Staying Home Sucks, home
Cascade Dam Thornapple River Dscn0116rot
Thornapple River. Photo: Larry Pieniazek, Lar (commons) or User:Lar (primary), CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons

Thornapple River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

86Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 3: Wind 9 kn gusting 19, Air 22 °C

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 89 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
19kn
Air
22°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 83 out of 100

Wind
10 kn
Gusts
20kn
Air
18°C
Rain
2.4 mm

Thu 5 · 85 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
18kn
Air
14°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 88 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
13°C
Rain
3 mm

Sat 7 · 86 out of 100

Wind
6 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
11°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 80 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
16kn
Air
8°C
Rain
1.2 mm

Mon 9 · 80 out of 100

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

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 291, good
  2. Tue 389, good
  3. Wed 483, good
  4. Thu 585, good
  5. Fri 688, good
  6. Sat 786, good
  7. Sun 880, good
  8. Mon 980, good
  9. Tue 1072, good
  10. Wed 1183, good

The spot in two facts

  • Flat waterthe water
  • 6.3 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 Thornapple River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov91, good6 kn12kn16°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov89, good9 kn19kn22°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov83, good10 kn20kn18°C2.4 mm
Thu 5Nov85, good7 kn18kn14°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov88, good4 kn9kn13°C3 mm
Sat 7Nov86, good6 kn13kn11°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov80, good5 kn16kn8°C1.2 mm
Mon 9Nov80, good6 kn12kn8°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov72, good7 kn14kntoo gusty11°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov83, good1 kn9kn9°C0 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. 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. 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

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.

Photos of Thornapple River

More kayaking near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Thornapple River

A river section on the Thornapple River, from a put-in down to a take-out. It runs 6.3 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 30 km away. The town to stay in is Grandville.

  • River Thornapple River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Length 6.3 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 30 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$926–US$1,640 each

about US$926–US$1,640 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Fuelabout 510 km there and back, sharedabout US$34–US$47
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$349–US$584
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$637
Kayak hire5 days, or bring your ownabout US$201–US$376
Totalabout US$926–US$1,640

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Grandville

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Grandville

about 40 min by car · 7 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 7 places to stay in Grandville · Booking.com

About Grandville 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 3h 10m

About 3h 10m door to door from Chicago

Drive: Drive, about 3h 10m

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

On the water

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

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

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