Minnesota / Wisconsin swimming season?
January 18, 2020 8:36 AM Subscribe
In which months are rivers at all swimmable in southern Minnesota / Wisconsin? Specifically I'm interested in the Cannon River in Red Wing, MN (around where it joins the Mississippi), but please share if you have thoughts re. any similar area.
Asking because of an opportunity to spend a month in Red Wing – I'm trying to figure out during which months I could be there and have river swimming be part of my experience.
Especially: would May be possible and/or would October be possible?
Level: I'm really into wild swimming and I'm not a wetsuit user but I'm good in cold-ish water (e.g. I recently spent a month next to a fjord with low-60s F water temps and ended up logging about 21 very happy hours in there).
Asking because of an opportunity to spend a month in Red Wing – I'm trying to figure out during which months I could be there and have river swimming be part of my experience.
Especially: would May be possible and/or would October be possible?
Level: I'm really into wild swimming and I'm not a wetsuit user but I'm good in cold-ish water (e.g. I recently spent a month next to a fjord with low-60s F water temps and ended up logging about 21 very happy hours in there).
I’m in Wisconsin, last year we got snow mid-April and I was wearing sweaters through May. October was sweater weather and we got snow on the 31st. And I’m by the lakefront, so it was probably worse elsewhere. I’m not sure how that translates to river temperatures, but I would recommend June-August. I’ve had much warmer Mays and Octobers, so it could be totally fine, but it’s really a coin toss.
posted by brook horse at 9:30 AM on January 18, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by brook horse at 9:30 AM on January 18, 2020 [2 favorites]
The water is going to be really bracing in May and October; my creek and river swimming Appalachian self can't handle it at all. Usually my Wisconsin water fun runs from late June through maybe early September but usually mid-August.
I feel like upper Wisconsin is where you can really feel the climate zone shift. I feel it a little in the center-east, but once I am up by Green Bay and further over towards Minnesota it really *feels* different to me.
I will say that there is something almost magical about a REALLY hot day in late Spring or early Fall where the water is so cold it numbs you and the sun and heat when you get out are amazing. I never feel that except up north really, but it is very rare that the two come together like that, IME.
posted by Tchad at 9:36 AM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
I feel like upper Wisconsin is where you can really feel the climate zone shift. I feel it a little in the center-east, but once I am up by Green Bay and further over towards Minnesota it really *feels* different to me.
I will say that there is something almost magical about a REALLY hot day in late Spring or early Fall where the water is so cold it numbs you and the sun and heat when you get out are amazing. I never feel that except up north really, but it is very rare that the two come together like that, IME.
posted by Tchad at 9:36 AM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
I'm a little upriver from Red Wing. May is still chilly and the river would be too cold. October *might* be ok, but I agree with others that it's rare to have the weather be warm enough then that the water would be comfortable. July/August are the most sure months to have decent water temps.
posted by correcaminos at 9:40 AM on January 18, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by correcaminos at 9:40 AM on January 18, 2020 [4 favorites]
Is the Cannon really swimmable where you'll be, in terms of commercial traffic and currents and access?
My hazy childhood memories say probably yes, but the Mississippi is not for swimming in many areas -- so do check that angle, too.
posted by wenestvedt at 10:09 AM on January 18, 2020 [2 favorites]
My hazy childhood memories say probably yes, but the Mississippi is not for swimming in many areas -- so do check that angle, too.
posted by wenestvedt at 10:09 AM on January 18, 2020 [2 favorites]
Best answer: The information you want is available in real time and past history from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources real time river gauge.
Here is the nearest station at Welch, MN which is just upstream of Red Wing.
The default is to show the flow, but if you click on the items for Water Chemistry, they have a column showing water temperature in centigrade.
I looked at past history, they have data going back more than 50 years, it looks like the temperature is above 60 F (about 16 C) from mid May until early September. Typical peak temperature is about 72 F (22 C) around the first of August.
posted by JackFlash at 10:59 AM on January 18, 2020 [6 favorites]
Here is the nearest station at Welch, MN which is just upstream of Red Wing.
The default is to show the flow, but if you click on the items for Water Chemistry, they have a column showing water temperature in centigrade.
I looked at past history, they have data going back more than 50 years, it looks like the temperature is above 60 F (about 16 C) from mid May until early September. Typical peak temperature is about 72 F (22 C) around the first of August.
posted by JackFlash at 10:59 AM on January 18, 2020 [6 favorites]
I live down river of redwing by about an hour. Unless you're extremely tolerant to cold and have a good way to reheat after exiting the water October is a no go outside of atypical heat waves. Even September can be dodgy.
posted by Ferreous at 11:20 AM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Ferreous at 11:20 AM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I just happen to run a multi-agency water quality data portal and therefore can go far to into the weeds if you so desire.
You can go here to get water temperature data from streams for the entire Cannon River watershed. All told, there are 14,395 sample results from 302 sites.
I made a quick pivot table In google sheets that rolls up all the temperature data for day of year, and it matches what JackFlash noted from the main gage- basically May to September.
If you are looking for real-time data, there isn't any real-time USGS temperature data on the Cannon River, but there are a number of gages around with real-time temp, especially in Wisconsin. Here are a few:
ST. CROIX RIVER AT ST. CROIX FALLS, WI
EAU GALLE RIVER AT SPRING VALLEY, WI
MINNEHAHA CREEK AT HIAWATHA AVE. IN MINNEAPOLIS,MN
SHINGLE CREEK AT QUEEN AVE IN MINNEAPOLIS, MN
TROUT CREEK AT TENTH STREET NEAR BLOOMER, WI
SILVER CREEK AT STATE HIGHWAY 21 NEAR ANGELO, WI
posted by rockindata at 3:49 PM on January 18, 2020 [7 favorites]
You can go here to get water temperature data from streams for the entire Cannon River watershed. All told, there are 14,395 sample results from 302 sites.
I made a quick pivot table In google sheets that rolls up all the temperature data for day of year, and it matches what JackFlash noted from the main gage- basically May to September.
If you are looking for real-time data, there isn't any real-time USGS temperature data on the Cannon River, but there are a number of gages around with real-time temp, especially in Wisconsin. Here are a few:
ST. CROIX RIVER AT ST. CROIX FALLS, WI
EAU GALLE RIVER AT SPRING VALLEY, WI
MINNEHAHA CREEK AT HIAWATHA AVE. IN MINNEAPOLIS,MN
SHINGLE CREEK AT QUEEN AVE IN MINNEAPOLIS, MN
TROUT CREEK AT TENTH STREET NEAR BLOOMER, WI
SILVER CREEK AT STATE HIGHWAY 21 NEAR ANGELO, WI
posted by rockindata at 3:49 PM on January 18, 2020 [7 favorites]
Response by poster: Wow, thank you, I love when the exact experts I need come out for my random AskMe <3
posted by kalapierson at 5:00 PM on January 18, 2020
posted by kalapierson at 5:00 PM on January 18, 2020
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