Staying Home Sucks, home
Grand Haven Beach - 20260623
Grand Haven, the nearest town, 10 km away. Photo: Enzo Arcamone, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Grand River

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

83Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 3: Wind 9 kn gusting 18, Air 22 °C

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 89 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
18kn
Air
22°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 81 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
18kn
Air
18°C
Rain
8.1 mm

Thu 5 · 78 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
22kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0.4 mm

Fri 6 · 88 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
13°C
Rain
3 mm

Sat 7 · 87 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0.3 mm

Sun 8 · 63 out of 100

Wind
11 kn
Gusts
20kn
Air
9°C
Rain
16.8 mm

Mon 9 · 71 out of 100

Wind
9 kn
Gusts
25kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0.6 mm

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 389, good
  2. Wed 481, good
  3. Thu 578, good
  4. Fri 688, good
  5. Sat 787, good
  6. Sun 863, good
  7. Mon 971, good
  8. Tue 1032, poor
  9. Wed 1183, 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 Grand River
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Tue 3Nov89, good9 kn18kn22°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov81, good9 kn18kn18°C8.1 mm
Thu 5Nov78, good9 kn22kn13°C0.4 mm
Fri 6Nov88, good3 kn8kn13°C3 mm
Sat 7Nov87, good5 kn13kn13°C0.3 mm
Sun 8Nov63, good11 kn20kn9°C16.8 mm
Mon 9Nov71, good9 kn25kn10°C0.6 mm
Tue 10Nov32, poor12 kn25kntoo gusty10°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov83, good6 kn16kn10°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. Feb4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr5of 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. Oct6of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov4of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
  12. Dec4of 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 Grand River

A launch on the Grand River. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. OpenStreetMap marks the water open to canoes and kayaks. None within 10 km, the nearest 45 km away. The town to stay in is Grand Haven.

  • River Grand River
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • 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 45 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$919–US$1,640 each

about US$919–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 440 km there and back, sharedabout US$27–US$40
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$919–US$1,640

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Grand Haven

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

Closest

Grand Haven

about 20 min by car · 26 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 26 places to stay in Grand Haven · Booking.com

About Grand Haven 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 2h 45m

About 2h 45m door to door from Chicago

Drive: Drive, about 2h 45m

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

On the water

River level

Gauge at GRAND RIVER NEAR EASTMANVILLE, MI, 7 km upstream: 45.9 m³/s, very low for November (updated 4 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

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.