Staying Home Sucks, home
Walhalla Bandstand
Walhalla, the nearest town, 11 km away. Photo: Tim Sabo, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Thomson Dam

Kayak spot · Australia

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

66Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Mon 9: Wind 2 kn gusting 10, Air 18 °C

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 85 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
14°C
Rain
3.1 mm

Wed 4 · 47 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
13kntoo gusty
Air
20°C
Rain
6.6 mm

Thu 5 · 37 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
20kntoo gusty
Air
13°C
Rain
0.1 mm

Fri 6 · 42 out of 100

Wind
6 kn
Gusts
17kntoo gusty
Air
20°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 0 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
25kntoo gusty
Air
8°C
Rain
3.3 mm

Sun 8 · 81 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 94 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
10kntoo gusty
Air
18°C
Rain
0 mm

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 292, good
  2. Tue 385, good
  3. Wed 447, fair
  4. Thu 537, poor
  5. Fri 642, poor
  6. Sat 70, poor
  7. Sun 881, good
  8. Mon 994, good
  9. Tue 1047, fair
  10. Wed 1181, 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 Thomson Dam
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov92, good4 kn12kn18°C3.3 mm
Tue 3Nov85, good4 kn13kn14°C3.1 mm
Wed 4Nov47, fair4 kn13kntoo gusty20°C6.6 mm
Thu 5Nov37, poor7 kn20kntoo gusty13°C0.1 mm
Fri 6Nov42, poor6 kn17kntoo gusty20°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov0, poor7 kn25kntoo gusty8°C3.3 mm
Sun 8Nov81, good4 kn14kn13°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov94, good2 kn10kntoo gusty18°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov47, fair4 kn16kntoo gusty22°C0.6 mm
Wed 11Nov81, good5 kn16kntoo gusty15°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 new paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan7of 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. May6of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun6of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug6of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep6of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct6of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov6of 7: a trip from Tue 3 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

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.

More kayaking near here

3 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Thomson Dam

A launch on the Thomson River. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map. The town to stay in is Walhalla.

  • River Thomson 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 No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map.

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$1,990–US$3,800 each

about US$1,990–US$3,800 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to MEL, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$959–US$2,000
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$148–US$242
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$362–US$604
Food7 days eating outabout US$322–US$597
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$195–US$356
Totalabout US$1,990–US$3,800

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Walhalla

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

Closest

Walhalla

about 20 min by car · 13 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 13 places to stay in Walhalla · Booking.com

About Walhalla 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 30h 30m

About 30h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → MEL, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 2h 45m by road

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 50 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.