Wisconsin | Northeast Wisconsin
Red River
Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing to Zeimer's Falls Landing
Check current paddling conditions for this Red River route, including water level, recent gauge trend, weather, and route details.
Route snapshot
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Today
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Start with the verdict, current conditions, route plan, and quick facts before you commit to the drive.
Today's conditions
Gauge
Recent trend
Checking preferred range.
Checking trend.
Gauge source
-- Checking timestampMN DNR provides the current paddling level here, but not chart-ready recent samples.
Weather
Best window today
Checking weather.
Today by hour
Short-route forecast
Checking the next several hours.
Quick facts
Plan
Dial in the shuttle, distance, and access.
Use this section once the route looks viable and you need to turn it into an actual trip plan.
Access plan
Access, shuttle, and map
Launch below Weed Dam Powerhouse and paddle the Red River through First Drop, Second Drop, Monastery Falls, and Zeimer's Falls. This is a compact Class III-IV whitewater run, not a casual recreational float.
Put-in
Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing Open mapWisconsin Trail Guide describes Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing as a hand-carry access with parking and a trailer turnaround.
Take-out
Zeimer's Falls Landing Open mapZeimer's Falls Landing is reached from a sand-and-gravel drive off Butternut Road, with parking, trailer turnaround, and a woodchip path down to the river.
Pulling access map tiles. Usually under 5 seconds.
Access caveats
- Wisconsin Trail Guide describes Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing as a hand-carry access with parking and a trailer turnaround.
- Zeimer's Falls Landing is reached from a sand-and-gravel drive off Butternut Road, with parking, trailer turnaround, and a woodchip path down to the river.
- The guide warns that land on either side of Monastery Falls is privately owned; scout or portage from river right and stay on exposed rock ledges.
Watch for
- Dam-release changes from Weed Dam Powerhouse; a horn may sound before release and water can rise quickly.
- Scrappy boulder gardens below about 150 cfs, including possible low-water portage at Monastery Falls.
- Monastery Falls can reach Class IV at high flows, while Zeimer's Falls becomes pushy Class III+ in the high band.
- Treat the Morgan Road USGS gauge as a corridor signal, not a substitute for same-day release and visual checks at the put-in.
Route gallery
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Sources
Check the data behind today's call.
Use this section when the page shows stale data, limited confidence, or a call you want to verify before driving.
Why this score Today's data confidence is checking
Data confidence mostly comes down to three things: how direct the gauge is, how clear the range is, and how fresh the data is.
- Checking data confidence notes.
- Checking data confidence cautions.
Outlook Tomorrow and weekend
This is a cautious early look. If the data is too thin, we leave it out.
Waiting on forecast.
Waiting on forecast.
Data behind the score Gauge, thresholds, and timing
These are the live readings and threshold notes behind today's score.
| Gauge site | Red River at Morgan Road near Morgan, WI |
| Discharge | Checking |
| Gauge height | Checking |
| 24h trend | Checking |
| 24h change | Checking |
| Current band | Checking |
| Rain last 24h | Checking |
| Rain last 72h | Checking |
| Air temp | Checking |
| Water temp | Checking |
| Wind | Checking |
| Gusts | Checking |
| Rain timing | Checking |
| Target band | 150 cfs to 500 cfs |
| Low threshold | 80 cfs |
| High threshold | 1,000 cfs |
| Data confidence behind the range | Local route guidance |
| Gauge observed | Checking |
| Paddle Today updated | Checking |
| Main source behind this score | Wisconsin Trail Guide Red River R1 suggested river levels |
| Gauge source | Checking |
| Weather source | Checking |
| Rainfall source | Checking |
Notes What to know before you go
These notes cover the access details, route quirks, and source caveats most likely to matter once you get there.
- Route-specific guide 2.2 miles; Class III-IV
Wisconsin Trail Guide publishes Red River R1 from Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing to Zeimer's Falls Landing, with Second Drop, Monastery Falls, and Zeimer's Falls as the main features.
- Direct gauge USGS 04077630 at Morgan Road
USGS identifies 04077630 as Red River at Morgan Road near Morgan, WI, with discharge records and a same-river gauge upstream of the Weed Dam / Lower Red Lake release corridor.
- Preferred whitewater window 150 to 500 cfs
Wisconsin Trail Guide treats 150-250 cfs as low-to-medium runnable flow and 250-500 cfs as medium runnable flow where Monastery Falls and Zeimer's Falls produce fun waves.
- High-water ceiling 1000+ cfs not recommended
The guide treats 800-1000 cfs as advanced-only and says above 1000 cfs is rare, unusually high, and not recommended.
- Endpoint coordinates 44.84168, -88.76063 to 44.84287, -88.72289
Wisconsin Trail Guide's Red River R1 PDF publishes NAD83 / WGS84 coordinates for Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing and Zeimer's Falls Landing.
- Dam-release context Weed Dam / Lower Red Lake
Wisconsin Trail Guide says a horn sounds before a release and that water levels can change quickly below the powerhouse.
- Supplemental trip report Red River Park to Highway A at 180 cfs
Wisconsin River Trips documents the overlapping lower Red River whitewater corridor at 180 cfs on the Morgan gauge and notes convenient public access and scouting/portage context near Monastery and Zeimer-style drops.
Verify it yourself Check the source links
Use these links to double-check the gauge, route details, and access notes before you head out.
Paddler reports
Recent notes from paddlers
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Reports
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Quick answers
Red River paddling FAQ
What water level is good for paddling Red River?
Paddle Today watches Red River at Morgan Road near Morgan, WI and treats 150 cfs to 500 cfs as the target band for this route, with weather and recent trend included in the final score.
Where does this Red River route start and end?
This route starts at Weed Dam Powerhouse Landing and ends at Zeimer's Falls Landing, about 2.2 mi on the water.
Is this Red River route good for beginners?
This is listed as a hard route. Treat the live score as a planning aid, then confirm conditions, hazards, access, and group skill before launching.
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Access, hazards, wood, and shuttle details change. Send a quick correction if something looks off.