Staying Home Sucks, home
Ninety Six Visitors Center exterior
Ninety Six, the nearest town, 11 km away. Photo: Donna Wells, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Saluda River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

100Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

4 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 99 out of 100

Wind
6 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
24°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 100 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
12kn
Air
26°C
Rain
0.9 mm

Thu 5 · 100 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
25°C
Rain
0.6 mm

Fri 6 · 97 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
19kn
Air
25°C
Rain
6.9 mm

Sat 7 · 100 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
24°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 100 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
12kn
Air
23°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 99 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
20°C
Rain
0.6 mm

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 296, good
  2. Tue 399, good
  3. Wed 4100, good
  4. Thu 5100, good
  5. Fri 697, good
  6. Sat 7100, good
  7. Sun 8100, good
  8. Mon 999, good
  9. Tue 1083, good
  10. Wed 1170, good

The spot in one fact

  • Flat waterthe water

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 Saluda River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov96, good7 kn16kn22°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov99, good6 kn14kn24°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov100, good5 kn12kn26°C0.9 mm
Thu 5Nov100, good5 kn13kn25°C0.6 mm
Fri 6Nov97, good7 kn19kn25°C6.9 mm
Sat 7Nov100, good1 kn8kn24°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov100, good5 kn12kn23°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov99, good4 kn14kn20°C0.6 mm
Tue 10Nov83, good9 kn21kn15°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov70, good10 kn20kntoo gusty15°C0 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.

Map

the spot and 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.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Saluda River

A launch on the Saluda River. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. None within 10 km, the nearest 47 km away. The town to stay in is Ninety Six.

  • River Saluda River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Who it suits No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire None within 10 km, the nearest 47 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$1,200–US$2,160 each

about US$1,200–US$2,160 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, 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
Flightsreturn ORD to CAE, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$154–US$315
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$154–US$255
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$348–US$583
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$201–US$375
Totalabout US$1,200–US$2,160

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Ninety Six

Closest

Ninety Six

about 20 min by car

about US$134/nightcountry average

See places to stay in Ninety Six · Booking.com

About Ninety Six its beds, food and every spot near it

Nearest town: Ninety Six, 11 km. We have not checked places to stay in Ninety Six yet. The nearest beds we have counted are in Newberry, 29 km away (about 55 min by car). Search before you plan on staying there.

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 5h 40m

About 5h 40m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → CAE, direct, then 1h 40m by road

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

On the water

River level

Gauge at SALUDA RIVER AT CHAPPELLS, SC, 12 km downstream: 10.1 m³/s, very low for November (updated 3 h ago). Low.

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