Staying Home Sucks, home
Sturgis Dam (St. Joseph River)
St. Joseph River. Photo: Drdpw, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

St. Joseph River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

84Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Fri 6: Wind 5 kn gusting 11, Air 14 °C

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 84 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
21kn
Air
22°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 77 out of 100

Wind
12 kn
Gusts
26kntoo gusty
Air
20°C
Rain
8.9 mm

Thu 5 · 80 out of 100

Wind
10 kn
Gusts
23kn
Air
16°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 89 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
11kn
Air
14°C
Rain
2.1 mm

Sat 7 · 82 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
11°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 80 out of 100

Wind
6 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
13°C
Rain
1.2 mm

Mon 9 · 86 out of 100

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

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 288, good
  2. Tue 384, good
  3. Wed 477, good
  4. Thu 580, good
  5. Fri 689, good
  6. Sat 782, good
  7. Sun 880, good
  8. Mon 986, good
  9. Tue 1055, fair
  10. Wed 1171, 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 St. Joseph River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov88, good8 kn22kn16°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov84, good9 kn21kn22°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov77, good12 kn26kntoo gusty20°C8.9 mm
Thu 5Nov80, good10 kn23kn16°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov89, good5 kn11kn14°C2.1 mm
Sat 7Nov82, good3 kn9kn11°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov80, good6 kn10kn13°C1.2 mm
Mon 9Nov86, good5 kn11kn11°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov55, fair11 kn21kntoo gusty8°C6.9 mm
Wed 11Nov71, good10 kn23kn11°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.

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. Jan4of 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. Nov6of 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

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 St. Joseph River

A launch on the St. Joseph River. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. None within 10 km, the nearest 36 km away. The town to stay in is Three Rivers.

  • River St. Joseph 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 36 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$918–US$1,630 each

about US$918–US$1,630 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 425 km there and back, sharedabout US$27–US$40
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$918–US$1,630

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Three Rivers

Closest

Three Rivers

17 min by car · 11 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 11 places to stay in Three Rivers · Booking.com

About Three Rivers 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 2h 40m

About 2h 40m door to door from Chicago

Drive: Drive, about 2h 40m

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

On the water

River level

Gauge at ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT THREE RIVERS, MI, 13 km downstream: 19.5 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