Staying Home Sucks, home
Jackson Michigan skyline
Jackson, the nearest town. Photo: Lane Montgomery, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Grand River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

92Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 3: Wind 11 kn gusting 21, Air 21 °C

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 94 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
19kn
Air
16°C
Rain
0 mm

Tue 3 · 98 out of 100

Wind
11 kn
Gusts
21kn
Air
21°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 95 out of 100

Wind
10 kn
Gusts
24kn
Air
19°C
Rain
11.6 mm

Thu 5 · 89 out of 100

Wind
11 kn
Gusts
24kn
Air
15°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 88 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
12°C
Rain
3 mm

Sat 7 · 84 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
12kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 87 out of 100

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

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 197, good
  2. Mon 294, good
  3. Tue 398, good
  4. Wed 495, good
  5. Thu 589, good
  6. Fri 688, good
  7. Sat 784, good
  8. Sun 887, good
  9. Mon 986, good
  10. Tue 1072, good

The spot in two facts

  • Flat waterthe water
  • 1.2 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
Sun 1Nov97, good3 kn9kn18°C0 mm
Mon 2Nov94, good9 kn19kn16°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov98, good11 kn21kn21°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov95, good10 kn24kn19°C11.6 mm
Thu 5Nov89, good11 kn24kn15°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov88, good4 kn8kn12°C3 mm
Sat 7Nov84, good5 kn12kn10°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov87, good8 kn17kn12°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov86, good5 kn12kn12°C2.1 mm
Tue 10Nov72, good13 kn27kn9°C7.8 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 expert paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan6of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb7of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar7of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr7of 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. Nov7of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
  12. Dec7of 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 1.2 km along the river. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks. None within 10 km, the nearest 35 km away. The town to stay in is Jackson. Within 5 km we also list 3 kayak spots.

  • River Grand River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Length 1.2 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 None within 10 km, the nearest 35 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: Jackson

Closest

Jackson

1 min by car · 2 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 2 places to stay in Jackson · Booking.com

About Jackson 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 JACKSON, MI, 2 km downstream: 2.12 m³/s, low for November (updated 3 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

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 25 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits