Friends of Turtle Creek members Therese Oldenburg and Terry Meyers took the Visit Beloit (Beloit Convention and Visitor Bureau) staff on a paddle trip from Tiffany Bridge to Town of Turtle Launch on the last day of summer – September 22, 2015. It was a beautiful day on the creek, almost 80 degrees! A great way to cap the summer paddling season!
The new executive director Celestino Ruffini, and Matt Bosen, Erin Clausen, and Andrea Levine joined us on the water. None of them had been on the creek before, and it was a first time for most to paddle a kayak. After some instruction in paddling, and a few shots by the historic bridges (Smith Road Bridge and Tiffany Bridge), we headed out on our paddle.
The creek was at 5′ level due to rain in the previous week, and moved along swiftly, and for once this summer we did not get stuck on any low spots! The swift and higher water had swept away the floating filamentous algae bogs that had covered the creek in July and August (yay!).
The Visit Beloit staff quickly showcased their new paddling skills and easily maneuvered around obstacles and sharp turns in the creek. As we came to the end of our trip we needed to maneuvered around the constuction and warning bouys for the new bridge being built across the creek, and we landed just south of that area. I had checked with the construction work crew before we headed on the creek because I noticed their work was blocking passage on the creek. (see note below)
The Visit Beloit staff really enjoyed their paddle trip and will certainly be able to tell people coming to visit our area about the beauty of Turtle Creek.
Note: the bridge contruction does close the creek navigation during the day and would require a challenging portage around their equipment. We passed by after 4:30pm, when they removed their equipment for the evening.
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