Otter, W.Br., Michigan, US

Pike Lake Rd to Donken Tapiola Road (7.7 miles)

Gauge Information

Name	Range	Difficulty	Updated	Level
STURGEON RIVER NEAR SIDNAW, MI
usgs-04040500	6.23 - 8.00 ft	II(IV)	01h24m	~ 4.06 ft (rc= -0.5 )
	Almost certainly too low for reasonable whitewater experience. Reference gauge should give a fair indicator of water in area. Min/Max are purely conjecture, and correlation is not assured. On-site inspection required.

River Description

This reach consists of moving water interspersed with light rapids. Shortly after the confluence with Bruno Creek, about 4 miles into the reach the start of the Otter Falls sequence is encountered. This opens with a 5' sloping ledge that serves as fair warning that the main drop is just ahead. Otter Falls is an extended low angle bedrock slide, with two steeper ledges of perhaps 5'-6' in close proximity near the start. This slide sequence extends for perhaps 200 yards before tapering off into light rockbed rapids. Tauriainen Road (shown on maps) comes in (dead ends) very near this location. We are not sure whether part or all of that road may be private or how likely it is to be passable in early season or after heavy rains. If accessable, (and if the area is not all posted against trespass -- unknown to us at this time) it may alow a carry-up, huck, carry-out option as an alternative for seeing/running this falls sequence without doing a shuttle and without running the (reportedly little-but-low-grade rapids) access and egress portions of this run. Similarly, Google satellite view also shows a significant clearing and has it marked as a road (though none is specifically visible, so it may be more of a fire-break, utility easement, and/or 4-wheeler/snomobile trail) coming into to river at 5.5 miles from the listed put-in (I.E., about a mile to a mile-and-a-half after the falls sequence).

If the listed take-out at Donken Tapiola Road (off Hazel Swamp Road) is inaccessible early season, use Horoscope Road (listed on some maps as "Limestone Mountain Road"). This adds 2 miles of lower gradient paddling.

  A good companion piece to this reach may be the W.Br.Sturgeon, which is located about five miles to the south. The W.Br.Sturgeon is a smaller watershed, so if the Otter is low, forget the W.Br.Sturgeon.