Staying Home Sucks, home
Grand River overlooking Lansing River Trail Bridge
Grand River. Photo: Scott.merryfield, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Grand River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

85Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

2 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 88 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
19kn
Air
21°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 86 out of 100

Wind
10 kn
Gusts
24kntoo gusty
Air
19°C
Rain
6.4 mm

Thu 5 · 81 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
26kn
Air
16°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 88 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
11kn
Air
12°C
Rain
5.7 mm

Sat 7 · 77 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
9°C
Rain
3.6 mm

Sun 8 · 84 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
17kn
Air
12°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 83 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
10°C
Rain
3.9 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 287, good
  2. Tue 388, good
  3. Wed 486, good
  4. Thu 581, good
  5. Fri 688, good
  6. Sat 777, good
  7. Sun 884, good
  8. Mon 983, good
  9. Tue 1027, poor
  10. Wed 1173, good

The spot in two facts

  • Flat waterthe water
  • 0.7 kmthe section

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Grand River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov87, good7 kn15kn16°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov88, good9 kn19kn21°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov86, good10 kn24kntoo gusty19°C6.4 mm
Thu 5Nov81, good9 kn26kn16°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov88, good5 kn11kn12°C5.7 mm
Sat 7Nov77, good2 kn10kn9°C3.6 mm
Sun 8Nov84, good7 kn17kn12°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov83, good5 kn13kn10°C3.9 mm
Tue 10Nov27, poor13 kn25kntoo gusty9°C5.1 mm
Wed 11Nov73, good9 kn22kn10°C0.6 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. The river's level is under In the water. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

No month stands out

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for grade III paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan5of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb5of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar5of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May7of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep7of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct7of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov5of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
  12. Dec5of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

put-in, take-out, its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More kayaking near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Grand River

A river section on the Grand River, from a put-in down to a take-out. It runs 0.7 km along the river. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks. 1 paddling school, club or hire within 10 km, the nearest 1.2 km away. The town to stay in is Lansing. Within 5 km we also list 15 kayak spots.

  • River Grand River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Length 0.7 km along the river.
  • Who it suits No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle.
  • Access OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks.
  • Schools, hire 1 paddling school, club or hire within 10 km, the nearest 1.2 km away.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$931–US$1,650 each

about US$931–US$1,650 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: fuel, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Fuelabout 650 km there and back, sharedabout US$40–US$60
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$348–US$583
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Kayak hire5 days, or bring your ownabout US$201–US$375
Totalabout US$931–US$1,650

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Lansing

Closest

Lansing

about 10 min by car

about US$134/nightcountry average

See places to stay in Lansing · Booking.com

About Lansing its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$134 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 3h 55m

About 3h 55m door to door from Chicago

Drive: Drive, about 3h 55m

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

River level

Gauge at GRAND RIVER AT LANSING, MI, 1 km downstream: 8.52 m³/s, very low for November (updated 2 h ago). Running.

Bands are this gauge's own record: under its usual low, running, high, and in flood on its few highest days a year. Not a runnable range for the section: check before you go. River levels in the United States: U.S. Geological Survey (public domain). Credits

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

The nearest named schools, clubs and kayak or canoe hire within 25 km, in a straight line. Listings, not a recommendation. Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits