. (Please use the "Comments" tab, "Add a comment" button.)
| Gauge/flow analysis (based on most recent 20 years of data) |
Odanah gauge | Virtual Gauge 'equivalent' |
| Drainage area at gauge | 597 sq.mi. | 82 sq.mi. |
| All time minimum flow | 43 cfs | 6 cfs |
| 90% of time flow exceeds | 120 cfs | 16 cfs |
| 10% of time flow exceeds | 1,220 cfs | 168 cfs |
| All time maximum flow | 18,800 cfs | 2,582 cfs |
| 10/90 ratio ('flashy-ness') (under 3 is fairly steady, over 10 is quite 'flashy') |
11.3 | |
| Average runnable days per year (days/year exceeding 'recommended minimum') |
35 |
Offseason ('Ice') correlations:
3.0' = 322cfs
3.5' = 537cfs
4.00 = 780cfs
4.55 = 1090cfs
5.30 = 1570cfs
6.60 = 2520cfs
7.00 = 2850cfs
7.19 = 3000cfs
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bad at Conley Rd | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| virtual-11123 | 175 - 500 cfs | I-II(III) | 00h42m | ~ 0 cfs (rc= -1.0 ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Almost certainly too low for decent whitewater. We need your input! Leave a comment or report! |
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Virtual gauge based on drainage at put-in being 0.137 times drainage at gauge (way downstream). Correlation will not always be accurate. |
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| BAD RIVER NEAR ODANAH, WI | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| usgs-04027000 | 1200 - 3280 cfs | II-III(IV) | 64d19h39m | 255 cfs (rc= -0.5 ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This gauge is WAAAY downstream, thus will not reflect actual flow in this reach. Actual flow likely 1/7 to 1/8 of listed gauge reading. |
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| When | River/Gauge | Subject | Level | Reporter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 300d19h24m | @Bad A) Cayuga to Foster Jnctn. RR bridge (7.1 or 4.1 miles) [WI] |
Bad in the snow...
|
222 cfs | bryan foster |
| 6y273d16h24m | Bad [WI] |
Warm-down Rapids
|
4.3ft | Andrew Lovering |
| 6y273d16h24m | Bad [WI] |
Rocket Railroad Final Drop
|
4.3ft | Andrew Lovering |
| Mile | Rapid Name | Class | Features (Legend) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | Warm-up Rapids | II+ |  |
| 2.0 | Right Tongue Drop | III |  |
| 2.2 | Left Tongue Drop | III | |
| 4.5 | Rocket Railroad Intro | III | |
| 4.7 | Rocket Railroad A | III+ | |
| 4.8 | Rocket Railroad B | III+ | |
| 6.6 | Warm-down Rapids | III |  |
Warm-up RapidsThe first series of rapids is encountered after about a mile of flat water. Less experienced boaters may wish to take out river right to scout this class II+ sequence.
Right Tongue DropThis is the first Class II-III drop on the run. The river-right tongue is a nice ride at 4.3 feet. Most boaters should be fine 'boat scouting', but less experienced boaters may wish to take out river left to scout.
Left Tongue RapidThis is the second class III drop of the run. Note that there is a big rock in the middle of the drop (see photo). As the name implies, we generally run down river left.
Long approach to the Final Drop of Rocket Railroad RapidsGet out ABOVE bridge #5 (road + railroad) from the start (or from Conley Road, railroad bridge #3, 0.9 miles down), river right to scout this entire sequence. Eddies below this bridge are few and small.This is the intro to the two larger drops below. It s made up of three to four continuous class II-III drops.
Rocket Railroad AThis is the first of two big drops at the end of the Rocket Railroad Intro. Note the nasty piton rock in the middle. We chose river left. Be careful to lean forward as the river left pour over sent both of our creek boats near vertical.
Final Drop of Rocket Railroad RapidsThis is the second of the two big drops at the end of the Rocket Railroad Intro. Note Rocket Railroad A in the background. We chose the line seen in the picture. River right looked like a possible option for some folks as well.
Warm-down Rapids reach
state
reachlink
A) Cayuga to Foster Jnctn. RR bridge (7.1 or 4.1 miles), Bad Wisconsin, US (mobile)
User Comments
(local name) was portaged. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQLpUEnreeQ
there: don't you think that main rapids should be called "AC/DC"?